The PS4 offers one of the best gaming experiences, but this experience can be interrupted if your controller is not functioning correctly. PS4 controllers could have several issues go wrong, and one of them is controller drift, where the character frame moves without you touching it.
There are many reasons why you can experience PS4 controller drift. These include regular wear and tear, grime and dust, and rough treatment of your controller. To prevent and fix it, keep your controller clean, order a controller kit to DIY, or turn off the calibration for the analog stick.
Gaming is not about just a good story and graphics anymore. A good gaming experience encompasses a responsive interface, and this responsiveness can be affected by controller drift. So to improve our gaming experience, let’s take a look at why your PS4 controller can drift and what we can do to fix it.
What is Controller Drift?
Controller drift is a common issue in the gaming community. Controller drift is the sensitivity fault where the character frame starts to move on its own without you touching it. Controller drift is specifically referred to as the analog stick sending out ghost signals and causing input with any factual information by the user.
Drift can cause a user to start resenting a game. Imagine dueling with Melania in the Elden Ring – the boss is only one hit, and your character moves when you do not want it to. Later, it dodges too early so that you are caught by Melania and get hit yourself.
New age controllers have come a long way from the old Atari controllers. The new controllers have complex circuitry that can deliver outstanding functionality.
Current flow and circuit completion are needed for accurate signals to be sent to the system, with it responding respectively in the game. Circuits are completed when a conductive element is brought to connect the ends of the circuit.
This circuit is only completed in a standard controller when a button or analog stick is moved towards the circuit. This connects the conductive element and completes a particular circuit. However, a damaged or displaced button or analog stick might somehow be completing this circuit and sending out signals even in its neutral position.
Controller drift can be either erratic or very minimal. This is due to the hardware installed in the analog stick known as a potentiometer. This hardware uses varying resistance, which allows various signals to be sent.
A small movement would result in a respective current flow and appropriate movement. In normal conditions, there is a 1:1 ratio of current flow to movement.
Why Does My PS4 Controller Drift – Possible Cause
There are a number of reasons why a controller would be subjected to drift. The reason behind this is that controllers like the PS4 DualShock use the potentiometer mechanism in their analog stick.
A lot of factors cause this drift but at the center of it are the circuitry and the potentiometer. Some common causes are:
Regular Wear and Tear
Wear and tear are often considered a common reason. Over time, the regular or harsh use of the controller can lead to drift. Games that are analog intensive, like Call Of Duty or FIFA, accelerate the wear and tear of the hardware, leading to inaccurate responses.
A DualShock has 2 Million input cycles, which means that a whole rotation of the analog stick from a resting position. Any game that requires a ton of analog movement would mean that these cycles are completed sooner than normal.
Grime and Dust
This lesser-known reason is usually grime and dust. We’ve put our controllers through hard times, from using them with oily hands or eating cheese pops while waiting in an in-game lobby.
This, more often than not, leads to the crumbs, oil, sweat, and dust mixing and slowly but surely depositing themselves in the tiny crevices in the controller. The grime deposits lead to a circuit completion, causing the current to flow in a neutral position and drift.
Rough Treatment of Controller
Raging and physical damage can occur during gaming sessions. We have all had our moments during an intense game. Losing a match in the 90th min during a FIFA weekend league has sent a lot of controllers back to their maker.
However, those who do not see that fate usually end up with permanent hardware damage, translating to instances of controller drift.
How To Stop the PS4 Controller From Drifting?
Drift can be prevented in several ways – most of which do not require you to take the controller to a technician and pay for its repair.
Keeping it Pristine
It pays dividends to treat a controller the same way you handled it when you first got it. It needs to be kept clean and made sure that no one uses the controller with dirty hands. Dust it off frequently and store it in a place that is not exposed to dust.
Using DIY Methods
One would think that fixing drift issues is tedious and requires expertise. On the contrary, fixing drift issues is relatively easy as long as you have the necessary tools. Ordering a controller kit, which has all the replacements for the buttons and analog, makes it all the easier. These kits are inexpensive as well.
There are tons of step-by-step guides on YouTube that show how to safely open and mend the analog sticks. In most cases, the sticks require a little elbow grease and a bit of cleaning, and then they can go back to functioning properly.
The Tony Stark Method
For instances where repair isn’t possible, or you’re past keeping it clean, there is another alternative. Every game comes with a calibration setting. This is where you can set a dead zone for the analog stick, and this is basically the area where the analog will not respond at all.
This can be set by the user in the game or console settings. All it requires is for the user to go to the calibration menu and set a dead zone until the point where you are experiencing drift on the controller. This may require a few attempts, but it works more often than not.
There is no permanent solution for controller drift in most cases. Like all mechanical devices, we can only prolong their life, but eventually, it’s best to replace them.