Most PC games expect one controller, not two halves. BetterJoy’s signature trick is joining a left and right Joy-Con into a single virtual gamepad — one XInput or DS4 controller with two sticks, a full button set, and real gyro — and splitting them apart again with a click. This guide shows how to join and split Joy-Cons, how to switch their orientation, and the configuration option that stops BetterJoy from rejoining them automatically.
Prerequisite: both Joy-Cons paired
Joining happens inside BetterJoy, but only after each Joy-Con is individually paired with Windows and visible as an icon in the BetterJoy window. If you have not done that yet, follow connecting Joy-Cons to PC first. The BetterJoy package itself is on our download page.
Step 1: Toggle joint mode by clicking the icons
In the BetterJoy window, each connected Joy-Con appears as an icon. Clicking a Joy-Con’s icon toggles it between single and joint mode. When the pair is joined, BetterJoy presents them to Windows as one controller: the left Joy-Con contributes the left stick and D-pad side, the right Joy-Con the right stick and face buttons, and both halves’ motion sensors report through the combined device. Your game or emulator sees a single standard gamepad — select the XInput source in its input settings and map it as usual.
Clicking again splits the pair back into two independent controllers, which is what you want for the two-player setup described in using a single Joy-Con on PC.
Step 2: Switch orientation by double-clicking the sticks
Version 7 added a shortcut: you can double-click the sticks to change the Joy-Cons’ orientation — flipping between the split (two separate vertical controllers) and joined arrangements without reaching for the mouse. This is most useful on a couch setup, where the keyboard is across the room and you want to reconfigure from the controller itself.
Step 3: Stop automatic rejoining with DoNotRejoinJoycons
By default BetterJoy likes to bring a pair back together. If your goal is to use two Joy-Cons separately in vertical mode — two players, one Joy-Con each — set the DoNotRejoinJoycons option in the configuration file. With it set, joined pairing stays off and each Joy-Con remains its own controller. Editing that setting is covered step by step in our BetterJoy config file guide (remember to back the file up first).
How motion works when Joy-Cons are joined
When an emulator reads the joined pair through Cemuhook, it actually receives both Joy-Cons as motion sources, and both carry the full button set — choosing one or the other simply tells the emulator which hand you prefer for gyro controls. In practice: pick the right Joy-Con if you aim with your right hand, the left if you aim with your left, and leave everything else as it is. BetterJoy’s UDP motion server (127.0.0.1, port 26760) is what carries this data, and it works while the Joy-Cons are joined or split.
Playing with more than one pair
BetterJoy can join up more than one pair of Joy-Cons at the same time, so two pairs become two full controllers for local multiplayer. The practical limit is your Bluetooth adapter: the project wiki advises a decent adapter that is comfortable handling three or four connections at once, and every extra pair raises that bar. If the second pair lags, the adapter — not BetterJoy — is the first suspect.
Joined mode vs a Pro Controller: which should you use?
Players with both often ask whether the joined pair replaces a Pro Controller. Functionally they overlap — one virtual gamepad, full buttons, real gyro — but the feel differs. The joined pair is lighter in each hand and lets your arms rest apart, which many people prefer for long gyro-aiming sessions; the Pro Controller has bigger sticks, a conventional D-pad area, and one battery instead of two. For motion-heavy games the pair has one subtle edge: because Cemuhook receives both Joy-Cons as motion sources, you choose which hand supplies gyro, and some players aim better with a single light Joy-Con’s worth of inertia in the joined grip. None of this requires buying anything — if you own Joy-Cons, join them and play; the Pro Controller is a comfort upgrade, not a capability unlock.
One more habit worth building: after joining, glance at both icons’ background colours before a long session. A pair where one half is nearly empty will end your game asymmetrically — the dead half takes the whole controller down with it.
Frequently asked questions
Joined mode is on, but my game still shows two controllers. Why?
The game may be reading the raw Joy-Cons as well as BetterJoy’s virtual controller, which is the classic double-input situation. Make sure the game is set to the virtual XInput controller, and avoid running another input layer (such as Steam Input) over the same game at the same time.
Does joining affect battery or charging?
No. Each Joy-Con still runs on its own battery and drains at its own rate; watch the icon background colours in BetterJoy for each half’s level before and during longer sessions.
Which mode should I use for emulators?
Joined mode for anything designed around a normal gamepad — that is nearly everything. Split mode is for party-style games where each player takes one Joy-Con.
Where can I learn more?
The BetterJoy tutorials hub collects all of our guides, from installation to gyro aiming and button remapping.