Steam currently marks Pax Autocratica with Full Controller Support. That metadata establishes the intended base-game feature, but it does not prove every controller model, remapper, wireless adapter, prompt family, or text-entry path behaves identically. Test one device and one input layer at a time.
Establish a clean device baseline
Connect the controller before launching Steam and the game. Confirm that Windows and Steam both detect it. Disconnect spare gamepads, flight controls, and virtual devices during diagnosis so duplicate inputs cannot masquerade as a bad binding.
Launch with the simplest available configuration. Read the live prompts and test menu navigation before changing layouts. A wrong icon family and a wrong action map are different problems.
Isolate native input and Steam Input
If the device is detected but actions duplicate, disappear, or use the wrong map, compare one Steam Input state at a time. Fully exit the game between changes. Do not run multiple external remappers while testing, because each can create a virtual controller alongside the physical one.
Keep a note of controller model, connection, Steam Input state, and current directive. “Controller not working” is too broad to reproduce; “wireless device navigates menus but loses one construction action” points to a specific layer.
Verify every game context
Pax Autocratica moves between colony management, first-person combat, squad commands, inventories, research, policies, and text or quantity entry. A controller can work in one context while an edge panel still needs attention. Test the transitions as well as the main movement loop.
Colony camera
Verify navigation, selection, placement, rotation, height, confirmation, and cancellation in the current controls.
Inventory and quantities
Check focus order, tabs, tooltips, partial deposits, and any text or number-entry control.
Leader combat
Confirm aiming, weapon actions, melee, capture switching, interaction, and pause without double input.
Squad command
Test target and position commands where the formation and terrain are easy to observe.
Treat Steam Deck text entry separately
The August 13 developer update said Steam Deck virtual keyboard behavior was being investigated. That is not a guarantee that every present text field is fixed, nor is it a statement about Windows gamepads generally. Record the device, field, whether the keyboard appeared, and whether the entry was accepted.
Use Steam Deck Status for the device-level compatibility boundary. On Windows, a physical keyboard can be a temporary diagnostic tool without proving the controller feature is complete.
Report a reproducible input failure
Restore default bindings or a known layout, disconnect extras, retest after a clean launch, and record the smallest failing action. Include controller model, wired or wireless mode, Steam Input state, game context, and current update. Do not expose account or device secrets in screenshots.
Separate focus loss from binding loss. If a menu highlight moves but confirmation affects a different panel, record the navigation path and focus state. If the prompt is correct but the action never fires, record the binding and gameplay context. If two actions occur together, return to the duplicate-device and remapper check.
For an intermittent failure, note the transition immediately before it: waking a wireless controller, opening a construction panel, returning from combat, invoking text entry, or resuming from pause. A reliable transition gives support a smaller reproduction than a complete session log.
Keep a keyboard and mouse available during diagnosis on Windows where practical. Using them to escape a blocked panel protects the save, but the exact controller action should still be reported because Steam’s Full Controller Support label covers the intended end-to-end experience.
Sources checked August 15, 2026
- Pax Autocratica on Steam — current Full Controller Support metadata.
- Official Steam News — current controller-adjacent UI work and Steam Deck virtual keyboard investigation.