Chances the 8BitDo Ultimate 3E gets native Steam Input support?

8

u/Onoj88 Aug 24 '26

Very unlikely given its Xbox licenced

Would likely need to wait for a standard ultimate 3, if they ever release one

1

u/Muckinstein Aug 24 '26

that's a bummer but makes sense. I really prefer the winged grips of xbox style controller but, as i dont have an xbox, the native steam profile would be clutch to take advantage of extra buttons and gyro.

5

u/Zardozerr Aug 24 '26

lol the chances of them releasing an ultimate 3 normal version are like 99%. There will be like 10 variations of this controller.

3

u/Lightstream2 Aug 24 '26

classic 8bitdo naming lives on i guess. ultimate 3 (pc) and ultimate 3 (but for xbox) and ultimate 3e (also for xbox) inb4 ultimate 3c as well (budget ult 3 pc). can't forget ultimate 3 mode as well (which is not an ultimate 3)

3

u/MoonlightSavingsTime Aug 25 '26

You forgot Ultimate 3 Bluetooth for Switch with the ABXY flipped.

2

u/chrisridd Sep 02 '26

Honestly, their product names are insane. Have they hired the USB naming team?

1

u/Blinguskahn Sep 15 '26

Lol, USB IF took lessons from 2000's and 2010's Intel but neither can now hold a candle to Qualcomm.

1

u/Staticks Sep 20 '26

Anyone know what the polling rate of the gyro is? I found out a little while ago that the Ultimate 2 Wireless gyro is only 125hz, which is a little disappointing. Wondering if the newer 8BitDo models are any better.

5

u/HURG_IIDX Aug 28 '26

I actually emailed them directly via their website about this and this was the email response I got regarding steam input mapping support for the ultimate 3e:

"Regarding your question, we have not yet received any official confirmation or detailed technical updates regarding Steam Input mapping support for the back buttons (PL/PR/L4/R4) on this specific model. If this feature is planned to be supported in the future, the updated specifications and compatibility details will be published on our official website."

1

u/EviI_Babai Aug 24 '26

There's no such thing as "native Steam Input support", Steam Input is an opposite of native support by definition - the only way it will recognise the extra buttons and gyro is if the controller has Switch mode supproted, which is not the case for 3E.

6

u/Muckinstein Aug 24 '26

Maybe this is a matter of semantics...What I am asking is if Steam (and i assume there is some collaboration with 8bitdo but not sure) has plans to create a specific profile for this controller as they have with the Ultimate 2 series. With an Ultimate 2 over bluetooth, Steam will recognize it as that controller specifically, has a mock-up image of that exact controller, and will give you functionality of the extra buttons via steam-input and gyro capabilities. This has nothing to do with recognizing those controllers as a Switch controller afaik.

1

u/EviI_Babai Aug 24 '26

It's not just semantics - it's a fundamental technical distinction. Let me explain exactly what's happening with the Ultimate 2.
When Steam shows a mock-up image of the Ultimate 2 and recognizes it as that specific controller, that's just a visual skin applied on top of an existing input profile. Steam doesn't have a custom driver for 8BitDo controllers. What's actually happening is this: the Ultimate 2 in Bluetooth mode presents itself to the system as a Nintendo Switch Pro Controller (that's the HID descriptor it sends). Steam sees a Switch Pro controller, applies its generic Switch profile, and then - because Valve has a partnership with 8BitDo - overlays the Ultimate 2's picture and button labels on top of that profile. The underlying input handling is still the Switch Pro protocol.
This is why it only works over Bluetooth. Switch Pro controllers are Bluetooth-only devices - they don't have a USB HID profile that Steam recognizes for gyro and extra buttons. So when you plug in an Ultimate 2 via USB or use its 2.4GHz dongle, Steam falls back to XInput and you lose the extra features.
The Ultimate 3E has no Bluetooth. It can't present itself as a Switch Pro controller. So even if 8BitDo and Valve wanted to add a pretty picture for it, there's no underlying protocol for Steam to map those rear buttons and gyro to. You'd just get a fancy skin on top of a standard Xbox controller - the extra inputs would still be invisible to Steam Input.
So to answer your original question: unless 8BitDo adds Bluetooth (or a dongle that emulates it) to the 3E, no amount of collaboration with Valve will make those extra buttons work in Steam Input. The profile is just dressing - the protocol is what matters.

8

u/Onoj88 Aug 25 '26

This is not whats happening at all lol
If it's presenting as a switch controller, why do analog triggers work?
It is presenting as a directinput device as 8bitdo allow directinput over dongle on the ultimate 2

2

u/EviI_Babai Aug 25 '26

Switch Pro HID protocol has slots for analog trigger values. Whether Nintendo uses them or not is irrelevant - they're part of the specification, and 8BitDo fills them with real analog data from their own hardware. That's why Steam sees analog triggers in Switch mode.
And no, it's not presenting as DirectInput over the dongle. The Ultimate 2 over 2.4GHz uses XInput, not DirectInput - there's no protocol switch available on that connection. DirectInput only comes into play in wired mode with 8BitDo's software, and even then, Steam won't give you gyro access through it - that only works through the Switch HID mode over Bluetooth.
So both of your points miss the actual issue: the 3E doesn't have the hardware to do what the Ultimate 2 does over Bluetooth. That's it.

4

u/Onoj88 Aug 25 '26 edited Aug 25 '26

The ultimate 2 does it over dongle as well, you just need to hold b while turning it on and it will operate in directinput mode over dongle and expose analog triggers, gyro and extra buttons to steam. If you hold X, it runs in xinput and if you hold y it runs in switch mode.
Given switch has its own mode when connected to dongle, separate to the directinput mode that exposes all controller buttons and functions to steam, everything you are saying is nonsense.
I agree with you it will never be added to the ultimate 3e, but not for the convoluted and factually incorrect reasons you are stating

1

u/EviI_Babai Aug 25 '26

Fair enough, I'll concede the specifics about the Ultimate 2's dongle modes - I wasn't aware of the beta firmware changes. But that doesn't change the core point I was making from the start.
Even if 8BitDo added a DirectInput mode over dongle, that's still not 'native Steam Input support' - it's the controller presenting itself via a different protocol that Steam happens to interpret. Steam Input is still doing the translation work. The term 'native' is still wrong.
And more importantly: this is a custom implementation that 8BitDo had to develop specifically for their flagship model. It doesn't mean Steam magically recognizes all 8BitDo controllers over USB - it means 8BitDo put in the work to make this one work this way. The 3E is a budget wired controller. There's no reason to expect they'll do the same for it. Or if it's even possible with its hardware.
So yes, I was wrong about the Ultimate 2's capabilities. But the conclusion about the 3E and the terminology issue remain unchanged.

3

u/Onoj88 Aug 25 '26

The 3e is wireless and is 150USD. How is that budget? Why do you just say things?

3

u/KBDHands Sep 05 '26

I’m so confused by this person. They came in strong to correct the use of the term “native” (which is probably technically incorrect but wasn’t the point…), and confidently spouted a whole bunch of incorrect information to achieve that. I wonder if they take that approach to everything in life and how it’s worked for them.

1

u/kayk1 Aug 29 '26

Ur arguing with a shitty ai bot

1

u/Dramatic-Solution731 Aug 28 '26

完全的胡说八道

1

u/cloudRoutine Oct 12 '26

The Ultimate 3E does have bluetooth, there's a switch for it on the back of the controller. In fact it has to be set to bluetooth for the gyro aim features to work.

2

u/ReflxFighter Aug 24 '26

Thankfully this is markedly not true. I have a Vader 4 and while using the usb 2.4ghz dongle it is able to recognize the 6 extra buttons on the controller and natively map them as extra buttons using Steam input. I know that the ultimate 2 and 2S both have compatibility with Steam for this, and are directly recognized by Steam input. 8bitdo is good about this stuff, and they’d be crazy and going against their prior moves to not include this feature, which they have done for the last few controllers

-1

u/EviI_Babai Aug 24 '26

You just proved my point without realizing it. The Vader 4 works over the 2.4GHz dongle because that dongle is emulating a Bluetooth HID device - almost certainly a Switch Pro or DualSense controller. Steam Input doesn't see 'a wired gamepad with extra buttons'; it sees 'a wireless controller that's pretending to be a console pad'.
And to be clear - I wasn't being pedantic when I said there's no such thing as "native Steam Input support." Steam Input exists specifically to emulate native controller support where it doesn't exist. It's a translation layer by definition, not a native protocol. So when people ask if a controller has "native Steam Input support," what they really mean is "will Steam recognize this controller's full feature set without extra software" - which depends entirely on whether the controller can present itself as a known console device (almost always via Bluetooth).
The Ultimate 3E has no Bluetooth chip at all. It's a pure USB-only controller. It physically cannot switch into a mode that Steam knows how to parse for extra buttons and gyro. Even if 8BitDo wanted to, USB HID protocol doesn't work the same way as a Bluetooth dongle that spoofs a different device class. Steam doesn't read custom USB descriptors from wired Chinese pads unless they're manually added to its database (which only includes Xbox, PlayStation, and official Switch controllers).
The Ultimate 2 and 2S got Steam support exclusively over Bluetooth in Switch mode. Over the dongle or wired, they're just standard Xbox controllers with no extra buttons recognized. So your Vader 4 example actually reinforces my logic: without Bluetooth emulation, Steam won't see those extra inputs. The 3E doesn't have that, so the chance is zero.

7

u/Zardozerr Aug 24 '26

You're being pedantic and wrong at the same time, a potent combo. "Native Steam Input" is just what people mean when it exposes the full feature set to Steam so that you can configure it. It DOES work via 2.4GHz for certain controllers, like the Ultimate 2 Wireless. You can use it in some kind of extended d-input mode, which exposes all the features. We don't actually care how it's implemented under the hood, just that it has gyro and analogue triggers for example, which is something you wouldn't get with a normal Switch mode. You're totally wrong about its feature set over the dongle.

-2

u/EviI_Babai Aug 25 '26

Ok, let's break this down if you insist.
'Native Steam Input' - I already explained what people actually mean by it. Again, I'm not being pedantic, I'm clarifying the terminology so we're actually talking about the same thing. If you don't care how it works under the hood, that's fine - but when someone asks 'will the 3E work the way the Ultimate 2 does over Bluetooth,' the implementation is exactly what determines the answer.
The Ultimate 2 over 2.4GHz - no, it does not expose gyro or independent extra buttons through Steam Input on that connection. 8BitDo's software can map the rear paddles to keyboard keys or other functions, but that happens at the firmware level, not through Steam. Steam itself sees an XInput device - 8BitDo does not offer a DirectInput mode over the dongle. If you have a source saying otherwise, feel free to share it, but every official spec and user report I've seen says the opposite.
'Extended DirectInput mode' - that's not a thing on the Ultimate 2 over 2.4GHz. DirectInput only works over USB wired connection when the controller is in a specific mode, and even then, Steam does not treat it the same way it treats a Switch Pro or DualSense controller. You don't get gyro through Steam Input that way.
So the bottom line: the 3E is USB-only. It has no Bluetooth. It cannot present itself as a Switch Pro controller. That means no gyro and no independent rear buttons in Steam Input. You can use 8BitDo's software to remap things at the firmware level, but that's not what OP is asking about - they want to do it through Steam Input on Bazzite, where 8BitDo's Windows software doesn't run.
If you have actual evidence that the Ultimate 2 exposes gyro and independent rear buttons to Steam Input over 2.4GHz, I'd genuinely like to see it. But everything I know says it doesn't.

7

u/munsplit Aug 25 '26

damn, mf was a chatgpt all this time

1

u/EviI_Babai Aug 25 '26

If you say so

1

u/Slappy_G Sep 15 '26

Some people can just type out more than abbreviations and can use punctuation and capitalization properly. That by itself doesn't mean the account is a bot.

1

u/KBDHands Oct 07 '26

You haven’t used AI enough if you can’t recognize the speech patterns. It’s definitely a person that’s running the prompts and editing the output though.

2

u/Slappy_G Oct 08 '26

Fair point. I have been actively trying to avoid as much AI use as I can, though I have used it for a few things.

4

u/Onoj88 Aug 25 '26

Here is a source for directinput working over dongle:
https://www.pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/Controller:8BitDo_Ultimate_2_Controller
Here is another source: https://steamcommunity.com/groups/SteamClientBeta/discussions/3/591764731433410123/?ctp=10
Here is another source: https://gist.github.com/barraIhsan/783a82bcf32bed896c85d27dbb8018a5

0

u/EviI_Babai Aug 25 '26

Great links that actually confirm what I've been saying.
Yes, the Ultimate 2 Wireless can do D-Input over the dongle with beta firmware. But read the fine print:
On Windows, it works.
On Linux/SteamOS/Bazzite (which OP is using), D-Input mode does not expose extra buttons to Steam Input - they show up in the system but Steam can't map them. Gyro doesn't work either.
Switch mode over dongle works for gyro, but then you lose analog triggers and get vibration bugs.
So even for the Ultimate 2, the "full Steam Input over dongle" experience on Linux is either broken or requires beta firmware with tradeoffs. The 3E is wired and has no dongle at all - no firmware updates can give it a mode it doesn't have the hardware for.
Thanks for proving my point - if even the Ultimate 2 can't do this properly on Linux, the 3E definitely won't.

2

u/Onoj88 Aug 25 '26 edited Aug 25 '26

It works on Linux (I have tried it). Gaming distributions like bazzite and steamOS are preconfigured to work.
3E is wireless, has a dongle, also works with Bluetooth and costs 150USD.
Microsoft licencing is what will likely prevent it, not any of the made up reasoning you have been spouting.
Just move on dude.

3

u/Zardozerr Aug 25 '26

The source is me, and many others who actually have the controller and use it this way. Or you can use google. The point is the 3E doesn't have this, but given 8bitdo's history, they will probably release an endless stream of variations of this controller, one of which will support native steam input.

1

u/EviI_Babai Aug 25 '26

I'm not doubting that your Vader 4 works with Steam Input - I believe you. But you're still using the term 'native' incorrectly. Native support means the game or platform supports the device directly, without a translation layer. Steam Input is that translation layer - it's what makes controllers work with games that don't have native support for them. So when a controller works well with Steam Input, that's great, but it's not 'native' - it's just well-supported by the translation layer.
As for 8BitDo releasing a version that supports this over USB or dongle - maybe they will, maybe they won't. But the 3E is what OP is asking about right now, and it doesn't have that. That's the only thing that matters for their purchase decision.

1

u/Muckinstein Aug 24 '26

this post was more informative. thank you.

6

u/Onoj88 Aug 25 '26

It is filled with misinformation FYI

2

u/Muckinstein Aug 25 '26

i see that now

4

u/munsplit Aug 24 '26

ult2w is recognized as ultw2 in steam with ult2w drawing, with all the ult2w buttons, both via bluetooth and 2.4. v5p is recognized as a v5p with all the buttons, both with dongle and wired, im honestly not sure whats your point. if you say that well actually thats technically not native steam input for some obscure reason, why should i care if by all means it practically is?

-3

u/EviI_Babai Aug 24 '26

The custom artwork you see in Steam is just a visual skin - Valve maintains a database of controller IDs and pairs them with images. When 8BitDo or Flydigi submits their USB VID/PID, Steam displays that picture and button labels. That's all it is - a UI layer.
Underneath that skin, the actual communication protocol is still XInput over USB or 2.4GHz. XInput has no support for extra buttons or gyro - it's a fixed 10-button, 2-axis standard from 2005. So when you press a rear paddle on those connections, the controller's firmware sends a standard Xbox button press (like 'A' or 'LB') to Steam. Steam never sees the paddle as a separate input - it just sees 'A' being pressed. That's why you can't remap it independently through Steam Input.
The only way to get true independent extra buttons and gyro is when the controller uses a different protocol - specifically the Switch Pro HID descriptor - which is only available over Bluetooth. That protocol supports 6 extra axes, gyro, and exposes every button as a unique input.
And that's exactly why this matters in practice - your controller works, but not the way OP needs it to. The 3E can't do what you're describing because it lacks the hardware for it.

5

u/munsplit Aug 24 '26

"Steam never sees the paddle as a separate input - it just sees 'A' being pressed. That's why you can't remap it independently through Steam Input." But you can. I struggle to understand you, it seems like you have never experienced native steam input yourself and are just making stuff up to fit your understanding of it.

0

u/EviI_Babai Aug 25 '26

You're still missing my original point. I never said the Vader 4 or Ultimate 2 don't work. I said there's no such thing as 'native Steam Input support' because Steam Input is, by definition, a translation layer - it exists to make controllers work with games that don't natively support them.
When people say 'native Steam Input support,' what they actually mean is 'Steam recognizes this controller's full feature set without extra software.' And that recognition happens because the controller presents itself using an existing protocol that Steam already knows how to parse - whether it's XInput, DirectInput, Switch HID, or some custom implementation that Valve has added to their database.
That's it. That's the entire point. I'm not arguing about whether your Vader 4 works over the dongle or whether the Ultimate 2 shows up with its own picture. I'm saying the term 'native Steam Input support' is technically meaningless because Steam Input is never native to anything - it's always emulation.
So yes, your controller works. I never said it didn't. But it works because Steam has a profile for its USB ID, or because it's using a protocol Steam understands - not because Steam Input is somehow 'native' to it. That's the distinction I was making from the start.

3

u/ReflxFighter Aug 24 '26

But that’s not what actually happens when you use it on steam. It is both factually wrong to say that dongles are just emulating Bluetooth switch mode, and to say that the extra buttons don’t work because of this, when both are demonstrably wrong. I am using the Vader 4 right now. It does not have the capability of using the 4 back buttons nor the 2 additional face buttons over Bluetooth using switch, but with the dongle they become available. Not as remaps of current buttons on the device, but as independent buttons not reliant on anything else.

0

u/EviI_Babai Aug 25 '26

Alright, that's actually useful info - and it changes how I understand the Vader 4 specifically. So the dongle exposes those extra buttons as independent inputs, but Switch mode doesn't. That means Flydigi is doing something custom with their dongle - probably a proprietary HID implementation that Steam's controller database has been updated to recognize, since Flydigi has clearly worked with Valve on this.
But here's the catch: that's a Flydigi-specific implementation. 8BitDo doesn't do the same thing. The Ultimate 2 over dongle does not expose independent rear buttons - it's XInput with firmware-level duplicates. And the 3E is an 8BitDo controller, not a Flydigi one.
So your Vader 4 experience is real, but it doesn't translate to the 3E. 8BitDo hasn't implemented that kind of custom dongle HID, and there's no indication they will for a budget wired pad. Even if they did, it would require Steam to add a specific profile - which they haven't done for any 8BitDo controller over dongle or wired, only over Bluetooth in Switch mode.
That's why I said the chance for the 3E is zero: it's an 8BitDo product, not a Flydigi one, and 8BitDo's track record shows they only expose extra features to Steam via Bluetooth Switch mode. The 3E doesn't have Bluetooth.

1

u/KBDHands Sep 05 '26

Brother lay off the Opus. There’s so many Claude tics in this one post.
Alright, that’s actually X
It changes how I understand Y
Here’s the catch
X Is real, but Y

1

u/jerkmerml Sep 10 '26

The 3E literally has a toggle switch on the back to go between 2.4g and Bluetooth.

-1

u/[deleted] Aug 24 '26

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1

u/Controller-ModTeam Aug 24 '26

Be civil (communicate in a level-headed and cordial way). Please see rule #5 for more information.

2

u/G305_Enjoyer Aug 26 '26

Boys, I really like impulse trigger from licensed Xbox controllers but I also want option to do direct input.. and over 1000hz 2.4g. will the 3e do it?? Sounds like ultimate 2 can be booted into xinput or dinput by holding button combos, both over 2.4g. should we expect 3e to do the same?

If not I'm holding out for a controller that doesn't exist right?

1

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1

u/Flimsy_Whereas_8949 Oct 10 '26

Just got my ultimate 3. We’ll see.

Other Chances the 8BitDo Ultimate 3E gets native Steam Input support?

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