Wiimotes don't register button presses in Windows 8

02-01-2013, 04:39 PM #1

Hi guys and gals - I'm having what can only be described as an unusual issue with Dolphin.

I used to use Dolphin on a Win7 laptop with a USB Bluetooth dongle, and two third-party remotes (from Gamestation in the UK, built-in Motion Plus, recognised as RVL-CNT-01) that worked flawlessly. Back then I was using Dolphin 3.0-787 x64.

Now I've got a new desktop build, based around a Gigabyte Z77N-Wifi motherboard, which features built-in Bluetooth courtesy of an Intel Centrino Wireless-N 2230 mini-PCI-E card, running Windows 8 Pro. So, I figured I'd give it a bash running Dolphin. Downloaded v3.5 Stable x64, and went to work!

I've synced a remote via Bluetooth, Windows sees it, lets me connect it with a blank passcode - no problem. When I open Dolphin, it sees the remote, vibrates in the Wiimote menu, and assigns it as the first controller (set to Real Wiimote in the menu). However, no button presses register. Even when set to Real Wiimote, Dolphin seems to occasionally (but not always) respond to keyboard input, but this is sporadic.

I've tried:

Changing the Bluetooth stack from Microsoft to Toshiba and Bluesoleil, making sure to remove previous drivers as I went.
Using WiiPair to try and get the remote to connect.
Different versions of Dolphin (3.0-787 from my laptop, and 3.5-336).
An actual original Nintendo Wiimote that I've owned more or less since the system was released.
Running Dolphin in Administrator and Compatibility modes.

And I still can't get the Wiimote to register button presses. It's sat here, taunting me with its little blue "Player 1" light, telling me that I'm not allowed to partake of the joys of Mario Kart.

Can anyone help me fix this problem so I can get back to being blue-shelled in to oblivion?

Thanks,

Sam

benydc · 02-01-2013, 08:34 PM #2

Have you tried with another bluetooth adapter, usually the on-board ones are troublesome?

02-02-2013, 11:13 AM #3

Hi benydc,

I found my USB Bluetooth adapter I use with my laptop, and tried it in my new PC. It wouldn't work out-of-the-box - I had to install the Toshiba stack to get it working, which wasn't the case before. Without the Toshiba stack installed, it would again see the Wiimote, but not let me play games.

The "problem" I've got with this "solution" is that I use my USB Bluetooth adapter with my laptop, using it with my desktop requires me to disable the integrated Bluetooth (and since the 2230 is a combined Wifi/Bluetooth module, bye-bye to my network connection while I've disabled it), and the fact that the integrated card will detect and add my Wiimotes, with Dolphin being able to vibrate them, so all appears to work fine in terms of connectivity. I just can't actually use them for gameplay.

I've tried using Alternate Timings to see if that was causing problems, but nothing was solved. I used to play these games on my laptop, so since I'm using the same Wiimotes as I was on my laptop, with an install of Dolphin from my laptop for testing (the folder containing 3.0-787 was backed up from my laptop and moved to my desktop), I would have thought all the settings should have stayed the same.

The Bluetooth card is confirmed compatible with OS X (the motherboard I'm using was bought specifically to Hackintosh at some point) and on the Wiibrew page "List of Working Bluetooth Devices" all internal Bluetooth cards for OS X are confirmed compatible. If there is a compatibility issue with my Bluetooth card and Windows 8, at least I'll have a solution, even if it's not the one I was hoping for.