Windows Xbox One Controller Driver

You needed hacked drivers and workarounds to use the excellent Xbox One controller with PC games. That's no longer the case, with official drivers built right into Windows 10. So, while it's easy. Infrared LEDs in the controller can be sensed by the Kinect sensor. Expansion port for add-on devices like the Chat Headset. Compatible with Xbox One Play and Charge Kit and Xbox One Chat Headset.

After months of promises, Microsoft finally released Windows drivers for its Xbox One controller, allowing it to pull double duty as wired controller for PC gaming.

Xbox One Drivers

Unlike the Xbox 360 wireless controller, which required a separate dongle for PC use, all you need to use the Xbox One controller on PC is a standard Micro-USB cable. The wired connection provides the power, so you don’t even need batteries. Unfortunately, you can’t use the Xbox One controller wirelessly on a PC at this time.

Driver installation

To set up the controller, head to Major Nelson’s blog and download the drivers for either a 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) machine. (If you’re unsure which file to grab, open Control Panel, type About in the search bar and click System. Then, look under ‘System Type.’)

Open the file you just downloaded. Amusingly enough, Windows will show an “unknown publisher” warning, even though the drivers are coming from Microsoft. Click Run in the box that pops up. You don’t have to plug in the controller to install the drivers.

Windows Xbox One Controller Driver

A setup wizard should appear. Read and accept the license agreement, wait for the installation to finish, then click Finish.

Now, plug in your Xbox One controller. It may vibrate briefly, and you should see a “driver software installed successfully” message on the System Tray.

Xbox One Controller Driver Download

At this point, you should be ready to play. Games that support Microsoft’s Xbox 360 controller should automatically recognize the Xbox One controller without any additional setup (with some exceptions described below).

Potential issues

The biggest problem is that several of the games I tested would not recognize the controller, including Dark Souls II, Transistor and Eldritch. The controller did recognize several other games, including Dishonored, Super Meat Boy and Trials Evolution. Uninstalling and reinstalling the drivers did not help, so hopefully this is just a temporary issue that Microsoft and game developers can resolve through updates.

Also, the first time I installed the driver, Windows 7 showed a “Runtime Error” after plugging in the controller, followed by an “XboxStat.exe has stopped working” error. The controller still worked, but the message was a nuisance. These messages went away after reinstalling the driver.

Finally, keep in mind that plugging the controller into a PC will break its wireless connection to the Xbox One. You’ll have to plug the controller back into the console via USB to pair them again.

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Microsoft on Thursday finally released Windows drivers for the Xbox One controller, allowing gamers to use the company’s latest console controller on their PC. The drivers allow the Xbox One controller to work automatically with any games or applications that already support the Xbox 360 controller. Unlike the 360 controller, however, gamers won’t need to purchase a separate adapter dongle, as the Xbox One can pass both data and power over its included USB cable.

Microsoft Xbox One Controller Driver Windows 7

Microsoft xbox 360 controller driver

We know our fans have wanted PC compatibility, and we know they wanted to be able to use the Xbox One controller with the same games and applications they have been playing with using the Xbox 360 controller. We can’t wait for them to play their favorite PC games with what we consider the best controller ever made and we’re excited for fans to experience the improved D-pad, redesigned battery compartment, new comfortable design and offset analog sticks. The new PC drivers will enable the Xbox One controller to be used with any game that featured gamepad support for the Xbox 360 controller. Simply download the drivers, connect your Xbox One controller to your computer through a micro USB cable and you’ll be gaming in no time.

Windows 10 Xbox One Controller Driver

The drivers will be automatically included for all supported versions of Windows via a future update, but Microsoft is allowing eager gamers to manually grab the drivers early. Simply download the 32-bit or 64-bit driver as appropriate for your version of Windows.