Have you ever wanted to use your MFI (Made for iPhone/iPad) game controller under Windows? With MFI Gamepad Feeder it's possible!
MFI Gamepad Feeder is a special program that works in tandem with vGen and ScpVBus that creates virtual Xbox 360 controller device in your system.
It looks like modern MFI game controllers are recognized as standard HID gamepads under Windows, but they're not visible in "USB Game Controllers", so games won't be able to use them. MFI Gamepad Feeder is connecting to these "HID gamepads", and it's redirecting raw input from them, directly to the ScpVBus devices.
Current version of MFI Gamepad Feeder requires
- latest Xbox 360 drivers first (Windows 7 Only).
- supported MFI Gamepad (list of supported gamepads listed below)
Application was tested on Windows 10, but it should work on older systems as well.
- Download and install MFI Gamepad Feeder (restart required)
- Plug in your controllers (check compatibility list). If necessary you may need to pair them via Bluetooth.
- Launch MFI Gamepad Feeder application and select:
- Click "Active" checkbox on the right next to the first row
- Select your gamepad from "Gamepad device" list. In my case (SteelSeries Nimbus gamepad), gamepad wasn't advertising itself with correct Product name / Manufacturer Name, so I've had to guess which one it was
- Select ID of your controller (1-4)
- Select mapping file (All configuration files are stored in the "Configs" folder in the application folder)
- Hit Start button
- Play your favorite games!
In order to support different types of MFI controllers you can use included mappings editor.
In order to create good gamepad mapping you need to understand how MFIGamepadFeeder is transforming HID controllers to XBox 360 ones.
Every time you press a button / touch analog stick on you controller, your PC is receiving a small set of numbers that are describing current state of the device.
For example SteelSeries Nimbus is sending 18 numbers, each one is responsible for different button / axis. In order to translate these numbers, so MFIGamepadFeeder would be able to understand them, you need to specify meaning of each of them.
In order to create a new mapping:
- Select correct HID device in the "General mapping" tab. This will allow you to see preview of all the data that is coming form the controller.
- Hit New button in the right top corner of the screen.
- Create as many mapping items as necessary using "Add new item" button at the bottom
- Specify type of each item:
- Button (for all buttons on the controller)
- DPad
- Axis (for analog sticks and triggers)
- Empty (for unused parameters)
- For each item select what XBox controller role it would acquire (accordingly to the previously selected type)
- Hit Save button
Because it isn't physically impossible to emulate all Xbox 360 buttons, even on extended MFI controllers (for example there is only "Menu" button on MFI, whilst there is "Back" and "Start" on X360), only way to use them all is using "virtual keys".
Virtual Keys are allowing you to translate even complicated button combinations to different button presses.
You can access Virtual Keys from the second tab in the Mapping Editor. Manual for this part of the editor is rather straightforward.
For example this configuration:
will result in:
Pressing RBumper, LBumper and Start together will be changed to Back button.
LBumper + Start will end up with LeftStick press, whilst RBumper + Start will be RightStick press.
- SteelSeries Nimbus (only via Bluetooth)
- Mad Catz Micro C.T.R.L i
Keep in mind that all controllers without HID interface won't be compatible with MFIGamepadFeeder.
In order to connect your gamepad via bluetooth you need to:
- Turn on your gamepad (and press bluetooth pairing button)
- Select the Start menu, then select Settings > Devices > Other devices.
- Turn on Bluetooth > select the device > Ready to pair.
- Follow any more instructions if they appear.
I've started with support for SteelSeries Nimbus controller only, if you'd like to add support for other game controller, post pull request with mapping file on GitHub issues page.
Special thanks goes to:
Shauleiz (https://github.com/shauleiz) for vJoy and vGen
Nefarius for https://github.com/nefarius/ScpVBus
b23prodtm (https://github.com/b23prodtm) for inspiring me to integrate XBox controllers
HidSharp http://www.zer7.com/software/hidsharp
Program icon made by Freepik (www.flaticon.com), licensed by CC BY 3.0
The MIT License (MIT)
Copyright (c) 2015-2016 Michał Mizera
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