Improved MultiDevice HOTAS & Joystick Support for Space Engineers

Space Engineers currently supports only one input device at a time, which severely limits players who use full HOTAS setups, pedals, custom controllers, or multi‑axis hardware. While the recent joystick improvements are appreciated, the current system still behaves like a single‑device input layer rather than a true PC multi‑device analog system.

This feedback proposes a practical, proven approach to implementing multi‑device analog input support, based on how existing community plugins already solve the problem.

Problem Description

The current input system:

- Allows only **one** active input device at a time.

- Does not provide per‑device configuration panels.

- Does not allow mapping **multiple devices** to the same action.

- Makes it extremely difficult to use HOTAS + pedals + additional controllers without external tools like JoyToKey or Gremlin.

This is a major limitation for players who want to fly ships with realistic, simulator‑style controls.

Proposed Solution:

1. Add per‑device configuration panels

A proven approach already exists in the community plugin ecosystem.

The plugin below allows players to open a configuration panel **for each detected joystick**, and inside that panel assign actions to that specific device:

https://github.com/ananace/dotnet-SEAnalogGridControlPlugin

This structure solves multiple problems at once:

- Each device can be configured independently.

- A single action can be mapped to **multiple devices** (ideal for HOTAS + pedals).

- The UI remains clean and intuitive.

- No need for external remapping software.

2. Allow multiple devices to control the same action

This is essential for realistic setups. For example:

- Pitch/Yaw on joystick

- Roll on pedals

- Throttle on separate HOTAS axis

- Strafe on a mini‑stick or second controller

The plugin demonstrates that this is entirely feasible within SE’s current architecture.

3. Ensure all ship movement axes can be bound directly to analog inputs

This includes:

- Throttle

- Pitch

- Roll

- Yaw

- Strafe

- Vertical thrust

As long as these axes are exposed as analog bindings, players can map them freely across multiple devices.

Why This Matters

Space Engineers is one of the few sandbox games where full simulator‑style flight controls make sense.

Players who build large ships, fighters, or atmospheric craft would benefit enormously from proper multi‑device analog support.

Flying a ship with a full HOTAS setup is an incredible experience — and the community has already shown it’s possible.

Request

I kindly ask Keen Software House to consider:

- Implementing per‑device configuration UI similar to the plugin

- Allowing multiple devices to map to the same action

- Ensuring all ship movement axes can be bound as analog inputs

- Expanding the input system beyond single‑device limitations

I will gladly provide additional examples, UI mockups, or technical notes if needed.

Below I attach a screenshot of the plugin’s GUI showing how configuration looks with three separate devices.

Even though the plugin has its own limitations, it works extremely well and demonstrates that assigning any number of input devices to any action is both possible and intuitive.