If you’re a gamer and an artist, you probably have a controller on your desk, right? If that happens to be a PlayStation 4 controller, you could customize it into a powerful little shortcut remote for digital painting on Windows.
While a device like this is intended for two-handed use and not designed for this purpose, you can program a whole lot into it. Below is a setup guide for connecting your controller, how to customize it, and an example of how I’ve programmed it for digital art.
Software you need
The main bit of software you’ll need is DS4Windows (by Ryochan7) to customize your PS4 controller for use on PC. To make the controller compatible, it sort of ‘tricks’ your computer into interpreting it as an XBox controller as you’ll notice later when we get into customizing.
- Download and install .net 8.0 installer from the DS4Windows Github page;
- Download DS4Windows x64 installer file from their Github page;
- Run the installer. I left the HidHide add-on checked/selected;
- When it’s complete, confirm reboot of your Windows machine.
Pair the device
In my case here, I’m using a PlayStation 4 DualShock controller on Windows 11.
- Press and hold Share and then PS button on your controller
- Open the Bluetooth settings on your Windows computer, add device, and select your wireless PlayStation controller
Now you’re all set and ready to customize.
Customizing the PS4 controller on Windows
Open DS4Windows.
- switch to the profiles tab and create a new profile,
- Choose No when asked about loading a preset so that your controller functions are completely empty;
- This part might look intimidating but you’ll mostly be using the left side. On the image of the controller, click on the button that you want to customize;
- set a shortcut that matches with the action in your drawing or painting app;
- When you’re done, be sure to apply or save;
- Rename your profile;
- Switch to the Controller tab and assign the new profile to your controller
While you’re getting into the programming of your buttons, there are a few things to consider…
Orientation
The very first thing to think about is the orientation of the controller. This is a tricky one. Having it in your typical landscape orientation might be the most familiar, but a portrait orientation might make more sense to more easily hit different areas of the controller with less movement of the hand.
Grouping by 4s
The buttons and movements are typically grouped in sets of 4. In the case of the DualShock4 controller, you have the directional and symbol buttons on either side, the front buttons and triggers, the joysticks with a press and directional movement, and a touch pad for swiping action.
Be ready to change
Knowing what buttons to program for what function can be a bit of a challenge. You’ll probably have to experiment quite a bit to find the setup that works best for you. I would keep my DS4Windows panel open on my other monitor so that I could quickly update the keys in the moment if I needed to.
There is a lot that can be customized here; a lot more than one expects. So be prepared to spend a bit of time on this.
If you want something smaller that fits in your hand and can even be programmed for mobile art apps, then check out the 8BitDo Micro.
How I set up my PlayStation controller for painting on Windows
If you want an idea of what to program to get you started, then I’ve detailed my layout below. I’ve set my controller in a portrait orientation with the top pointing away from my drawing tablet (though it’s flipped in the image above). When I say UP in the list below, I am still referring to up as though the controller were in it’s standard orientation.
Left stick – tool parameters
- UP-DOWN: size +/-
- LEFT-RIGHT: opacity +/-
- Press: Brush
Right stick – Layer actions
- UP: New layer
- Down: Delete layer
- Left: Clear layer
- Right: Merge layer down
- PRESS – (Empty)
Directional buttons – Select and Transform
- Left: Layer via copy
- Right: Lasso Selection
- Up: Transform
- Down: Deselect
Symbol buttons – Tools
- Triangle: Lasso Fill
- Square: Eyedropper
- X: Eraser
- Circle: Paint bucket
Touchpad – Navigation
- Swipe UP-DOWN: Zoom in/out
- Swipe Left-Right: (Empty)
- Press top left: Hand – Space
- Press top right: Rotate
- Press front: Fit to screen
Other
- Share: SHIFT
- Options: Undo
This isn’t even all of it. I could still add functions to my L1-R1 buttons and the triggers. The placement of these is a bit awkward though in this orientation.
Record macros for combinations
If you shortcut includes two or more keyboard keys, you can record a macro for the button. For example, the shortcut for a new layer in Magma is Shift + N. You can only select a single key from the keyboard layout so instead I have to create a macro for it.
- Select the button to customize;
- Hit Record a macro;
- Press record;
- In precise order, press and hold Shift and then N;
- Release the keys (N first);
- Then Stop.
It should display as this, then hit Save. Whenever you arrive at this macro window, it will have the last actions loaded into it. Hit clear before recording a new macro. Don’t worry, this doesn’t clear the actions you set for a different button.
It’s painting time
So as I mentioned, the controller isn’t quite designed for this but I was impressed by how much I could actually have ready to use here. I like that each set of buttons have their own distinct location and feel. This is probably why the Tourbox is such an enjoyable controller to use as well.
Overall, using a Playstation controller for digital art works well enough. If you have one, why not give it a shot. But for when you want to get serious, you might want to take a look at this brief overview of different shortcut remotes.
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