Xbox & PlayStation Controller Support • New Training Program • CRT Overhaul

PATCH NOTES • 0.3.461

Hey everyone.

Since launch, the idea behind every update has been the same: keep improving the game's foundations to prepare for the full release and the major content updates that will follow, with new levels and new entities. This time, the effort went into controllers, the Steam Deck, a rebuilt training program, a new CRT interface theme, and a better experience with the PDA and the camera.

Onboarding got special care

a quick three-step setup wizard puts you in the best conditions to play, and the new training program properly introduces the field tools, so you head out with most of them already in hand. Full controller support also lays the groundwork for bringing the game to PlayStation in the future.

And keep an eye on that camera

something very cool is coming for it soon.

Thank you for all the feedback on yesterday's update. Based on it, the CRT look now stays on the end-of-run screens, where it belongs, and the settings and pause menu are back to their clean standard look. Your feedback keeps shaping this game into one of the best Backrooms experiences out there, so keep it coming.

Here is everything that changed:

Controller Support

• Xbox & PlayStation • The game is now fully playable on controller, from first boot to extraction. PlayStation pads get their native button glyphs, and the interface follows whichever controller you used last.

• Reworked layout • Triggers use and aim your tools, tool cycling moved to the shoulder buttons, flashlight to the stick click, push-to-talk to the D-pad. Interacting no longer holsters your tool at the same time.

• Every screen on the stick • Shop, SkinShop, Operation Board, keypads, bug reports, surveys and the first-boot setup are all fully navigable on controller, with proper button hints everywhere and the Steam keyboard popping up where you need to type.

• Focus and binding fixes • The LAB control panel no longer captures your controller when you spawn, the deployment terminal no longer traps navigation, and a binding issue that could wire movement onto a face button (or show a stray LEFT STICK glyph on prompts) is gone.

• Rumble tuning • The Smiler's proximity rumble now behaves consistently on Xbox pads and DualSense.

New Training Program

• Rebuilt from the ground up • M.E.G. training is now a full guided course: every field tool has its own room (scanners, trackers, paint gun, SOS beacon, revive kit, camera, hiding spots), with objective cards that fold away once read and drills that adapt if you rush ahead.

• First-boot setup • A new setup wizard covers language, movement keys, brightness and microphone on first launch, fully controller-friendly. Training is recommended to new recruits, never forced.

• Your gear is safe • Finishing, replaying or abandoning training can no longer touch your real inventory, and completion rewards were significantly increased.

Interface Overhaul

• CRT terminal look • Surveys and all end-of-run screens now render as a M.E.G. phosphor terminal: scanlines, glow and period-correct chrome. The new Terminal interface theme is applied once with this update; you can switch themes anytime in the shop, and two of them are free. Following your feedback, the pause menu and settings keep their clean standard look.

• AddedEndless Protocol screen • The Endless terminal was reorganized into clear tabslaunch a new protocol on one side, browse your archived runs on the other. No more overflowing lists.

• Shop polish • Denied purchases now give instant feedback instead of failing silently, locked cards show a padlock, and your stats moved up into the header.

Steam Deck

• Playability pass • Interactive LAB screens open fullscreen on Deck, the HUD, menus and radial wheel were rescaled for the small screen, and a tuned graphics preset targets smooth performance out of the box.

PDA & Signal

• Reworked signal screen • The PDA got a new integrated signal instrument with a crew biomonitor, cleaner overlays and proper controller tab switching.

• Signal history • The PDA now keeps a trail of your last 30 seconds: your position in the world and the signal strength along the way, so you can tell at a glance whether you are getting closer.

• Upload fixes • The agent-data upload now starts the moment you lock the signal (the silent delay made players think they were outside the zone), and the upload overlay no longer fails to appear for non-host players.

Multiplayer & Operation Board

• Real session info • The session browser now shows each session's actual target zone and threat level, lists private squads as anonymized entries, and displays the host's region. Sessions hosted on older versions show a neutral STANDBY badge instead of wrong info.

• Endless loot loss • Non-host players no longer lose their items after extracting during the Endless Protocol.

• Microphone fix • Your selected capture device no longer resets to the system default when changing levels.

Fixes & Localization

• Helmet HUD • Fixed the HUD staying hidden after switching from Endless back to Classic.

• Initiation Complete • The achievement is now correctly granted when you finish training.

• Level Fun • The jukeboxes now play original tracks that are safe for your streams and videos, and the ambient volume slider finally affects every music zone.

• Dropped items • Items can no longer land in unreachable spots when dropped.

• Localization • Over a hundred interface strings that were stuck in English are now properly translated across all 25 supported languages, with many quality fixes on top.

This is one of the biggest updates since launch. Grab a controller, run the new training program, and tell me what you think.

Mat