Google Stadia Controller

The Google Stadia Controller was pretty much the only piece of consumer hardware that came from the company’s cloud gaming project, but it would have been useless without the platform to go with it. As such, Google opened up a conversion tool that allowed the Stadia Controller to work as a regular Bluetooth controller, and now, it’s leaving that tool open for longer.

While we’re still sad to see Google Stadia shutting down this week, Google did the right thing in refunding customers and, on top of that, unlocking Bluetooth support on the Stadia Controller. But how does that controller actually hold up on PC games? Let’s take a look.

As promised last week, Google is now letting you update the Stadia Controller to enable Bluetooth (Low Energy) support.

Google has gotten full approval for the Stadia Controller’s new Bluetooth support ahead of the upcoming patch.

Google will shut down Stadia on January 18, less than a week from today, but the company is today sharing one last update – the Stadia Controller is getting Bluetooth support.

Earlier this week Google widely confirmed that refunds for Stadia hardware would be available within the next two weeks, and just a couple of days later refunds are already starting to arrive.

Following content purchases, the Google Store today alerted customers that Stadia hardware, including Controller and Editions bundles, refunds “will be issued within 2 weeks.”

On Friday, the Google Store introduced a permanent Chromecast with Google TV and Stadia Controller “package.” The Stadia Controller is now seeing a $10 price cut to $59.99.

The Stadia for Android and Google TV app officially launches today — though we’ve been using it for a few days through a simple workaround. As part of that, the Google Store is offering a “special offer” that gives you a small deal when buying both the Chromecast with Google TV and Stadia Controller. 

In addition to picking up USB-C headset support, the Stadia Controller now has an experimental “Tandem Mode” that helps expand accessibility and input options. It also lets you use third-party gamepads somewhat wirelessly when playing on the Chromecast Ultra.

One of the most unique aspects of Google Stadia is its controller, which instead of connecting wirelessly over Bluetooth, connects over Wi-Fi directly to your Stadia instance. Starting today, you can now use the Stadia Controller wirelessly when playing on your Android phone.

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In recent months, there have been a handful of changes to pricing for Google’s game streaming service. The Google Store this week is discounting the Stadia Controller by 10% worldwide.

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Originally expected at the end of March, Google announced that wireless Stadia Controller support is rolling out to the web this week. This means that gamers playing on laptops and desktops no longer need to connect via USB.

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