Google Stadia Controller Bluetooth Support Now Available—Here’s How to Use It

Google Stadia is soon ending its cloud gaming services for all, but this does not mean that one's purchased Stadia controller/s is going to waste or being unusable. The famed internet company promised last week that it will release a Bluetooth mode update for Stadia controllers, and it is now available for all to install and configure.

Google Releases Stadia Controllers' Bluetooth Mode

On Stadia controller's website, there already is a button where users may download the Bluetooth mode feature to repurpose their gaming pads to use for other platforms or consoles. There is a requirement for this update, and users need to have Chrome 108 or later to install this update for their controllers and get on with their lives without Stadia.

Google fulfilled its claims that it will allow gamers to use the Stadia controller for other platforms, and not just the company's cloud services.

Previously, Google allowed the Stadia controllers to connect to its services via a WiFi network, and this update will make the controller Bluetooth-permanent, as the cloud gaming service shuts down this week.

The internet company will allow gamers to update their Stadia controllers to Bluetooth until December 31, 2023, only.

How to Use Bluetooth Mode on Stadia Controllers

According to 9to5 Google, after installing the Bluetooth mode on the controllers, gamers only need to press the "Y" and the "Stadia" buttons for two seconds to enter pairing mode. The light indicator will turn orange when in pairing mode, and this is the time users may search for it in their devices' Bluetooth settings.

After pairing, the light will turn white, and this will be its default color when connecting to its last paired device.

Wireless connections will not support the 3.5mm audio jack output, but wired connections via USB-C will allow sounds to come through.

Stadia controllers' Bluetooth mode is available to connect on Windows 10 and 11, macOS 13 via Steam, ChromeOS, and Android.

Google Stadia and its End of Service

The Mountain View-based company envisioned the cloud gaming experience for all when it first launched Stadia in November 2019, and it is one of the earliest platforms where people could play games without installing it first. Stadia promised a streamlined gaming experience for all, particularly with a low-latency, high-framerate cloud integration.

However, it met its fate back in October 2022, after less than three years after its run with Google to deliver the famous games available on the platform to the PC and mobile platforms. Ubisoft promised to take the reigns from then on, with some titles on Stadia coming to PC, as fulfilled by the French gaming company amidst its shutdown.

Gamers were given four months for the adjustments, alongside the refunds for their purchased titles, and other perks that they were supposed to get from Stadia, now on other platforms. Google promised to bring Bluetooth mode for existing Stadia controllers, as they get repurposed for other platforms, now available for people to download.