Sony may be in for a rough ride with its PS5 controller as users are suffering from widespread DualSense drift issues. Since launch, users are reporting more and more situations where their analogue sticks would stay still but their characters and camera angle would move ever so slightly. I have encountered my own share of DualSense drift on both my controllers. Last night, in particular, I was playing Resident Evil 7 and my character kept walking backwards even when I left the stick alone. Even when I thought it had stopped, I heard taps on the floor meaning Ethan’s shoes were nudging backwards.
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The thing is, the DualSense drift issues aren’t happening all the time. I would go into another game and saw no sign of the problem whatsoever. However, load up Cyberpunk 2077 and the menu cursor would drag down the screen when I leave my controller. Family members of mine have also reported DualSense drift issues while playing the recently-released Control: Ultimate Edition. The character would slowly nudge to the left when the controller is stationary.
Thankfully, users online are now making a noise about the problem. Twitter and Reddit are two platforms being used to share proof of these issues. Users are sharing the camera and character movements taking place while the controller is left alone. Here are a load of examples we could find:
- Immortals Fenyx Rising character walking alone
- Call of Duty camera drifting
- Destiny 2 camera drifting
- Borderlands 3 camera drift (below)
According to Sony, the DualSense drift issues are covered under warranty so you would have to get it replaced or repaired. This depends on how your PS5 warranty program works in your country. In SA, a simple exchange at PartServe will do it. However, keep in mind that the replaced controller only has a 3-month warranty so you are sacrificing some time on your hardware in order to get it swapped out.
Another option is to adjust the dead zone on the DualSense controller itself but unfortunately, Sony does not have the means to do that yet on the console. Certain games do include an in-game feature to tweak the zone such as Call of Duty. Users can adjust the dead zone ever so slightly and completely avoid the drifting. This would be a lifesaver if it was added to the console’s software.
The strangest thing about the DualSense drift issues is that it never happens all the time. In my experience, one game would give me issues but I would jump into Destiny 2 and my camera would not nudge at all. Perhaps certain games include a dead zone safeguard to protect the controller from this problem? However, some users are reporting that it is an issue in every title they play. Not sure if this is hardware or software related then.
Many believe that the issue with the DualSense drift stems from the controller using the exact same analogue mechanism as the DualShock 4, which also had the same problem. While Sony focused heavily on adding some pretty great features to the device, they did not change the analogue sticks at all.
You can also try and reach out to PlayStation Support for help but good luck with that. I have sent them three messages in regards to the missing PS VR Camera Adaptors here in SA and they have not replied yet. If this goes on, Sony could face some nasty legal action from consumers. Nintendo is currently fighting multiple Joy-Con drift lawsuits over its controller sticks drifting on their own.
Have you encountered any DualSense drift issues? Let us know down below.
