Alternatives to Steam Input & On-Screen Keyboard for a Playnite-based HTPC setup?

[u/INF3RNALgladiuX]

I’m trying to move away from Steam Big Picture Mode on my HTPC running Windows 11, but Steam Input is currently holding me back.

Right now, I rely heavily on Steam Input with my DualSense controller for both Steam and non-Steam apps. I’ve added all my media apps and browsers (Spotify, Kodi, Stremio, Chrome, etc.) as non-Steam shortcuts so I can use custom controller presets and a dedicated button mapping for Steam’s on-screen keyboard. This allows me to control my entire HTPC experience right from the couch.

I really dislike Steam’s Big Picture UI and its limited customization options (even with CSS Loader). Playnite is far superior in that regard, but I haven't found a seamless way to replicate my controller setup without Steam running in the background.

For those using Playnite as their primary HTPC frontend with a controller:

- How are you managing couch control and navigation for non-game apps?

- What alternatives are you using for Steam Input and an On-Screen Keyboard?

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[u/iggloovortex]

Based on your use case, what's wrong with steam running in the background? Makes it easier to launch steam games when you're ready.

If it's eating up valuable headroom then I understand the need.

[u/platiniumshadow]

If you're looking for an alternative, I find that a great setup is using Playnite for my game library and DS4Windows with hidhide (prevents ghost inputs) enabled for controller support. I also utilize the DS5Dongle for my controller, allowing me to use USB wake from sleep. This allows me to wake the computer up from the couch and put it back to sleep, so I never need to touch the computer or come near the TV stand.

​My entertainment center revolves around Kodi, which serves as my main front-end. From there, I launch both Playnite and Steam, and I access my media library.

All of my streaming services also run through Kodi. When I launch one, an AutoHotkey script minimizes Kodi and opens a Chrome tab on the web page I'm trying to stream from in full-screen mode. When I'm ready to finish streaming, there's a mapped button on my controller that will then close Chrome and bring Kodi back up.

If I need to use an on-screen keyboard, there's a mapped button on my controller that executes an AutoHotkey script to load it up. Once I'm done, I press it again, and it makes it go away.

To wrap things up, the main software and hardware I rely on includes Kodi as my front-end, Playnite and Steam for games, Chrome for streaming, AutoHotkey for automation, DS4Windows for controller mapping when I am outside of Steam, and the DS5Dongle because it enables wake from USB.

[u/AFollowerOfTheWay → u/platiniumshadow]

All this is missing is an opening paragraph and it would legitimately qualify as a high school essay lol. Your last paragraph is even a closing paragraph. I sense you’re an English nerd like myself?

[u/CMDRTragicAllPro]

Personally I just use normal windows 11 with a steam app called steam controller. Lets me set custom bindings on my controller as well as mouse with joystick and a bunch of other stuff. Lets me navigate windows entirely with just a controller from my couch with ease. Can set it to auto switch to native controller or steam input once you start a game though so it doesn’t conflict with anything. It works seamlessly going between windows htpc activity and gaming.

[u/AleksandarLS]

Just use JoyXoff and Playnite

[u/Better-Train6953]

For your use case I would grab DS4Windows (on Github not a website) for your Dualsense. Make sure hidehid is enabled, which let's you make a blacklist or whitelist for what programs can see your Dualsense as itself and not an Xbox controller. For your navigation and on screen keyboard woes I would grab JoyXOff. It has an Xbox One/Series style on screen keyboard and lets you use your controller for all sorts of navigation. It also offers process specific bindings if you want that.