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Steam Deck players angered after new SteamOS update deletes all deadzone settings

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Steam Deck players angered after new SteamOS update deletes all deadzone settings
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Valve has seemingly annoyed the majority of its Steam Deck users today after releasing a new update that brings back deadzone settings to all its games – reversing an old update that was welcomed by the community.

The update went live today and it didn’t take long for users to hit Reddit voicing their annoyance. One Redditor says “I noticed it right away when I hopped on Black Ops 1 today. I reaaaaaally hate updates like this where it messes up your previously established controller values for all your games. Some of them took multiple gameplay hours to properly dial in.“. It seems like a strange move from Valve, especially when you consider how long it takes to fine-tune this particular setting over numerous games.

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Another Redditor says “I wouldn’t have minded much if there was an option to revert to “Raw/None” for all games, permanently like before. It’s really dumb that they went back to a worst default setup.“.

Despite many being annoyed by the new update, Valve is showing no signs of reverting it just yet – meaning, you guessed it, more painstaking hours wasted creating the perfect blend of responsiveness and deadzone. Thanks a bunch Valve.

SteamOS update deletes saved deadzone settings

The update reverts an old SteamOS update which removed deadzone on all games by default, which seemed to be most people’s recommended settings. However, for more competitive titles, fine-tuning the deadzone settings was definitely more desirable. Customizing the deadzone would enable you to remove any annoying false movements or unwanted strafe – especially important when playing FPS games.

At the time of writing this, all deadzone settings have been deleted now, meaning you’ll have to manually fine-tune each individual game from scratch again.

How to check your deadzone settings

If you want to see whether you’ve been affected by the new update – news alert, you probably have – then follow these simple steps:

  • Press the Steam button
  • Go to Settings menu
  • Scroll to “controller” tab
  • Then look for Calibration and advanced settings button
  • Click on Joysticks, if it isn’t already selected
  • In here, you can find the deadzone settings

Here you’ll be able to check and change your settings back to what they once were.

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Charlie is the Affiliate manager for PC Guide. He has a vast understanding of most PC hardware and consumer essentials, using his knowledge to provide the best products and the biggest deals.