Questions
Controller connected but not working on a Mac
The Mac seeing a controller and a game seeing it are two different things. If System Settings, Bluetooth says connected and nothing moves in the game, the game is not looking for a controller, is looking for a different one, or is running somewhere the controller does not reach. Find your case below.
First, prove the controller is live
System Settings, General, Game Controllers (macOS 13 and later) shows every connected pad and lights up buttons as you press them. If it does not react there, the problem is pairing: forget the controller in Bluetooth, restart it, pair again, and make sure it is not still paired with a console. If it does react, the Mac side is fine and it is the game.
The game has no controller support
The most common case, and the one no setting fixes. Older Mac games, indie games built for a keyboard, strategy games, browser games, and anything that is not a game at all. The fix is to map the controller to the keys and mouse the game already understands with InputConfig, which is free and ships with layouts for more than 450 games and apps. The game never knows a controller is involved.
The game supports controllers, just not yours
Some games only recognise Xbox-style pads, and a few list specific models. A DualSense or a Switch Pro Controller will show up as a generic gamepad or not at all. Try Steam Input if the game is on Steam (see below); otherwise InputConfig again, which makes any pad send whatever the game wants.
It is a Steam game
Steam sits between the controller and the game. Open Steam, Settings, Controller, and make sure PlayStation, Xbox, or Switch support is on for your pad. Steam also needs Input Monitoring permission in System Settings, Privacy and Security, on recent macOS. Some Mac games ignore Steam Input entirely; for those, turn Steam Input off for that game and use InputConfig instead so you do not get two inputs at once. The Steam page goes deeper.
It is a Windows game through CrossOver or Game Porting Toolkit
The translation layer often does not pass the controller into the Windows game, or passes it as something the game does not recognise. Mapping to the keyboard with InputConfig works because keys always get through. The CrossOver page has the specifics.
It is a browser or cloud game
Safari, Chrome, and Firefox pass controllers to web pages through the Gamepad API, and Xbox Cloud Gaming and GeForce NOW use it. It usually works. When it does not, or when a web game only takes keys, InputConfig maps the pad to the keyboard and the browser is none the wiser.
Questions
Why does my Mac see my controller but the game does not?
The game does not support controllers, or not yours, or it runs through a layer (Steam, CrossOver, a browser) that is not passing it through. Mapping the controller to the keyboard with InputConfig works in every one of those cases.
Is there a way to test whether a controller works on a Mac?
System Settings, General, Game Controllers lights up buttons as you press them. InputConfig's Live Visualizer shows every axis and button live, and the deadzone tool on this site reads a controller in the browser.
Do I need to restart the Mac?
Almost never. Forgetting and re-pairing the controller, or powering it off and on, fixes the Bluetooth cases.
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