Controller disconnects mid game and when trying to reconnect cant do anything
When I playing hut rivals my controller gets disconnected and can rejoin game to move players. Only this game this does it for
Forum Discussion
I appreciate the response. However, it seems the devs are missing the point.
The point is not why the controller disconnects mid-game. While that would be great to know, it can happen for numerous reasons and should be an expected corner case. The developers should anticipate there is always a small chance a user's controller will disconnect. The game needs to account for that and either detect and auto-fix it, or give the user a way to regain control after the connection is restored. The fact the controller can still control both the Xbox and NHL 22 menus after reconnection proves the gameplay code is missing this key error case handing.
I will note, in particular, I'm talking about EASHL club play. In offline / CPU, one can likely get back to a "choose side" screen. In EASHL, there is no such option. The game needs to detect the restored controller connection and allow the user to begin controlling his player again.
EA_Aljo
Community Manager
Community ManagerThanks for the feedback. I'll pass it on. I imagine it's not quite as easy to do as it would seem, but hopefully, the reason will be discovered and resolved at some point.
I'm having this issue multiple times a week. Lost countless club games. Anything we can do yet?
Appreciate all your replies.
I am having the same issues as others, with my series X and elite 2 controller.
Fully updated etc.
was there ever a fix?
- EA_Aljo
How often is this happening? I haven't had it occur in a very long time now with both my Elite Series 2 controllers. Something that might be causing it is interference. Are there any other wireless controllers active or are there any other devices running that might interfere? It really could be anything. Unfortunately, this one is nearly impossible to track down. We get very few reports of it and as I said, it just stopped happening for me. I didn't even realize it until it was mentioned here.
I have experienced this problem once 2 weeks ago and again tonight. I have a Series X with an Elite 2 controller. Mid EASHL game the controller disconnects and reconnects. When it reconnects I cannot control my player, I can't pause the game. During penalty shots I can control the camera angle. Got back to home during the game and going to the accessories app shows that it isn't the controller as I am able to use all the buttons, however, going back into the game doesn't fix the issue. Turning off the controller and turning it back on doesn't fix the issue. Switching to the controller that comes with the console doesn't fix the issue. I agree with a previous poster that says this looks a lot like when you are in a Play Now game and you lose communication with your controller. When this happens the game pauses and when it reconnects you are given an option to select which team you want to control. Unfortunately because you can't do this in EASHL it's impossible to recover.
- EA_Aljo
Is your controller's firmware up to date? You can find out by going to your Xbox Settings > Devices & connections > Accessories. When I was experiencing this issue, the controller would freeze, but then would restart on it's own several seconds later and work again. However, as I mentioned, this stopped happening within the last year. I did send in my controllers for repair though so it's possible that took care of it. Unfortunately, I've never found a resolution for this otherwise.
Yes. My controller firmware is up to date. I never started experiencing this previously until two weeks ago. I’ve played the franchise pretty heavily for years. This is the first year I haven’t played as much so when I do play it’s rather annoying to let my teammate down by not being able to complete a game.
If this were a controller issue I’d gladly send in my controller for repair but Microsoft will likely do their tests and say nothing is wrong with it, especially if the controller can be used outside of the game when the game won’t respond.
- EA_Aljo
Personally, I've sent Elite 2 controllers in several times over the last few years and they've always either repaired or replaced it. It's frustrating to have to send them in, but the turnaround is quick and I always get a working controller back. That said, the only other thing I can think of is that there's interference from another nearby device that could be causing this. If I have any other ideas, I'll let you know.
- @EA_Aljo Again, the developers should not be focusing on why a controller disconnects. Controllers disconnecting will ALWAYS be a thing. It doesn't matter if it's a firmware bug or if the user just walked out of range. They should be coding to detect the disconnection and give the user a way to regain control of their player, especially in EASHL.
- EA_Aljo
When this happened to me, I was always able to regain control. I'm not saying we have the same issue, but there are times you can regain control. If I have any additional details on this, I'll pass them on here.
- @EA_Aljo You're saying you disconnected in a EASHL game and regained control?
If so, please share the procedure for doing so. Nobody I know, including myself who has disconnected in EASHL has ever been able to regain control. Next time I play EASHL I’m going to disconnect my controller during a game that’s out of hand. See if the situation can be reproduced through an active power off and on of the controller.
- EA_Aljo
I mentioned this before. What would happen is my controller would completely lock up. It wouldn't respond at all. After several seconds, the Guide button would flash and the controller would reconnect and work again.
With about 20 seconds left in my EASHL game I turned off my controller and turned it back on. When I did this I got a window explaining the lead profile was disconnected and it gave me an option to repair, but of course I could not click on this. The screen didn't change until the EASHL game exit menus popped up. I was able to get back to the dressing room but couldn't ready up for the next game. Turning off the controller and on again did nothing to rectify the situation. Quitting the game and starting again however did.
- @EA_Aljo This is not the type of disconnect we're talking about. We're talking about a disconnect where the controller loses connection with the Xbox, either with the Xbox button light on or off. When the player reconnects their controller by turning it back on or bringing it back in range, the player's character is unable to move at all. The player can still bring up and navigate the Xbox menus and for that matter can navigate the NHL 22 menus.
However, NOTHING they do allows them to begin controlling their player again. They can shut off and reconnect their controller. They can re-sync their controller with the Xbox. They can try a different controller. Nothing works and their player remains motionless. The only fix is to quit the game and restart, at which point everything begins working normally again.
There are multiple people in the thread explaining they have experienced exactly this behavior multiple times. The key problem in EASHL is there is no menu which allows you to reassign the controller to control your "side" aka player. If that menu existed, since we can control the NHL22 menus, I suspect it would work and the player would be able to begin controlling their player again. This is understood. I experienced the same issue. All I’m saying is that any disconnect seems to cause the problem. Not just a loss of connection but a power off as well.
- EA_Aljo
Thanks for the additional details, everyone. If I have any news on this, I'll relay it here.
Prerequisite:
- Elite controller
Possible Prerequisite:- Play with custom bound controls
- (I have my paddles bound to LS)
Repro Steps:- Play with an Elite controller plugged in via USB cable
- During gameplay (EASHL) gameplay disconnect cable
- Controller will reconnect wirelessly
Expected Results:
- Player can gain control of skater once controller connection is established
Actual Results:
- Player can control menus but not their skater. The game is essentially forfeit as you have to restart in order to fix. Plugging controller in, turning it on/off does not restore connection.
Alternate repro can be done wirelessly by walking out of range, then letting it reconnect.
This is 100% in these conditions. Lost games/RP because of it, very disappointed there’s no fix in 23. It’s brutal in online modes.
Confirmed that this is still an issue on NHL23. Any update on this issue? Is anyone even looking into it?
@EA_AljoSame situation as others, Series X and Elite 2 controller with latest firmwares. And it behaves exactly like mentioned earlier, connection lost and after reconnect can't move player but can move on menus. Have to restart the game. Also happens only in NHL2x.
Btw like I said it's my nephew having this problem. I'm on Series X with standard Xbox one controller and not having that problem.Can confirm the bug still exists as of tonight in NHL23. Happened to a teammate tonight and we had to back out and forfeit the game as a result. Exact same behavior.
Since @Walapalapera has given a re-creation scenario, have the devs made any progress?
- EA_Aljo
I don't have an update on this, unfortunately. It's a very difficult one to reproduce and we get a small number of reports of it. I have 2 Series 2 controllers and neither one of them are disconnecting. I used to have this problem, but that stopped quite a while back. Should we have some news on this, it'll be relayed. Otherwise, the best I can advise is to either plug in your controller or use a non-Elite Series one. As always, make sure your controller's firmware is up to date.
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- EA_Aljo17 days ago
