Manor Lords on a Mac with a controller
The Manor Lords 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 runs through CrossOver or the Game Porting Toolkit. The game has no controller support, so this layout is how a pad plays it.
Yes, Manor Lords plays on a Mac with a controller, in a wrapper and with this layout. It is a city builder you watch, and watching is what a controller is good for: the camera on the left stick, the pointer on the right, and time on the face buttons. Pause to plan, speed up to build, slow down when the raiders show up.
On this page: 9 sections
The layout, control by control
How the layout thinks
- Camera and pointer. The left stick pans the camera (W, A, S and D) and the right stick moves the pointer. The bumpers zoom.
- Place and cancel. The right trigger places and confirms (left click), the left trigger cancels (right click).
- Time. Pause is the bottom face button (Space), speed up the right (X), and slow down the left (Z).
- Build tools. The top face button opens the construction menu (C). The D-pad opens roads (R), housing plots (H), military recruitment (U) and the army view (V).
- Views. Back opens the region map (M), the left stick click jumps the camera to town (T), and the right stick click toggles the info overlay (Tab). Escape is on Options.
Time is on the face buttons, so you can stop the world with your thumb whenever the raiders arrive.
Tune it
- A slow pointer. Plot corners are precise. Add right stick rows at half the Speed as chords on a back paddle or the touchpad press.
- Camera rotate. Put Q and E on chords with the left stick.
A half-speed pointer is what makes a plot corner land where you meant.
The short version
- Run it. Start Manor Lords in CrossOver or the Game Porting Toolkit.
- Activate the layout. The game reads no controller, so nothing doubles.
- Add the slow pointer. Then plan with the game paused.
A city builder you mostly watch is a city builder a pad plays well.
Manor Lords controller support: controller or keyboard
Steam's store page lists no controller support for Manor Lords, so it was made for a keyboard and mouse, and that is how it expects to be played. A controller still works: this layout sends the game's keys and mouse movement from the pad, so to the game you are simply typing and pointing. No controller support listed means the layout does the work, not the game.
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 Manor Lords
When Manor Lords 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.
- Expect less inside a wrapper. In CrossOver or the Game Porting Toolkit, Wine passes a controller to Manor Lords only some of the time, and the keyboard and mouse get through every time. Using a controller with CrossOver games has the checks.
- Stop looking for a setting. Manor Lords reads the keyboard and mouse here, so no option makes it see a pad. Activate this layout, and the controller sends the keys and mouse movement Manor Lords already reads. The layout works without Manor Lords ever seeing 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 Manor Lords 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.
Manor Lords controls: every button and the key it sends
The Sends column is Manor Lords'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 | Pan camera left (A) |
| Left stick right | D | Pan camera right (D) |
| Left stick up | W | Pan camera forward (W) |
| Left stick down | S | Pan camera back (S) |
| Right stick right | Mouse motion right (speed 20) | Move pointer right |
| Right stick left | Mouse motion left (speed 20) | Move pointer left |
| Right stick down | Mouse motion down (speed 16) | Move pointer down |
| Right stick up | Mouse motion up (speed 16) | Move pointer up |
| Right trigger | Left click | Right trigger: left click / place |
| Left trigger | Right click | Left trigger: right click / cancel |
| RB / R1 | Scroll up | RB/R1: zoom in (scroll up) |
| LB / L1 | Scroll down | LB/L1: zoom out (scroll down) |
| A / Cross | Space | A/Cross: Pause time (Space) |
| B / Circle | X | B/Circle: Speed up time (X) |
| X / Square | Z | X/Square: Slow down time (Z) |
| Y / Triangle | C | Y/Triangle: Construction menu (C) |
| Back / Share / Select | M | Back/Share: Region map (M) |
| Start / Options | Escape | Start/Options: Pause / menu (Esc) |
| L3 (left stick click) | T | L3: Jump camera to town (T) |
| R3 (right stick click) | Tab | R3: Toggle UI info overlay (Tab) |
| D-pad up | R | D-pad Up: Roads tool (R) |
| D-pad down | H | D-pad Down: Housing plot (H) |
| D-pad left | U | D-pad Left: Military recruitment (U) |
| D-pad right | V | D-pad Right: Army view (V) |
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 Manor Lords support controllers?
No. This layout is the controller support, through the mouse and keyboard the game expects.
Is Manor Lords on Mac?
Manor Lords does not run natively on a Mac. Steam lists it for Windows only. On a Mac it needs a Windows layer such as CrossOver, or a stream from a PC you own. Either way, this layout gives it the controller support the game does not have.
Does Manor Lords have controller support?
Not by itself. Steam lists no controller support for Manor Lords. A controller still works through a layout like this one, which sends the game's keys.
Is Manor Lords better with a controller or a keyboard?
It was made for a keyboard and mouse: Steam lists no controller support for Manor Lords. A controller still works through this layout, which sends the game's own keys and mouse movement.
Why is my controller not working in Manor Lords on a Mac?
Manor Lords reads the keyboard and mouse on this route, so no setting makes it see a controller. Check the Mac sees the pad with the gamepad tester, then activate the Manor Lords layout in InputConfig, which sends the game's keys and mouse movement from the controller.
Can I play Manor Lords on an M1 Mac or a MacBook Air?
Manor Lords has no Mac version, so it runs through a wrapper such as CrossOver or the Game Porting Toolkit, and how well depends on the Mac's chip and memory. I have not tested it on each 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.
Updated