Insurgency: Sandstorm on a Mac with a controller
The Insurgency: Sandstorm layout is built into InputConfig, free on the Mac App Store. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon.
On a Mac: No Mac version. It streams to a Mac through GeForce NOW or a Windows PC you own. The stream normally passes a controller to the game's native scheme. This layout is for streams that do not see the pad.
Yes, Insurgency: Sandstorm plays on a Mac with a controller, through GeForce NOW or a stream from a Windows PC. Steam lists full controller support, so a stream that passes the pad needs nothing else. This layout is for the one that does not, and since Sandstorm kills you in one or two rounds, it is about not being seen: lean on both bumpers and the grenade on a stick click where you will not press it by accident.
On this page: 9 sections
The layout, control by control
How the layout thinks
- Move and look. The left stick walks on W, A, S and D. The right stick moves the mouse at speed 16 across and 13 up and down.
- Shoot. The right trigger fires and the left trigger aims. Reload on the left face button (R).
- Lean. Lean left on the left bumper (Q) and right on the right bumper (E).
- Move. Jump on the bottom button (Space), crouch on the right (C), sprint on the left stick click (Shift).
- Use and gear. Use on the top face button (F). Primary on D-pad up (1), secondary on down (2), melee on left (V), interact on right (F). Grenade on the right stick click (G).
- Menus. The map on Back (M), menu on Start (Escape).
It shares its bones with the Ready or Not layout, because the two games ask for the same hands. Leaning is on the bumpers, so peeking a corner never moves your thumbs.
Tune it
- Fire mode. Put its key on a chord row, so it never changes by accident.
- Prone. Add Z as a chord row on the crouch button, so crouch held with your chord button goes prone.
A chord keeps rare keys off the buttons you press in a firefight.
If the game sees the pad
Through GeForce NOW the game normally takes your pad directly, and its own controller settings apply. Use that, with this preset off. Press Activate only if the stream does not pass the pad, and never run both, or every press does two things.
The game's own controller settings come first.
Insurgency: Sandstorm controller support: controller or keyboard
Steam's store page lists full controller support for Insurgency: Sandstorm, so the game was made to be played on a controller, menus included. A keyboard and mouse work as well, and the choice is yours. On a Mac, use the game's own controller support first when it sees your pad; this layout is for a pad it does not see, or for buttons it will not let you move. Full support listed means the controller is a first-class way to play Insurgency: Sandstorm.
From Steam's listing, checked in October 2026. Every game's listing is in Mac games with controller support.
If your controller is not working in Insurgency: Sandstorm
When Insurgency: Sandstorm does not react to your controller on a Mac, climb this ladder, smallest step first:
- Check that the Mac sees the controller. Open the gamepad tester and press a button. If nothing lights up there, the problem is the connection, and a controller that is connected but not working covers that first.
- Press a button after the stream has started. A stream only picks up a controller that is paired with the Mac, and a browser shows a controller to a page only after a button press. Start Insurgency: Sandstorm, then press any button. Streaming from your own PC has its own checks, in how to stream PC games to a Mac with a controller.
- Play it from keys. If Insurgency: Sandstorm still ignores the pad, activate this layout. It sends the keyboard and mouse controls Insurgency: Sandstorm already reads. Turn the game's own controller option off while it runs, or a press can arrive twice. The layout works whether or not Insurgency: Sandstorm ever sees the controller.
Get it in two clicks
- Get InputConfig free on the Mac App Store, open it, and click Smart Preset Maker on the welcome screen.
- Search for Insurgency: Sandstorm and pick it. The layout is created as a preset in your sidebar, named and ready.
- Press Activate. Every row can be changed afterwards: the editor's Scan button rebinds any control the moment you touch it.
To check the controller itself first, the gamepad tester shows every button and stick live in your browser.
Insurgency: Sandstorm controls: every button and the key it sends
The Sends column is Insurgency: Sandstorm's default keyboard and mouse controls, as this layout expects them. If you changed a key in the game's settings, change the same row in InputConfig.
| Controller | Sends | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Left stick left | A | Move left (A) |
| Left stick right | D | Move right (D) |
| Left stick up | W | Move forward (W) |
| Left stick down | S | Move back (S) |
| Right stick right | Mouse motion right (speed 16) | Look right |
| Right stick left | Mouse motion left (speed 16) | Look left |
| Right stick down | Mouse motion down (speed 13) | Look down |
| Right stick up | Mouse motion up (speed 13) | Look up |
| Right trigger | Left click | Fire |
| Left trigger | Right click | Aim down sights |
| A / Cross | Space | Jump |
| B / Circle | C | Crouch (C) |
| X / Square | R | Reload (R) |
| Y / Triangle | F | Use (F) |
| LB / L1 | Q | Lean left (Q) |
| RB / R1 | E | Lean right (E) |
| Back / Share / Select | M | Map (M) |
| Start / Options | Escape | Menu (Esc) |
| L3 (left stick click) | Shift (Left) | Sprint (Shift) |
| R3 (right stick click) | G | Grenade (G) |
| D-pad up | 1 | Primary (1) |
| D-pad down | 2 | Secondary (2) |
| D-pad left | V | Melee (V) |
| D-pad right | F | Interact (F) |
Button names follow the Xbox / PlayStation pair shown in the editor, so A / Cross is the bottom face button on either pad. On a Switch Pro Controller the bottom button is labeled B; the mapping still fires on position.
Questions
Does Insurgency: Sandstorm run on a Mac?
Insurgency: Sandstorm does not run natively on a Mac. GeForce NOW or a PC stream carries it, and either usually passes a controller through. This layout covers a stream that does not see the pad.
Does Insurgency: Sandstorm support controllers on PC?
Yes, Steam lists full controller support, so through GeForce NOW the game normally takes your pad directly and its own controller settings apply. This layout is for streams that do not pass the pad, and for leaning and grenades on buttons you choose.
Does Insurgency: Sandstorm have controller support?
Yes. Steam lists full controller support for Insurgency: Sandstorm, so every part of the game can be played on a controller.
Is Insurgency: Sandstorm better with a controller or a keyboard?
Both work. Steam lists full controller support for Insurgency: Sandstorm, so it was made to be played on a controller, and a keyboard and mouse work as well.
Why is my controller not working in Insurgency: Sandstorm on a Mac?
First check the Mac itself sees the controller, with the gamepad tester. If it does and Insurgency: Sandstorm still ignores it, activate the Insurgency: Sandstorm layout in InputConfig, which sends the game's keyboard and mouse controls from the controller.
Can I play Insurgency: Sandstorm on an M1 Mac or a MacBook Air?
Yes, through a stream. Insurgency: Sandstorm runs on the other end, on a cloud service or your own PC, so the Mac only plays the video and sends your input. An M1 MacBook Air streams it like any other Mac.
Related
Completely free. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon. Open source on GitHub.
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