Guides & Help / Controller setup

Prepare vJoy, HidHide, and Joystick Gremlin

Capture a known-good controller configuration once, then let Star-Launcher prepare the tools you use before a simulator starts.

What Star-Launcher prepares

vJoy, HidHide, and Joystick Gremlin are independently optional. A controller preset can use one, two, or all three tools. During preparation, Star-Launcher validates the enabled tools and handles them in this order: vJoy, HidHide, then Joystick Gremlin.

Configure each third-party tool first.

Star-Launcher does not install or replace vJoy, HidHide, or Joystick Gremlin. Set them up normally and confirm that your controllers work before capturing that configuration in Star-Launcher.

1. Start from a working configuration

  • Configure the vJoy devices your simulator setup requires.
  • Configure HidHide cloaking, hidden physical controllers, and allowed applications.
  • Create and test the Joystick Gremlin XML profile you want to use.

Test the complete controller setup outside Star-Launcher first. Capturing a known-good state makes later preparation predictable.

2. Create a controller preset

  1. Open Settings, then select Controller presets.
  2. Select New and give the preset a recognizable name.
  3. Under Tools used by this preset, enable only the tools that belong to this setup.
  4. Confirm the shared executable paths for the enabled tools.

Shared tool paths are saved across Star-Launcher. Machine-specific paths are not included when a controller preset is exported.

3. Capture vJoy and HidHide

Open vJoy and HidHide and place both in the exact state you normally use. Then use Capture vJoy, Capture HidHide, or Capture vJoy + HidHide in the preset editor.

  • Only capture tools enabled for the selected preset.
  • Close the HidHide window before capture for the quickest result.
  • Review the captured summary before saving.

4. Select the Joystick Gremlin profile

If Joystick Gremlin is enabled, browse to the XML profile you already tested. Choose whether Star-Launcher should show the tool during preparation and whether Joystick Gremlin should be minimized after its profile is activated.

Select Save controller preset when the preset is complete.

5. Use the preset from the main page

  1. Return to the Star-Launcher main page.
  2. Select the controller preset below Controller preparation.
  3. Keep Included in launch selected if preparation should run with the full launch.
  4. Select Prepare controllers now to test the preset by itself.

Run Pre-flight checks before a full launch to catch missing paths, missing captures, or an unavailable Joystick Gremlin profile.

Common controller-preparation issues

  • A tool cannot be found: confirm its shared executable path in the controller preset.
  • vJoy or HidHide has no captured configuration: reopen the tool, verify its state, and capture it again.
  • Joystick Gremlin sees only virtual devices: confirm the selected XML profile, physical-controller connections, and the HidHide applications allowed to see those controllers.
  • Windows requests administrator approval: approve the UAC prompt when an enabled controller tool needs elevated access. Star-Launcher cannot bypass it.
  • Joystick Gremlin is already open: close it completely if Star-Launcher asks, then run preparation again.

For additional help, see Troubleshooting or contact the Star-Launcher community through the links on the homepage.