Provenance EMU
  • Welcome
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Installation & Usage
    • Installing Provenance
      • Sideloading
      • Building from Source
      • Updating
    • BIOS Requirements
    • ROMs
      • Importing ROMs
      • Formatting ROMs
      • Customizing ROMs
      • Modding ROMs
  • Info
    • Supported Systems
    • Controllers & Controls
      • Controllers
        • Controller Reviews
      • Controls
    • Game Saves
    • Miscellaneous
      • Restoring Files
      • Launch ROMs via URL
      • Virtualizing macOS
  • Help
    • Troubleshooting
    • Contributing
    • Discord
  • Development
    • GitHub
    • Release Roadmap
Powered by GitBook
On this page
  • Controller Types
  • MFi Controllers
  • Steam Controller (pseudo MFi)
  • iCade Controllers
  • Controller Forms
  • Form-fitting
  • Standalone
  • Controllers
  • Profiles
  • Controllers
  • Controls

Was this helpful?

  1. Info
  2. Controllers & Controls

Controllers

Supported, Classified and Rated Controllers/Gamepads

PreviousControllers & ControlsNextController Reviews

Last updated 2 years ago

Was this helpful?

  • 🖲

  • 🕹

  • 🎮 · Supported, Classified & Rated

  • 🎛

Controller Types

MFi Controllers

Certified MFi Controllers are the standard complying to Apple's Gamepad profile(s). They are the easiest and most compatible controllers to use not just for Provenance, but iOS and tvOS in general.

MFi Profiles

MFi controllers exist in a few different formats made distinct as profiles in Apple's SDK.

Profile
❚❚
✜
A
B
X
Y
--
==
ⓁⓇ
③③
◀︎
▶︎

Micro

●

●

●

●

Standard

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Extended

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Extended2*

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Technically, there is only one Extended profile in the SDK, but we make the previous generation (which excluded L3 and R3) distinct within Provenance and refer to the updated profile as Extended2.

Due to Apple's shortsightedness, all MFi controllers lack certain buttons to be equivalent to any modern gaming standard (PS4, Xbox, etc…) made accessible in Provenance in various ways:

  1. For systems without trigger buttons:

    • L2: Select, R2: Start

  2. For PSX, N64, and on…

    • MFi+ Combos

    • UI Buttons within Pause Menu

  3. Missing Buttons Always On-Screen (iOS only) Beta, not all systems supported

Steam Controller (pseudo MFi)

Valve's Steam Controller uses its own protocol different from MFi, and not a virtual keyboard hack like iCade types, but we can conform it to the MFi Extended Gamepad protocol and still obtain input from the extra buttons as a sort of MFi hybrid, however limited to use only within the app (cannot navigate the system such as MFi can do with tvOS).

Currently, Steam Controller will not reconnect automatically, requiring app relaunch.

Profile
❚❚
✜
A
B
X
Y
--
==
ⓁⓇ
③③
◀︎
▶︎

Extended2+

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Trackpad Modes:

  • Button Mode (default): like d-pad, c-buttons

  • Touch Mode: like touch analog

Stick Modes:

  • Analog Mode (default)

  • D-Pad Mode

L-Pad Toggle = ◉ L-Pad Click + ◀︎ (Back)
R-Pad Toggle = ◉ R-Pad Click + ▶︎ (Forward)
Stick Toggle = ◉ Stick Click + ◀︎ (Back)

Currently, ◀︎ (Back) / Select and ▶︎ (Forward) / Start will work with PSX, and N64 via MFi+ (full support coming later…)

iCade Controllers

Before MFi, there were various controllers using non-standardized virtual keyboard hacks to get gamepad input. Because of this they are not as fluid or as granular as you can get from MFi or a Steam controller as they are using key mappings and not variable numerical data (as would be needed for thumbstick coordinates and trigger sensitivity, etc…), however they tend to have more buttons available. Another drawback is that you cannot use two iCades simultaneously, as Apple only allows one 'keyboard' connected at a time…

iCade and MFi can not be used together simultaneously without conflict/bugs, currently.

  • iCade control maps coming later…

Controller Forms

Form-fitting

Form fitting controllers attach to your devices, in either a PSP sort of way (GameVice) or with a clamp that mounts the device above the controller. Some are powered by the device, others self-powered via battery and connect over bluetooth. Great for iPhone. Decent for iPads. Generally useless for Apple TV, unless you have a bluetooth device with remove-able or collapse-able clamp.

Standalone

Standalone controllers are familiar to that of Playstation or Xbox. Recommended for iPads, and the absolute for Apple TV.

Controllers

Profiles

Key: ● = Supported

Profile
❚❚
✜
A
B
X
Y
--
==
ⓁⓇ
③③
◀︎
▶︎

Micro

●

●

●

●

Standard

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Standard+

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Extended

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Extended+

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Extended2

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Extended2+

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Controllers

Key: ● = Supported / Ideal | ○ = Supported

Controller
iPhone
iPad
aTV
Type
Profile
Rating

●

MFi

Extended2+

●●●●●

●

MFi

Extended

●●●●○

●

MFi

Extended

●●●○○

●

MFi

Extended

●●●◐○

●

●

●

MFi

Extended2

●●●●◐

○

●

●

pMFi

Extended2+

●●●●◐

●

●

●

MFi

Extended

●●●●◐

○

●

●

MFi

Extended

●●●●◐

○

●

●

iCade

Extended+

●●●◐○

○

●

●

MFi

Extended

●●●○○

○

●

●

MFi

Extended

●●●◐○

○

●

●

iCade

Standard+

●●◐○○

●

●

●

iCade

Standard+

●●◐○○

iCade

Extended+

●●●◐○

○

●

●

iCade

Standard+

●●○○○

○

MFi

Standard

●●◐○○

●

MFi

Standard

●◐○○○

●

●

●

iCade

Extended

●●●◐○

●

●

●

MFi

Extended

●●○○○

⭐️Later adding specific controller reviews, pros/cons, retro-nostalgia recommendations…

Controls

iCade control maps coming later…

Requires via Steam Beta program.

Xʀ not supported

+

*

/ ^*

/ ^* +

/ ^* + ,

5/5s/SE/iPod5T only

5/5c/5s/SE only

^

^

^ Discontinued, some can still be obtained. * Requires to work with iOS/tvOS.

Check out the controller phone mounts made by .

A full list of mapped controls for Standard and Extended MFi gamepad profiles per system can be found in .

Steam Controller BLE firmware
legacy firmware
UtorCase
MFi Controls
Controller Types
MFi
Steam
iCade
Controller Forms
Controllers
Controls
Razer Kishi Controller for iPhone
GameVice: iPhone
GameVice: iPad Pro 12.9"
GameVice: iPad Mini
Rotor Riot
Steam Controller
SteelSeries Nimbus
clamp
SteelSeries Stratus XL: iOS
SteelSeries Stratus XL
SteelSeries Stratus
Horipad Ultimate
8bitdo N30
F30
8bitdo SN30
SF30
clamp
8bitdo N30
F30Pro
clamp A
B
8bitdo Zero
Logitech Powershell
MOGA Ace
MOGA Rebel
Mad Catz Micro C.T.R.L.i