If you’ve noticed menus skipping two items at a time, or button prompts flickering between Xbox and PlayStation icons while playing with a DualSense, you’re running into the double input glitch. Here’s why it happens and the reliable way to fix it.
Why This Happens
Modern Windows games try to be helpful by detecting connected controllers automatically. The problem is that a game can end up seeing both your raw physical DualSense (through DirectInput) and the virtual Xbox controller DSX creates (through XInput) at the same time. From the game’s perspective, it looks like two separate controllers are both being pressed simultaneously.
HidHide fixes this by hiding your physical controller from everything except DSX, so games only ever see the clean, single virtual controller.
Setting Up HidHide
Before you start: close DSX completely, check your system tray to confirm it’s not still running in the background.
- Install the HidHide Configuration Client from its official GitHub release page if you don’t already have it
- Open HidHide and go to the Devices tab
- Find your physical controller, usually listed as “Sony Interactive Entertainment Wireless Controller” or “DualSense Wireless Controller”, and check the box next to it
- At the bottom of the window, check “Enable Device Hiding,” this is the master switch that actually activates the hiding
- Switch to the Applications tab and click the plus button, then browse to and select DSX’s executable file, this creates the exception that lets DSX specifically still see the real controller
- Close HidHide, reopen DSX, and click Start, check that your controller shows as detected in DSX’s controller list
Confirming the Fix Actually Worked
Windows has a built-in tool for checking connected controllers that makes verification easy.
- Press Win + R, type
joy.cpl, and hit Enter - This opens Windows’ native game controller status window
What you should see: exactly one controller listed, the virtual one DSX created (something like “Controller (XBOX 360 For Windows)”).
If you see two entries, both a virtual Xbox controller and a “Wireless Controller,” that means HidHide isn’t actively hiding your physical controller, or DSX wasn’t whitelisted correctly. Go back through the setup steps and double-check both the device hiding checkbox and the application whitelist entry.
A Note for Bluetooth Users
If you disconnect and later re-pair your DualSense, especially to a different Bluetooth adapter or a different USB port, Windows can sometimes register it as a new hardware instance with a different ID than before. If the double input glitch suddenly reappears after doing this, it’s worth reopening HidHide and checking whether a new, unhidden instance of your controller has shown up under Devices that needs to be checked again.
Common Mistakes That Undo This Fix
Forgetting to re-enable hiding after a Windows update. Some updates can occasionally reset certain driver-level settings. If double inputs return after a major Windows update, check that “Enable Device Hiding” is still checked in HidHide before assuming something else broke.
Whitelisting the wrong executable. If you’ve reinstalled DSX or it’s in a different location than when you first set up HidHide, the whitelist entry might be pointing at a file that no longer exists. Removing the old entry and re-adding the current executable path resolves this.
Running a second controller tool alongside DSX. If you’re also running DS4Windows or another mapping tool at the same time, both trying to manage the same physical controller creates its own conflicts, separate from what HidHide addresses. Stick to one tool at a time per controller.
Keeping Things Working Long-Term
Once HidHide is set up correctly, it generally keeps working without needing attention, it’s a set-it-once solution rather than something to reconfigure regularly. The main things worth remembering: whitelist DSX (not any other program) under Applications, and if you ever troubleshoot a fresh double-input issue, check whether a new, unhidden controller instance has appeared before assuming the whole setup broke.
If you’re still seeing issues after working through this, our Troubleshooting guide and Drivers page cover broader connection and driver problems that might be contributing.
Why HidHide Works Better Than Older Approaches
Some older mapping tools included their own built-in “hide controller” toggle as an alternative to a dedicated tool like HidHide. In practice, these built-in options have tended to be less reliable across different Windows versions and updates than a dedicated driver-level solution. HidHide works at a lower level in the system, closer to how Windows itself manages device visibility, which is part of why it’s become the standard recommendation across multiple different controller mapping tools rather than just DSX specifically. If you’re comparing setup guides and one recommends a built-in hide option instead of HidHide, the HidHide approach is generally the more dependable choice to default to.
Testing With a Game, Not Just joy.cpl
While joy.cpl is a fast way to confirm only one controller is visible at the system level, it’s still worth testing in an actual game afterward, particularly one you know previously had the double-input problem. Some edge cases can pass the joy.cpl check but still show quirky behavior in a specific game’s own controller detection, so a quick real-world test after setup gives you more confidence than the system check alone. Navigate a menu, check that selections advance one item per press rather than two, and confirm button prompts stay consistent (all Xbox-style, or all PlayStation-style, not flickering between both) before considering the fix fully verified.