Controller Not Working in SNES Game on RetroPie: [SOLVED]

The RetroPie system, available to install on Raspberry Pi computer devices, is probably the biggest thing that has happened to retro gaming.

This is for many reasons.

RetroPie is computer software that, as a program, is installed onto a Raspberry PI system and houses all manner of console emulators.

Games, as ROMs, can be loaded onto SD cards, and by inserting into the Raspberry Pi, can be played through the relevant emulator.

The SNES emulator (lr_snes9x) is one such emulator installed within RetroPie, which has its own applicable settings that can be the same or different to many of the other console emulators.

Unfortunately settings can be unintentionally changed, or updated by other means, meaning RetroPie doesn’t always do what you want it to.

One such problem is a controller failing to work when playing SNES games on the Retropie despite the controller working well within the Retropie menu, and when selecting a game.

To reset a controller to work when playing SNES games on the RetroPie go into Options then ‘Configuration Editor’. Select ‘Configure Basic Liberato Emulator Options’, then ‘Configure additional options for snes’. Select ‘Choose Joypad Order’ and ensure the first option is the chosen controller, or reselect if required.

Emulators such as lr_snes9x are nothing new, but housing them all in one compact system with the ability to store thousands and thousands of games, with a relatively easy to use interface, became a game changer in the industry.

Emulators though such as RetroPie are often frowned upon by serious retro gamers because the games do not need to be owned to play them, which infringes on certain copyright legislations.

That said, this is a problem many players face, and one we encountered.

Upon solving this we thought it would make a good feature to explain exactly how to get a controller working again when playing SNES games on RetroPie.

Why Controllers Stop Working when Playing SNES Games on RetroPie

Before we delve into the settings of the RetroPie software it is important to understand why controllers stop working when playing SNES games on a RetroPie.

The most common reason the controller stops working is due to the set up of the controller settings within Libretro, or within the lr_snes9x emulator.

Libretro is simply the name given to a group of many types of emulators which includes SNES, Mega Drive, Game Boy etc…

This group can be controlled as a group within RetroPie by updating and changing the Libretro settings, and those changes are applied across all of the Libretro emulators (a full list of all Libretro based emulators can be found here )

So, how can you tell if you need to update the Libretro settings or the SNES emulator settings?

Basically, if your controller works well when playing Mega Drive games (as an example) then the Libretro settings are typically fine, and something may have updated the SNES emulator directly.

Although there are many weird and wonderful reasons controllers do not work within SNES games on the RetroPie, this is the most typical.

The following is a step by step guide on how to check and correct the SNES emulator settings, and have your controller back up and running playing SNES games on the RetroPie in no time!

Fix Controller not Working With SNES Games on RetroPie

Simply follow the below reversible steps to correct your controller not being detected when playing SNES games:

Choose ‘Options’ from the RetroPie main scrolling menu

Select ‘Configuration Editor’

Select ‘Configure Basic Liberato Emulator Options’

Choose ‘Configure additional options for snes’

Select ‘Choose Joypad Order’

Add the Correct Controller

Your controller should be displayed as the first option, which is Player 1.

If your controller is not showing here, then select the first option to display a list of available controllers and then choose the controller you wish to play with.

Once your controller is showing as the first option on the joypad order list simply exit out of ‘Configuration Editor’ and try to play a SNES game (no restart is required).

You should now find your controller works within the SNES game on RetroPie!