Evdev and HID mode for non Steam controllers

SC-Controller can use two ways to communicate with controllers.

Evdev

Communicating through evdev is default mode that you should use when possible. In this mode, most of processing is done by kernel and its drivers, so SC-Controller handles only mapping gamepad inputs to profile actions.

Disadvantage of evdev is that while SC-Controller can claim exclusive access, it can't make original controller device disappear. That means you'll have one additional controller visible and although it provides no inputs, it can confuse some games.

HID

In HID mode, SC-Controller grabs exclusive access for device and communicates with it directly using HID protocol. That means no other application can see it and became confused.

Sadly, many controllers don't adhere to HID standard and rely on driver fixing their inputs on the fly. For most of them, Linux kernel does fixing and provides sane interface with evdev. That means that such controller will work only if evdev option is selected.