Scptoolkit

Pros

• Freeware
• Supports all D4 features

Cons

• No longer supported

ScpToolkit is an open-source XInput wrapper and Windows driver for DualShock 3 and 4 controllers.

ScpToolkit is software that is both open-source and freeware. That means that you can download and use it as much as you want without cost, and it also means that advanced users can actually edit the program and recompile it for their own purposes. The main goal of the program is to let gamers use their DualShock 3 and DualShock 4 controllers in a Windows environment, including Windows 10.

To appreciate what ScpToolkit is, you’ll need to understand what XInput is. XInput is a program and API that facilitates communication between Xbox 360 controllers and games as well as other applications. As of this writing, Xbox controllers—unlike DualShock controllers—do have native support, but XInput gives users greater control over how a controller is configured and calibrated.

DualShock controllers are designed by Sony first and foremost for its PlayStation consoles—an Xbox competitor. The DualShock 3, often abbreviated DS3, was sold with and for the PlayStation 3, and the DualShock 4 or DS4 was released alongside the PlayStation 4. Using ScpToolkit, both the DS3 and DS4 can be connected to your Windows PC via a USB cable or wirelessly via Bluetooth.

How ScpToolkit works, in a nutshell, is that it wraps the device driver for the DS3 or DS4 and exposes it to XInput as if it were an Xbox 360 controller. Fundamentally, the controllers are the same and share many of the same features, and so, this works pretty well.

The DS4 deviates the most from the Xbox controllers in that Sony added an LED touchpad that is multi-touch and clickable as well as a share button. What is impressive about ScpToolkit—and some of its competitors that also act as a wrapper for XInput—is that these features are supported even though they are not available on Xbox controllers, which is very cool.

While ScpToolkit is a powerful and feature-rich solution, it is not as user-friendly as it could be ideally. It also lacks some refinement that the popular alternative DS4Windows offers. The casual user may find the learning curve with ScpToolkit to be a bit much, and if you experience problems, such as the Bluetooth connection dropping out, ScpToolkit can be a hassle to get working right.

Perhaps the biggest issue with ScpToolkit is that it is no longer being developer or supported, and while the developer did tease something on the horizon, as of this writing, that has never materialized. As with other tools that are no longer supported, such as DS4 to XInput Wrapper, it may be the popularity and overall polish of DS4Windows that is the cause. That program is worth investigating certainly, but ScpToolkit is still viable for users who have a real preference for the XInput environment.

Pros

• Freeware
• Supports all D4 features

Cons

• No longer supported