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Android: Select does not open Settings; no touch settings button #152

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Android: Select does not open Settings; no touch settings button#152
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bugSomething isn't working

Description

@OTPR26
OTPR26
opened on Oct 11, 2026

What happens

On an Android gaming handheld, holding the built-in Select / Minus button does not open the Settings overlay. The documented controller shortcut therefore does not provide a usable way to reach settings on this device.

The only persistent touch control visible at the left side of the game is the controller icon, which toggles the virtual controls. There is no visible Settings/gear button. I do not normally have a keyboard connected to this handheld.

Sending KEYCODE_F1 through ADB does open the Settings overlay. This confirms that the overlay itself works, but it is not a practical way for a handheld user to access settings during normal use. The failure was observed at the file-selection screen, before loading a save.

Expected: holding Select / Minus opens Settings, and Android also provides a visible touch-accessible Settings button so users can reach the menu even if a controller shortcut is unavailable.

Steps to reproduce

  1. Install the upstream Android APK and prepare a personal copy of the game on device.
  2. Launch the game and reach the file-selection screen.
  3. Hold the built-in Select / Minus button to try to open Settings, as described in docs/overlay-controls.md.
  4. Settings does not open; the controller icon only provides access to virtual game controls.
  5. As a diagnostic workaround, run adb shell input -d 0 keyevent KEYCODE_F1: Settings opens successfully. The same keyboard shortcut can toggle it again.

Save state and save file, or why I can't add them

No save is needed: this is reproducible at file selection with empty save slots. No game files are attached.

Version

Installed app reported versionName=0.2.13, versionCode=88 when checked through ADB.

Platform

Android 13 (API 33), arm64. Upstream package: org.wwhdrecomp.wwhd.

Hardware

AYN Thor with built-in Nintendo-layout controls; QCS8550 / Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, 16 GB RAM.

Renderer

Vulkan.

Logs and diagnosis

The Android log recorded [overlay] opened after the F1 workaround. I have not captured a button-input trace of the failed Select hold, so I am not claiming a specific root cause or that the app receives that button correctly.

Related controller-menu report: #112 (Steam Deck). This report concerns Android and the Thor's built-in controller rather than Steam Input.

Android handheld usability

Please consider adding an always-accessible Settings/gear button alongside the touch-controller toggle. That would also let users configure controls when the default menu shortcut fails. OR simple have the menu respond on Android to the select/- button instead of F1 which Android devices do not have.

Also, small thing but the Android setup/help text repeatedly calls the device a "phone". Using "Android device" would better cover dedicated gaming handhelds and tablets as well as phones. The Android gaming device market is booming. I highly doubt most of the folks downloading for Android are phone users.

Activity

  1. OTPR26
    changed the title [-]Android: Select does not open Settings on AYN Thor; no touch settings button[/-] [+]Android: Select does not open Settings; no touch settings button[/+] on Oct 11, 2026
  2. lschaupp
    added
    bugSomething isn't working
    on Oct 11, 2026

  3. lschaupp commented on Oct 11, 2026

    @lschaupp
    lschaupp
    on Oct 11, 2026
    Contributor

    Thanks for the detailed report, @OTPR26, and for checking with ADB that the overlay itself works! Holding Select opens Settings when the controller's Select button reaches the app as a gamepad "Back/Select" button. On some handhelds the built-in controls report Select differently (as the system Back key, or the controls as a keyboard, which our Android app only uses for typing), so the hold never arrives. Two questions to pin it down on the Thor:

    1. Does Minus work in the game (e.g. it switches to Off-TV Play)?
    2. Could you start the game and send the lines with [input] from adb logcat -s wwhd (they name the controller and how Android reports it)?

    Independently of that, we'll add a settings (gear) button next to the 🎮 button on Android, so the menu is always reachable by touch, and change "phone" to "Android device" in the texts. Fair point, handhelds and tablets are a big part of Android players.

  4. OTPR26 commented on Oct 12, 2026

    @OTPR26
    OTPR26
    on Oct 12, 2026
    Author

    Retested v0.2.13 :

    Holding Select/− for 3 seconds opens Settings successfully. A short press switches Off-TV Play correctly.

    The requested startup log reports:

    [input] controller connected: Odin Controller (id 2, vendor 2020, product 0111, type 1)

    I encountered another controls issue: the Thor has Nintendo-labelled buttons, but the default mapping behaved like Xbox. I could manually remap A/B, but attempts to bind X/Y failed, leaving both unresponsive in gameplay. Inspection of controls.json showed "X": null and "Y": null. Physical input capture confirmed that both buttons reach Android.

    Selecting “by position (Nintendo)” populated all four bindings with Xbox layouts.

    Regarding the proposed Settings gear button: I don’t think there should be additional persistent touch overlay buttons. The existing floating touch-controller icon is already intrusive on a handheld with built-in controls. Would be better to provide an option to hide it and clearly explain the existing shortcut of needing to Hold Select/− for over 3 seconds to open Settings. This isn't a typical setup on Android, so a setup hint would be helpful.

    The floating desktop-style Settings window also makes configuration awkward on a handheld. The window draws quite small. A larger controls and a layout suited to Android gaming handhelds would help considerably.

  5. lschaupp commented on Oct 12, 2026

    @lschaupp
    lschaupp
    on Oct 12, 2026
    Contributor

    Thanks for retesting and for the log line, that's exactly what we needed! Agreed on the gear button: no extra floating buttons. Here's the plan:

    • Settings: holding Select/− should open it after half a second, not 3 seconds. We'll find out why it takes longer on your Thor.
    • Controls: the Nintendo-labelled pad getting Xbox layouts, X/Y not binding (null in controls.json) and by position filling in Xbox layouts are bugs; we'll fix them for the Odin/Thor controller and similar pads.
    • Touch buttons: they'll hide automatically while a controller is connected (with a setting to always show or hide them), plus a one-time hint "Hold Select/− to open Settings".
    • Settings window: larger on phones and handhelds, with bigger buttons and a UI size setting.
    • Wording: "Android device" instead of "phone".

    We'll post here when it's in a development build.

  6. lschaupp
    added 3 commits that reference this issue on Oct 12, 2026

    SetupPolicyTest: expect the Android device wording (#152)

    6c4ff35

    mod_oneclick_flow: the tab inside the Settings window, Android style …

    71b88bc

    mod_oneclick_flow: the tab inside the Settings window, Android style …

    1df108a

  7. lschaupp commented on Oct 12, 2026

    @lschaupp
    lschaupp
    on Oct 12, 2026
    Contributor

    The changes are in the new development build, @OTPR26:

    • Hold Select/− opens Settings after half a second, and a one-time hint says so.
    • The Odin/Thor controls get their Nintendo positions: A, B, X and Y all work and can be bound in Controls, and the empty X/Y bindings in controls.json are repaired.
    • The view and 🎮 buttons hide while a controller is connected; a tap in their corner brings them back for a few seconds. Settings › Display › Touch buttons has Automatic / Always show / Hide.
    • Settings are larger on phones and handhelds (Settings › Display › UI size).
    • "Android device" instead of "phone".

    We tested it with a simulated Odin controller through Android's input stack, but not on a real Thor yet, so your feedback would be great. If something is still off, the [input] lines in adb logcat -s wwhd now show how Android reports the controller.

  8. lschaupp commented on Oct 12, 2026

    @lschaupp
    lschaupp
    on Oct 12, 2026
    Contributor

    @OTPR26 Closed for now. Let us know any feedback on this. Thank you.

  9. lschaupp
    closed this as completedon Oct 12, 2026
  10. pancreations
    added a commit that references this issue on Oct 12, 2026

    Changelog: Android handhelds and controllers (ZeldaWWHDRecomp#152)

    1c346c0
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