gamepadviewer.com

What It Is

GamePad Viewer is an “official controller display and testing” web tool that visualizes gamepad input in real time. It is typically used during game livestreams or video recording to show button presses, stick movements, and trigger actions in a way viewers can understand. It can also serve as a basic controller tester. The tool runs in the browser, and the page notes that its functionality comes from modified versions of Gamepad.js and Tester.js.

Core Features

It supports a wide range of controller skins, including Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3/4, GameCube, FightPad Pro, Fight Stick, NES, Nintendo 64, and more. Most configuration is handled through URL parameters: you can select the player number, skin ID, enable compact mode, adjust scaling, deadzone, input delay, trigger intensity bars, and steering wheel rotation stop behavior. For livestream setups with capture delay, the delay parameter can sync controller input with the captured video feed. The tool also supports button/axis remapping, DPAD POV mapping, and exporting mappings to the URL generator.

Customization, Integration, and Documentation

GamePad Viewer’s main strength is its customizability. Users can load a fully custom CSS skin via css=, or modify an existing skin with editcss=; however, creating a skin from scratch requires some CSS knowledge. For integration, the page provides setup steps for OBS window capture, Chroma Key, and CLR Browser/Browser Source, making it well suited for livestream overlays. The documentation includes an FAQ, Docs, Changelog, and URL parameter reference. The parameter explanations are fairly detailed, though the overall style is English-heavy and feels like an individual developer’s personal project.

Pricing and Open Source

The page does not mention commercial plans or mandatory paid access. It includes a Donate option, and the changelog references Patreon, so it appears to be mainly free to use with donation support. Whether it is open source is not clearly stated; although it uses Gamepad.js and Tester.js, the licensing and source availability of GamePad Viewer itself are not specified in the page content.

Pros, Cons, and Who It’s For

Its strengths are that it requires no installation, works well with OBS, offers rich URL parameters, and provides practical skin and remapping features. It is especially suitable for game streamers, speedrunners, fighting game creators, and tutorial video producers. Its drawbacks are that customization has a non-trivial learning curve, compatibility depends on the browser Gamepad API and OBS browser source, and the changelog is mainly concentrated around 2015–2017, so current maintenance activity cannot be confirmed from the page. There is no information about accessibility from China in the source text, so network connectivity and payment availability would need to be tested in practice. If access is limited, local OBS plugins or other controller input overlay tools may be alternatives.