Machine Party keyboard and controller setup

Prepare a two-player couch setup

Put the keyboard, mouse, and controller at the same PC. Keep the mouse within reach of the keyboard player: the documented alternative is keyboard and mouse, rather than a promise that every simulation can be played with keys alone. Pick a screen position where both players can read round instructions.

Before launching, connect the controller and check its input in Steam Settings → Controller. If Steam does not see it, try a known data-capable USB cable or reconnect the wireless device before adjusting the game. Disconnect unused wheels and virtual controllers for this first test.

This guide covers a pair sitting at one computer. Friends on separate PCs should start with the online multiplayer guide. The local co-op hub explains shared and split-screen behavior.

Join the Local lobby with separate inputs

1. Update Machine Party through Steam, then launch it with the controller already connected.
2. Choose Local and select Original, Custom, or Arcade. An online lobby is a different setup.
3. In the lobby, press a button on the controller to join its player. Use the visible keyboard-and-mouse prompts for the other player; this guide does not assume one universal keyboard join key.
4. Complete the name and cosmetic selections shown for each joined player, then check that both intended seats are present.
5. Before readying up, take turns using each device. Continue only when each person can identify their own player.

Move one device at a time during this check. Simultaneous button presses make it harder to tell whether one pad has appeared twice or the keyboard is changing a shared menu selection.

Check input ownership in the first round

Use a short practice session before committing to a longer run. Read the briefing together, then test the keyboard player’s movement and the controller player’s movement separately. A menu responding to both inputs does not, by itself, prove that each input has a separate gameplay seat.

Follow the live control prompts for the simulation. If a button works in the lobby but appears inactive in a round, confirm that the round actually calls for that action before changing Steam Input. Keep track of whether the failure affects movement, an action button, or only a prompt label.

Screen layout also changes by simulation. Seeing a shared camera rather than two permanent viewports is not evidence that the keyboard player failed to join.

If the keyboard or controller controls the wrong player

Close the game and return to a simple setup: one pad, one keyboard, one mouse. Start with Steam’s default per-game controller setting and a gamepad layout rather than a community keyboard-emulation layout. Relaunch after each change so the result is easy to compare.

If one controller appears to move two players or skips menu entries, follow the double-input checklist. If it never creates a separate seat, use the controller not joining the Local lobby guide. A pad that fails in Steam’s own input test belongs in the general controller detection checklist first.

A second physical keyboard is not a verified way to create an extra independent player. For this setup, keep one keyboard-and-mouse seat and use controllers for additional people.

Add another couch player after the pair works

Save the working input arrangement in your notes before expanding the party: controller model, USB or wireless connection, and per-game Steam Input setting. Then close the game, connect the additional pad, and repeat the separate-seat check in a new Local lobby.

For a full group, use the four-player couch co-op checklist. Add devices one at a time so a new failure can be traced to a particular controller, connection, or mapping rather than changing every setting at once.

Mixed-input questions

Do both people need controllers?

No. One player may take the keyboard-and-mouse seat. Use the game’s visible prompts to confirm that seat and the controller seat before starting.

Can two people share one keyboard instead?

The official local instructions describe one keyboard-and-mouse player alongside pads. They do not establish two independent keyboard seats, so plan on a controller for the other person.

Should I remap the controller to keyboard keys?

Start with a gamepad layout. Keyboard emulation can make input ownership harder to diagnose in a mixed-input session. Keep any custom layout for later, after the default arrangement works.