Bear with me.

I like to use the Steam Controller for certain games. To use a steam controller, afaik, you have to run the game through steam (otherwise it won't load the right config on game boot, doesn't let you edit controls, that kind of thing).

One of those games is The Witcher 3. Which I own through GoG, not Steam.

So, before I used Galaxy 2.0 for everything, I solved this conundrum by adding TW3 to Steam, and running it through that. My TW3 shortcut on my desktop executes "steam://rungameid/10667905903744778240", which after Steam boots executes the game, with the context needed for the controller to work: Desktop Shortcut -> Steam -> GoG Game executable.

This was fine.

Now though, I am trying to use Galaxy 2.0 for all games. No more desktop shortcuts. However, I cannot work out how to hook this up properly. I see two options:

One: work out how to manage a steam controller without running a game through steam. I haven't been able to find anything about this, I feel like it's probably not possible.

Two: still invoke steam, i.e. go Galaxy Shortcut -> Steam -> GoG Game executable. But because TW3 isn't a "native" Steam game, Galaxy 2.0 doesn't pick it up in its integration. I also can't just create a steam shortcut (like the one on my desktop) and add that as an alternative game or alternative executable, because Galaxy is "smart" and intentionally removes the layer of indirection the steam URI provides when you try to add it, and so ends up just referencing the GoG game executable instead.

I'm about to write a batch script that executes the steam URL, but this seems extreme. I wonder if anyone has any idea how I'm supposed to do this properly.

Tested and this can be accomplished by the following (from start to finish in case anyone else wants steps):

1. Main Steam menu>Add a non-Steam Game to My Library.
2. Instead of ticking any of the games in the default list click instead the Browse button and directly select the game EXE from the GOG install directory.
3. Right-click the newly added game in Steam's sidebar list and in the Manage sub-menu select Add shortcut to desktop.
4. Right-click the desktop shortcut and copy the numbers portion from URL field.
5. Paste the numbers into the batch script below, replacing the example numbers already there.
6. Open GOG Galaxy 2 and the game's existing game library page, click the settings icon and in the Manage installation sub-menu click Configure.
7. Scroll down to Launch parameters and tick/enable Custom executables/arguments and at the bottom click Add another executable/arguments and navigate to the batch file you've saved previously. Once added select Default executable instead of the original one.

Now launching the game on Galaxy will launch it via Steam.

--- Batch script (copy and paste code below this line into a new text file then save with .bat file extension ---

@echo off
setlocal enabledelayedexpansion

start "" steam://rungameid/10832520631422025728

exit /b

This works like a charm. Thanks a lot.

Added: Also, this might deserve to be information put on a sticky. This might be the best way to use this controller with GOG games.

Now with the Quake II remaster being released I recognized that when I launch this game through steam, but with the batch file here, my game time is not recorded anymore by Galaxy 2.0.

I feel like that updating GOG Galaxy 2.0 to the newest version could have maybe changed that. Now I receive messages after quitting such game, that due to current workload the cloud cannot be updated, I should try it later again when I launch the game again.

Strangely this appears for me now only for these batch files, but for different/other executables which come with a GOG game, then the cloud normally works and the game time is tracked correctly.

Does anyone know what the issue could be? Since March / April until now the batch file was working for me fine due to game tracking. But now it's not.

Can it be that a Galaxy 2.0 update is causing this?

I use these batch files to have the steam community and to use the steam input.

Strangely now with Star Wars Battlefront 1 no cloud error message appeared and my game time remains the same and Galaxy 2.0 claims that I started this game last time 3 months ago.

Does anyone have a clue how to let the game time being recorded with these batch files?

Thanks a lot for sharing this! I wonder whether you guys have been able to make it work when there is a launcher in the middle? I'm trying to use my steam controller to play the witcher enhanced edition but it does not want to work, steam doesn't use the layout i loaded, I think it's because it actually runs a launcher first.

Already tried to run it without the launcher but nothing happens. GOG Galaxy just pretends to run the game for a second and then nothing.

Thanks.

A launcher inbetween should not be the issue. I play various Quake I source ports through a launcher and the steam input is activated all the time when I launched the game.

I cannot play Quake IV on GOG with steam input or any joypad mapper. I guess, because Quake IV runs in admin mode and this blocks things?