The recurring nightmare of all controller gamers! Just imagine: you’re in the middle of a Battle Royale game, you’re racking up frags and victory seems close. You’ve reached the final circle, there’s only one player left to shoot and suddenly, without warning, your sight starts drifting systematically downwards. The duel is lost. GAME OVER.
This frustrating and recurring phenomenon affecting joystick players is called ‘joystick drift’, an ailment that can fortunately be remedied! If you’re ready to regain full control of your controller, follow our guide carefully to understand and correct your joystick drift problem.
H2: What is a drift joystick?
To fully understand this problem, let’s look at its definition.
Joystick drift is a phenomenon that results in unwanted and uncontrolled movements of the joystick in game. This is due to the quality of the component but also to wear and tear over time. The result is rather disabling:
- Character moving slowly in one direction
- The in-game camera starts to turn on its own
- Menus scrolling without you touching the controller
- Parasitic movement leading to loss of precision
- etc.
In short, it’s as if your joystick is living its own life. Not ideal after more than 200 attempts on the latest Elden Ring boss! If it’s any consolation, this bug is not uncommon. It affects a large number of controllers, regardless of manufacturer or support (PC, Xbox, PS5 etc.).
What causes stick drift?
L’usure et la saleté sont les deux causes les plus courantes du joystick drift. Avec la friction répétée des composants électromécaniques du joystick, des particules peuvent se déposer et créer des irrégularités. De plus, le ressort permettant au joystick de revenir en position centrale peut finir par se relâcher. Des mouvements fantômes peuvent alors apparaitre. Combinée à la saleté extérieure qui s’infiltrent dans ces éléments, le dysfonctionnement peut arriver.
Solutions to get rid of the drift joystick
There are solutions to prevent stick drift! However, it should be noted that they offer varying degrees of reliability in solving this problem.
Solutions with a low degree of reliability
- Joystick calibration: Try calibrating your joystick. In your Thrustmapper software, we advise you to rotate the joystick completely so that it takes all the values into account. This will allow you to reset the joystick positions and, in some cases, solve the problem.
- Cleaning the joystick: Another quick solution is to clean your joystick. Use compressed air to remove dust and debris. You can also use a cotton bud to clean hard-to-reach areas.
- Increasing the dead zone: as a temporary solution, slightly increasing the dead zone can help limit drift for a while. On the other hand, you will lose a little sensitivity in the centre.
Hall Effect technology, the best solution to avoid stick drift
To overcome the problem of stick drift, there is a technological solution: the Hall Effect.
The Hall Effect works in a fascinating way! The principle is based on the interaction between a magnetic field and an electric current. In the context of joysticks, it is used to detect the position of the joystick without there being any physical contact between the internal components.
To be added once the ‘Hall effect’ article has been published > We highly recommend our article on this subject to find out more about the Hall effect.
The Hall effect for your controller
As you know, one of the key features of our ESWAP range of controllers is their modularity. You can replace just the joysticks. This means you can replace a drifting joystick at a fraction of the cost, as well as giving you the freedom to customise.
Today, however, we’re moving on to the next stage. The ESWAP range of customisable joysticks is expanding with the arrival of the new SH5 and SH2 joystickx. What makes them so special is that they are equipped with Hall effect technology known as H.E.A.R.T.. This revolutionary technology is completely unaffected by joystick drift, making it an exceptional joystick.
What’s more, this technology is perfectly mastered, as it already equips numerous products, particularly in flight simulation. This is what makes the SH5 not only interchangeable, but also ultra-precise!
Buying an SH5 or SH2 joystick is certainly one of the best ways, and the ultimate solution, to stop your joystick drifting.
For a drift-free world!
In conclusion, don’t throw away your joystick if it drifts, because there are solutions. If repair or recalibration isn’t possible, consider getting our new SH5 Hall-effect joystick. We’re thinking in particular of the most hardcore gamers, who are unfortunately all too familiar with this phenomenon. To counter this, we’ve developed a technology called H.E.A.R.T.. Find out more in this article.