DualShock 3 problems

Anyone had a DS3 start to act up? Mine is currently pressing the d-pad on its own frequently enough to piss me off, and I think maybe the face buttons are doing it too, albeit much less often. Like I'll be playing Dark Souls and suddenly it swaps my weapon slots even though my thumb is on the stick. I noticed that if I shake the controller I can make it do it over and over. I've tried it wired and over Bluetooth, on both PS3 and PC, and it does it in all cases.

I assume the answer is to just go buy a new one, but I thought I'd ask if anyone else ran into this problem (especially if you were able to fix it by taking the controller apart). Google searches didn't turn up anything useful, which I thought was strange.

Wish PS3 support for the DS4 wasn't so shitty still, sigh. I'd much rather buy one of those and have it for when I finally get a PS4.

Thanks, adding "foam" to my search for the problem came up with some hits that were actually relevant. Going to try doing what they suggest before I trek out to Gamestop in shitty weather and buy a new one.

Sean_sl said:

So far it's worked for all of my recently released games except GTAV.

Here's also some lists of games people have compiled so far that work:

List of known compatible PS3 games for the Dualshock 4 - NeoGAF

DualShock 4 Compatible PlayStation 3 Games - PlayStation 4 Wiki Guide - IGN

Are there any glaring omissions of games that don't work that prevent you from buying a DS4? It seems to work on most stuff.

Click to expand...

Well, the fact that it doesn't work with GTA V makes me concerned about the games coming out this year; e.g. Lightning Returns. I would hate to buy a DS4 and run into a 2014 game it doesn't work with and then have to go buy a new DS3 too. Plus I do own GTA V and there is some story DLC coming out sooner or later that I will probably buy because I'm a sucker.

That's not the main issue though. My understanding it that it's not seen as an official licensed PS3 controller and so it doesn't work with Bluetooth (you have to plug it in all the time which goes against the current rule-of-thumb for Li-Ion batteries, and also fuck using wired controllers in 2014, I don't even do that on my PC), there's no rumble or motion controls, and the PS button does not work. I have a PS3 blu-ray remote so I could work around the lack of PS button, but the rest of that is a deal-breaker. Sony just needs to issue a new firmware that fully recognizes the DS4, it can't be that hard. There was a PS3 firmware update a couple days ago, but afaik it did nothing for controller support.

That said, I just finished reassembling my DS3 after putting some electrical tape on the foam pad and so far it is working properly again. Hopefully I can just go back to waiting for Sony to update the PS3 for full DS4 compatibility.

I use MotionInJoy with a USB Bluetooth dongle on my PC to connect my DS3. If the Logitech controller you have is an officially licensed controller, you could try using it with MiJ. You should also try x360ce since your problem could be that the games want XInput rather than DirectInput, and x360ce emulates that.

Otherwise there's three main options if you're buying a whole new controller (or if you already own a 360):

1. DS4, wired or Bluetooth, works great. I believe X360ce is required for XInput emulation. Not sure if MiJ works with it at all.
2. DS3, wired or Bluetooth. MiJ required for proper XInput emulation and for Bluetooth connectivity.
3. 360 controller. Nothing special required, other than a tolerance for bad design. You can either use the model specifically labeled "for Windows" or a standard one with the Wireless Gaming Receiver for Windows.

^ What my MiJ looks like (wired connection because it's charging). I find the simplest way to see if it's currently connected properly is to press the Vibration Testing button. If the rumble works, it's connected. If not, click Game Controller Panel and then Properties to try and troubleshoot from there.

As for getting the Bluetooth working, I just followed the stepshere. Be aware that MiJ fully takes over your BT dongle. You won't be able to connect your phone or any other devices to your PC without disabling the MiJ Bluetooth driver.

It's probably not compatible then. I'd suggest tryingx360cebut I don't think there's much hope of getting it to work wireless without MiJ support.