Xbox controller goes to player 2 on PC [FIXED BY EXPERTS]

Madalina Dinita
by Madalina Dinita
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xbox controller goes to player 2 on pc

Many Windows users 10 reported that Xbox controller goes to player 2 on PC. This issue becomes annoying when players are not able to access certain in-game features that are accessible only for player one.

One user described the issue on Microsoft Answers as follows:

I bought a new Xbox 360 controller to play games on my PC (windows 7). When I play certain games (in my case GTA V) my controller loses its connection for a split second and when it gets a connection again the controller is stuck on player 2.

We came up with a series of fixes to help you get rid of this annoying inconvenience.

What to do if Xbox controller is stuck on player 2 on Windows 10?

1. Delete a specific controller driver

  1. Open the Control Panel.
  2. Under the Hardware and Sound section, click View Devices and Printers.
    hardware and sound control panel xbox controller goes to player 2 on pc
  3. There you will have Xbox 360 controller for Windows and Xbox 360 Wireless controller – delete the first one.
  4. Disconnect the controller marked as Player two.
  5. Connect your controller back and see if it worked.

2. Run the troubleshooter

xbox troubleshooter xbox controller goes to player 2 on pc

  1. Open the Control Panel.
  2. Under the Hardware and Sound section, click View Devices and Printers.
  3. Right-click Xbox 360 controller for Windows and select Troubleshoot.
  4. Wait for the processes to take place and see if it made any changes. The error message Device may have stopped responding could pop up, changing your controller to player one afterward.

Want to connect your Xbox One controller to PC? Here’s how to do it in 2 minutes!

3. Restart your PC and connect your controller first

restart your controller xbox controller goes to player 2 on pc

  1. Restart your PC having the controller connected.
  2. After the system reboots, immediately search for connection with the controller so the 4 lights start blinking.
  3. After Windows starts up, the controller should be connected to the player one.

4. Disable hidden USB device information with USBDeview

USBDeview software xbox controller goes to player 2 on pc

  1. Download USBDeview in order to be able to see all the hidden information and disable it.
  2. Install and run USBDeview.
  3. Search at the bottom of the list for devices named XBOX_360_DEVICE followed by a series of numbers.
  4. Your controller should be the one containing the smallest number – e.g 00:00.
  5. Right-click the other files containing XBOX_360_DEVICE and disable them.
  6. Re-plug your controller and start it up.

5. Update Windows

  1. Press the Start button > open Settings.
    settings start menu xbox controller goes to player 2 on pc
  2. Click Update & Security.
    update and security settings app xbox controller goes to player 2 on pc
  3. Select Windows Update > Click Check for updates.
    windows update check for updates xbox controller goes to player 2 on pc
  4. If it finds any updates, let it complete the process and restart your computer
  5. After rebooting your PC, check if updating Windows fixed the issue

Alternatively, you can download specific updates from the Microsoft Update Catalog website.

We hope that our guide on how to open the Xbox 360 controller as player one could be of help for you. If you managed to fix this issue, leave us a comment in the comment section below.

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