ControlUp Playnite Extension

About

A Playnite extension that detects game controller connections and gamepad hotkeys, displaying a customizable popup prompting users to switch to fullscreen mode. Built on Playnite SDK 6.15 and its Controller API for Desktop Mode.

Includes the option to skip the pop-up to let the user directly switch to fullscreen.

Currently Tested on an Xbox Series X USB/Wireless Controller

What's New in 2.0.0

Version 2.0.0 is a major release that completely overhauls the extension for Playnite SDK 6.15, taking advantage of the new Controller API commands and Playnite's SDL support for Desktop Mode.

• Major: Event-based controller detection — No more polling. Performance is equally fast between DirectInput and XInput gamepads. Controllers are reliably detected so long as SDL supports them.
• Polling removed — Power saving and idle mode features are no longer needed thanks to SDK event-based triggers.
• Long press reworked — Timer-based approach after initial button press to work with event-based SDK. 2 seconds max.
• Blur padding — Extends the pop-up blur window beyond the border for a pleasant bleed effect. Combine with border opacity for best results.
• Border opacity — Lower values let the acrylic blur beautifully bleed through the border.
• Vignette effect (experimental) — Optional edge-darkening for the pop-up.
• Toast notifications — Non-blocking toasts with acrylic blur, defaulting to "Ocean Teal" to showcase notification potential.
• Standardized presets — Consistent values across all pop-up and toast style presets.
• Troubleshooting updated — Explains "XInput Controller #1" display name (SDL-related, not a bug).

See CHANGELOG.md for full details.

Features

• Detection Modes: New connection only, any controller anytime, or startup only
• Controller Detection Popup: Customizable popup when a controller is connected, asking to switch to fullscreen
• Toast Notifications: Brief, non-blocking notifications for events like auto-switching
• Controller Hotkey: Button combos (Start+RB, Guide+Start, LB+RB, etc.) or single buttons with long press
• Controller Navigation: D-pad/thumbsticks to navigate, A to confirm, B to cancel
• Style Presets: Quick-apply color schemes for both pop-up and toast notifications
• Acrylic Blur: Windows Composition API blur with customizable opacity, tint, and padding
• Live Preview: Test appearance from settings before saving

Installation

1. Download the latest .pext file from the Releases page
2. Double-click the .pext file to install, or drag it into Playnite
3. Restart Playnite when prompted
4. Configure the extension in Settings > Extensions > ControlUp

Configuration

General Settings

• Detection Mode: When to trigger the fullscreen popup (Disabled, New Connection Only, Any Controller Anytime, Startup Only)
• Skip Popup on Connection: Switch directly to fullscreen without showing popup
• Enable Logging: Detailed logging for troubleshooting

Hotkey Settings

• Hotkey Combination: Many button combos or single buttons
• Long Press: Require holding the hotkey (300-2000ms) — recommended for single buttons like Guide
• Hotkey Cooldown: Delay after popup closes before hotkey can trigger again

Pop-Up Settings

• Style presets, position, size, timing, acrylic blur, background, border with opacity, corner radius, blur padding, vignette effect, and live preview

Toast Settings

• Style presets (Ocean Teal default), position, size, duration, acrylic blur, border with opacity, accent bar, and colors

Requirements

• Playnite 10 or later
• Windows 10 or later (for acrylic blur effect)
• Xbox, PlayStation, or compatible gamepad

Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md for version history.

Troubleshooting

Fullscreen mode doesn't launch after pressing Yes

If the popup closes but fullscreen mode never appears, Windows SmartScreen may be blocking the launch. This happens because ControlUp launches Playnite.FullscreenApp.exe as a new process.

Solution:

1. Navigate to your Playnite installation folder
2. Right-click on Playnite.FullscreenApp.exe
3. Select Properties
4. At the bottom of the General tab, if you see "This file came from another computer and might be blocked to help protect this computer", check the Unblock checkbox
5. Click Apply and OK

Alternatively, run Playnite.FullscreenApp.exe manually once and click "Run anyway" when SmartScreen prompts.

Controller shows as "XInput Controller #1"

This is normal and SDL-related — not a bug in ControlUp or Playnite. When using XInput mode, Windows only identifies controllers by slot number and doesn't provide detailed device names. Your controller is working correctly. You can verify this in Playnite's Settings > Input, which shows the same generic names.

Development

Building

1. Clone the repository
2. Open ControlUp.sln in Visual Studio
3. Restore NuGet packages
4. Build in Release configuration

Packaging

Run the packaging script:

.\package_extension.ps1

The .pext file will be created in the pext folder.

Libraries & Dependencies

• Playnite SDK 6.15.0 - Extension framework
• SDL2 - Controller detection and input mapping (zlib license)
• MaterialDesignThemes & MaterialDesignColors - WPF UI components (MIT)
• Microsoft.Xaml.Behaviors.Wpf - XAML behaviors (MIT)

Third-Party Acknowledgments

See LICENSE file for component licenses and acknowledgments.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details and third-party acknowledgements