Macros and paddles
A macro is an action Universe runs when you press or hold a button, such as a back paddle that turns the volume up. A button can carry one macro on press and another on hold. Universe ships a few for pads with spare buttons, and you bind your own in Settings › Controller.
Actions
Section titled “Actions”| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Volume up, Volume down | Changes the volume, and repeats while held. |
| Mute | Mutes or unmutes the sound. |
| Screenshot | Takes a screenshot, once the Screenshots feature is on. |
| Toggle MangoHud | Shows or hides the running game’s MangoHud until it ends. |
| Stop the game | Rumbles the pad, then quits the game. On hold only. |
| Key combo… | Types a key combination, such as Super_L+F12. |
| Command… | Runs a shell command. |
A game that reads the same button sees the press too. Key combos need the system setup your install did.
Shipped macros
Section titled “Shipped macros”All on a press:
| Controller | Button | Action |
|---|---|---|
| DualSense Edge | Left Fn | Screenshot |
| DualSense Edge | Right Fn | Toggle MangoHud |
| DualSense Edge | Left back button | Volume down |
| DualSense Edge | Right back button | Volume up |
| Xbox Elite Series 2 | P1 (right upper) | Toggle MangoHud |
| Xbox Elite Series 2 | P2 (right lower) | Volume up |
| Xbox Elite Series 2 | P3 (left upper) | Screenshot |
| Xbox Elite Series 2 | P4 (left lower) | Volume down |
| 8BitDo Pro 3 | R4 | Toggle MangoHud |
| 8BitDo Pro 3 | PR | Volume up |
| 8BitDo Pro 3 | PL | Volume down |
| Xbox | Share | Screenshot |
| Switch Pro, Switch 2 Pro | Capture | Screenshot |
The Steam Deck’s back buttons ship empty, ready for yours.
Bind a macro
Section titled “Bind a macro”- Connect the pad and open Settings › Controller.
- Press A on the button’s row, then On press… or On hold….
- Pick the action. Key combo… and Command… open a text field.
The macro holds for every pad of that model, and Clear press or Clear hold removes it. HOME takes no macro. To bind for a model with no pad connected, use Universe Desktop’s Preferences › Controller.
Press and hold
Section titled “Press and hold”A button with only a press macro fires the moment you press it. With a hold macro too, a short press fires the press macro when you let go, and a long one fires the hold macro. Hold length, in Settings › Controller’s Advanced rows, sets how long a hold is.
When macros don’t fire
Section titled “When macros don’t fire”- With the dock open over a game, only the volume, mute and MangoHud macros fire.
- While Settings › Controller has the focus, none fire.
- In Steam’s Game Mode, the volume, mute, MangoHud and Screenshot macros do nothing.
Get the shipped macros back
Section titled “Get the shipped macros back”Your first change to a macro saves the whole set, the shipped ones included. To go back to the shipped set, run:
universe config set controller.macros