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Thankfully, there are a few simple things you’re able to do to fix Steam Deck drift.
Why does stick drift happen?
The Steam Deck can develop joystick drift after a while.
There are a few reasons why your Steam Deck could be experiencing joystick drift.
If it didn’t, you should recalibrate the joysticks.
We’ll go over the two methods for doing that next.
Steam Deck drift can happen for a few different reasons.
Additionally, a more complex route allows you to force the Steam Deck to recalibrate its joysticks.
I’ll go over both of these methods below.
Here’s how to do that.
The Steam button is on the bottom left of the Steam Deck screen.
Now you’re back to the usual Steam Deck layout with freshly recalibrated joysticks.
Play a game to see if this fixed your issue.
If it didn’t then it’s time to look into some physical fixes.
Scroll down to Settings.
As such, it’s possible that cleaning the joysticks could make them work better.
Here are a few things to try if your joysticks are dirty.
The flat handle brush in particular is ideal for cleaning things like circuit boards.
Click on System.
For one thing, opening the Steam Deck will void the warranty if there’s one still in place.
Secondly, you could cause long-lasting damage to the system if you do something wrong.
It’s cheaper than buying a completely new Steam Deck.
Check to see if there are any Steam Deck system updates.
They might just want you to supply the joysticks yourself.
The handle makes it easy to tote around, and the zippers only open when you want them to.
It comes in white, gray, or black.
If there are Steam Deck updates, apply them now.
Thankfully, there are plenty of things you could do to try and fix the problem.
Hopefully, you’ll be playing your favorite games again in no time.
Wait for the system update to apply.
Scroll down to the Controller tab.
Click on the Open button.
Select which joystick you want to adjust and then move the dial to change Deadzones.
Scroll all the way down and select Power.
Select Switch to Desktop.
Type “Konsole” into the search bar.
Type “thumbstick_cal” and then select Enter.
Press A to start the recalibration process.
Rotate both joysticks 360 degrees when the system tells you to.
Press A to close out of the recalibration.
You can dislodge loose crumbs around your joysticks by gently using a toothpick.
You can contact Valve about drift issues and they might be able to help if your Steam Deck is still under warranty.
If you’ve tried everything else, you might want to consider replacing the joysticks.
My Tomtoc Slim Carrying Case protects my Steam Deck with a hard shell.
