The DualSense has been singled out as one of the PlayStation 5’s best elements, but some users have reported their controllers are displaying drift—analog sticks detecting phantom inputs. It can make the likes of platformers and first-person shooters almost unplayable.
One PS5 owner wrote on Reddit that the drift problem began less than ten days after receiving the console. They tried everything to fix it, including turning Bluetooth off and on, power cycling the console, resetting the controller, and charging it overnight. But nothing worked.
Another Redditor posted a 15-second video of controller drift affecting Destiny 2. The person isn’t touching the sticks, yet the game is clearly receiving an input.
When it comes to fixing the issue, players are also having trouble. The PlayStation support website has its own portal for dealing with DualSense hardware issues, which Kotaku says will eventually direct you to a period on hold with customer services. The good news is that the controller is covered under warranty, but the bad news is that you’ll need to send it back to Sony for repair.
The DualSense’s issues seem quite severe for those unlucky enough to be suffering from it, but drifting issues are nothing new. The Nintendo Switch’s controversial ‘Joy-Con Drift’ is well-documented, and has been the source of a number of class-action lawsuits filed against the console manufacturer. Whether Sony’s issue ends up being that widespread remains to be seen, but you might want to keep an eye out for wayward controllers in the future.
