Skip to main content

Gamepad Tester

SolvedVerified By Gamepad TesterVerified By Gamepad Tester

The Create Button On My DualSense Does Nothing At All Any More

Asked by Lars G.11,260 views

Create button is dead. Does nothing on console, does nothing in your menu buttons test. Every other button including Options and the PS button works perfectly. It used to work, I used it for clips all the time, and then it just stopped. No drop, no liquid, controller is about a year old. Is a Create button repairable or is this one of those things where the part is awkward to get at?

Brand
Sony
Model
DualSense CFI-ZCT1W
Connection
USB-C Cable
System
PS5 / Windows 11
Browser
Chrome 141
Detected Controller
DualSense Wireless Controller
Buttons And Axes
17 buttons, 4 axes
Short Answer

Repairable, and it is a cheap part. The Create and Options buttons sit on a small flex membrane that is easy to reach once the shell is open, and at a year old a warranty claim is worth trying first.

Verified By Gamepad TesterVerified By Gamepad Tester
Thiago Alves
Thiago AlvesVerified Gamepad Tester team memberGamepad Tester Team
Hardware Repair Educator · 11+ years experience · Answered Apr 25, 2026

This is repairable and it is one of the easier buttons to get at, so do not write it off.

On a DualSense, Create, Options and the PS button sit on a small membrane section near the top of the board rather than being individual switches. Reaching it means opening the shell and lifting the board, which is a few more steps than a face button but no harder, and there is no soldering. The membrane itself is a very cheap part and usually sold as a set with the other small buttons.

Before you open it, two things. At a year old you are inside warranty on most purchases, and a dead button is one of the easiest faults to demonstrate: show the retailer the button test on a phone and the Create button sitting dead while everything else responds. That is a thirty-second conversation and opening the controller ends that option permanently. Worth trying first.

Second, rule out something that catches people out. On a PS5, the Create button's behaviour depends on console settings, and if a capture setting or a shortcut profile has changed, the button can appear dead on the console while being electrically fine. Your test result rules this out, because the browser reads the raw input with no console settings involved, and a dead button there is genuinely dead. That is exactly the kind of thing these tests are for, and it means you can skip all the console-side troubleshooting that other guides will send you through.

If you do go ahead with the repair, the one thing to be careful of is the ribbon cable to the touchpad, which runs near that area and is easy to catch when lifting the board. Disconnect it rather than working around it.

Step By Step Fix
  1. Confirm in the menu buttons test that Create registers nothing while Options and PS both respond. This rules out console settings, since the browser reads the raw input.
  2. At a year old, raise a warranty or retailer claim first and show them the test result. Opening the controller ends that option.
  3. If repairing: open the shell, disconnect the touchpad ribbon cable rather than working around it, and lift the board.
  4. Clean the Create contact and the matching board pads with 99% isopropyl alcohol. Contamination is worth ruling out before replacing anything.
  5. Reassemble and re-test. If it registers, you are done.
  6. If still dead, fit the small-button membrane set for your DualSense revision. It is inexpensive and usually includes Options and PS as well.
  7. Re-test all three buttons after reassembly, since you will have disturbed all of them.

Tested on: DualSense CFI-ZCT1W across two revisions, wired USB-C, PS5 firmware 25.08 and Windows 11 24H2, Chrome 141. One dead Create button restored by cleaning, one required a membrane set. Console-side capture settings tested separately to confirm they do not affect the raw input.

Checked by Oliver Sterling on . How we verify answers

Did this fix your controller?
Was this answer helpful?
Share this guide

Community Replies 3

  • Accepted Solution
    Lars GöranssonCommunity Member

    Took it back to the shop with the test open on my phone and walked out with a replacement. Did not even have to argue. Thank you for telling me to try that before unscrewing anything.

  • Jamila OseiCommunity Member

    The point about the browser reading raw input is really useful. I had spent an hour in PS5 settings assuming it was a capture option.

  • Vincent LeclercCommunity Member

    Did the membrane set myself. Disconnect that touchpad ribbon like the answer says, I nearly tore mine trying to be clever.

Add Your Reply

Add screenshots, a short recording or filesDrag here, paste a screenshot, or tap to choose. Up to 2 files, 8 MB each. JPG, JPEG, PNG, WEBP, GIF, TXT, LOG, PDF, JSON, MP4, WEBM
Thiago Alves
Written and tested by

Thiago AlvesVerified Gamepad Tester team member

Hardware Repair Educator at Gamepad Tester

Thiago teaches controller repair. His work starts where a diagnostic ends: a player has a drift reading or a dead button on screen and needs to know what to open, what to clean, what to replace and when to stop and claim warranty instead. He walks through controller assembly and disassembly step by step, with an emphasis on the cheap fixes that are worth trying before a module swap. On Gamepad Tester he writes the repair, cleaning and warranty answers, and makes sure each repair step has been carried out on a real controller before it is published.

Controller teardownsstick module replacementcontact cleaningwarranty decisionssoldering
  • 5 answers on Gamepad Tester
  • 11+ years experience
  • Carries out the repair steps published here on real controllers before the answer goes live.
  • Reviewed by Oliver Sterling

The Team Behind These Answers

All 40 specialists

Each answer is written by the specialist who owns that part of the hardware, tested on a real controller, and checked by a second team member. How we verify answers

Answers are free general guidance from the Gamepad Tester Team and the community. Opening a controller or replacing a thumbstick module can void your warranty, so check the maker's support or warranty first. Battery and soldering work carries a real risk of damage or injury.

Free Controller Tests

Every test runs in your own browser with the Gamepad API. No sign up, no download, and your controller data never leaves your device.

All tools

Read Next On The Gamepad Tester Blog

All articles

Latest From The Community

The newest replies from players and the Gamepad Tester Team.

All guides