Get your controller set up right

Incredibly, the Raspberry Pi supports almost all major game controllers, which means you’re going to be able to enjoy your chosen game with the top gaming equipment.

In the case of Doom, this is something that simply wasn’t an option when the game was first released. There’s a very good chance you could exceed your previous scores on the game from back in the day – but first you need to make sure the controller is right for the game, then set it up.

Unless, of course, you simply prefer the mouse and keyboard method of play, which was perfect for Doom in 1990-whatever. However game controllers are far more advanced and customisable these days. Doom was next to unplayable with a standard joystick, and not much better with a gamepad. But with a modern Xbox or PS4 controller connected to your Raspberry Pi, Doom and other classic shooters take on a whole new lease of life.

Hooking up a controller over Bluetooth is a whole different tutorial. While it should work without much messing around, this isn’t always the case, which is why it is wise to rely on your controller’s USB cable.

You can test the controller works correctly with your Raspberry Pi using evtest. This is an event monitor for input devices that runs in the terminal. Simply hook up your controller and run evtest to check that all axes and buttons work. You can then choose the button mappings in your chosen game.