FIFA 23 CONTROLLER SETTINGS

FIFA 23 Controller Settings let you adjust and set assistance for many aspects of your game.
FIFA 23 Controller Settings

The Best Controller Settings


FIFA 23 offers a variety of controller settings. In this game, you can adjust and set assistance for save, cross, right stick and icon switching, and ground pass, to name a few.

If you want to improve your gameplay, the most straightforward way is to change the controller settings according to your style and preferences.

How To Change FIFA 23 Controller Settings
  1. From the main FIFA screen, navigate to [Customise];
  2. Select [Settings];
  3. Select [Customise Controls];
  4. Navigate through each setting and change them as you wish.
There are many FIFA 23 controller settings you can adjust:
  • Competitive Master Switch;
  • Contextual Agile Dribbling;
  • Auto Clearances;
  • Auto Flair Pass;
  • Auto Shots;
  • Assisted Headers;
  • Jockey;
  • Defending;
  • Through Pass Assistance;
  • FIFA Trainer;
  • Timed Finishing;
  • Next Player Switch Indicator;
  • Pass Block Assistance;
  • Auto Switching;
  • Auto Switching Moving Assistance;
  • Clearance Assistance;
  • Player Lock;
  • Icon Switching;
  • Right Stick Switching;
  • Ground Pass Assistance;
  • Shot Assistance;
  • Cross Assistance;
  • Lob Pass Assistance;
  • Save Assistance;
  • Analog Sprint;
  • Pass Receiver Lock;
  • User Vibration Feedback;
  • Trigger Resistance.

Competitive Master Switch


Toggle that tailors gameplay to a competitive configuration. It’s mandatory in online game modes.
On When enabled, you cannot adjust the other settings.
Off When disabled, you can adjust each setting.

Contextual Agile Dribbling


When enabled, it will make your players automatically perform Agile Dribbles in certain situations, for example, in a 1v1 case against an opponent.
On Enable Contextual Agile Dribbling for left stick dribbling in one-to-one situations.
Off Disable Contextual Agile Dribbling for left stick dribbling in one-to-one situations.

Auto Clearances


Select ON or OFF to control the clearances.
On Players will perform Clearances contextually in the appropriate situations.
Off Players will never perform Clearances unless the clearance button is pressed.

Auto Flair Pass


Select ON or OFF to control the flair pass.
On Players will perform Flair Passes contextually in the appropriate situations.
Off Players will never perform Flair Passes unless the flair modifier is held.

Auto Shots


Select ON or OFF to control the shots.
On Players will perform automatic shots contextually in the appropriate situations.
Off Players will never perform automatic shots.

Assisted Headers


When playing with this option, your headers will not be assisted in any way, with the aim and power used when performing the header determining the initial target for the header before the header is than potentially impacted by the error.
On Enable Header Assistance for left passes and shots for a more casual gameplay experience.
Off Disable Header Assistance so that headers for passing and shooting are manual and are more accurate. This is a competitive header mechanic to add more skill to headers for everyone.

Jockey


Select whether your jockey speed will be assisted or manual. These options can help your player to stay to your opponent.
Assisted Jockey speed will be assisted to help you stay close yo tour opponent, but there is no directional assistance.
Manual When jockeying there will be no speed or directional assistance. You are on your own.

Defending


Select the way how you defend.
Legacy Defending It gives you the familiar defending controls of past FIFA titles.
Tactical Defending It gives you the ability to time your tackles and maintain your position like never before.

Through Pass Assistance


Select an option to decide whether ball direction and power will assist in helping play passes into the receiver’s path and avoid opponent players.
Assisted Through ball direction and power will be assisted to help play passes into the receiver’s path and avoid opponent players.
Manual The direction you point is the direction the pass goes, and the longer you hold the pass button, the stronger the pass will be.
Semi Through ball direction and power will be partially assisted to help play passes into the receiver’s path and avoid opponent players.

FIFA Trainer


The FIFA trainer is a helpful tool that can teach you as you play while showing you the actions you’re currently taking. It can be further customized when you pause a match and go into the Trainer’s Settings.
Show Select whether you want to show or hide the Trainer during game play.
Hide Select whether you want to show or hide the Trainer during game play.

Timed Finishing


Select ON or OFF to enable timed finishing, allowing you to improve the accuracy and power of shots by double-tapping the button assigned to the “Shoot” action as you kick the ball.
On Trigger a timed finish by double tapping the button assigned to the “Shoot” action when attempting a strike. The precision and timing of the second button tap determine the result of the contact; perfectly timed strikes increase a shot’s accuracy and power, while poorly timed contacts make the shot more likely to miss the mark.
Off Disable Timed Finishing that double tapping the shot button to shoot will not impact the shot quality.

Next Player Switch Indicator


Select ON or OFF to show which player you’ll swap controls with while defending using the X button on the controller.
On Enables the Icon which shows to which player you will swap controls when pressing L1/LB while defending.
Off Disables the Next Player Switch Icon.

Pass Block Assistance


Select ON or OFF to enable or disable AI-controlled players, and User-controlled players will from attempting to intercept a pass automatically when the ball is close by.
On Enable Pass Block Assistance so that your AI controlled players and User controlled players will attempt to intercept a pass automatically when the ball is close by.
Off Disable the Pass Block Assistance for your User controlled players so they don’t attempt to intercept the ball when it’s close by. Instead, they will stay in position and you manually need to launch a block/tackle.

Auto Switching


Select either “Air Balls and Loose Balls,” or “Auto,” to enable switching between players during certain passes while playing, or select “Manual” to take control.
Air Balls and Loose Balls AI will only switch for you on Lobs and Crosses, and Loose Balls. Otherwise, you are on your own.
Auto AI will switch to the best player for you. If you would like to switch to someone else you can still override our selection by pressing the switch button.
Manual AI will never switch for you, you are on your own.

Auto Switching Move Assistance


Select between “None,” “Low,” “Medium,” and “High” to keep the player you AUTO switch to moving in his current direction for a short period. This will allow you to orient your intended direction for the new player.
None Auto switch move assistance will keep the player you AUTO switch to moving in his current direction for a short period of time. This gives you time to orient your intended direction for the new player.
Low Auto switch move assistance will keep the player you AUTO switch to moving in his current direction for a short period of time. This gives you time to orient your intended direction for the new player.
High Auto switch move assistance will keep the player you AUTO switch to moving in his current direction for a short period of time. This gives you time to orient your intended direction for the new player.

Clearance Assistance


Select between “None,” “Low,” “Medium,” and “High” to keep the player you AUTO switch to moving in his current direction for a short time. This will allow you to orient your intended direction for the new player.
Classic Clearances directiona and power are fully assisted and do not take into consideration the user directional input.
Directional Clearances directiona takes into consideration the user directional input, but still fully assists on power and picks the earliest available contact point.

Player Lock


When enabled, the CPU AI will then take control of the on-ball player allowing you to move your off-ball player and ask for a pass back in a better position.
On Enable this feature to lock a player pressing both left and right sticks and then switch away from the dribbler using the right stick flick.
Off Disable Player Lock feature and mechanics.

Icon Switching


Select an option to choose if Switching Icons will be enabled or not.
On Enable Switching Icons to be displayed when pressing R3.
Off Disable Switching Icons from appearing when pressing R3.

Right Stick Switching N


Select an option to decide how Right Stick Switching works.
Adaptive Holding Right Stick for longer will switch no more distant players as soon as you release it.
Classic Flicking Right Stick will switch to the next player immediately in the direction you point to.
Player Rotation Flicking Right Stick will move the next player switch indicator, but will not switch the player. Press L1/LB to switch the player.

Right Stick Switching Reference


Select an option to decide whether a player or the ball will act as the center point of reference for any Right Stick switching.
Player Relative When defending, the player you control will act as the center point of reference for any Right Stick switching.
Ball Relative When defending, the ball will act as the center point of reference for any Right Stick switching.

Ground Pass Assistance


Select an option to decide whether pass direction and power will be assisted or manual to help play passes into the receiver’s path and avoice opponent players.
Assisted Pass direction and power will be assisted to help play passes into the receiver’s path and avoid opponent players.
Manual The direction you point is the direction the pass goes, and the longer you hold the pass button, the stronger the pass will be.
Semi Pass power is assisted, but AI will only help you a little with the direction.

Shot Assistance


Select an option to decide whether shot direction will be assisted to always aim towards the goal.
Assisted Shot direction will be assisted to always aim towards the goal.
Manual The direction you aim is the direction the shot will go.
Semi You have to aim toward the target to keep your shots on target.

Cross Assistance


Select an option to choose the amount of power used during cross-direction passing.
Assisted Cross direction will be assisted towards a team mate. Cross power will be assisted to front or back post areas and there will be no power bar on the cross.
Manual The direction you point is the direction the cross goes, and the longer you hold the button to perform crosses, the stronger the cross will be.
Semi You have to choose the right power, but cross direction will be assisted to front and back post areas.

Lob Pass Assistance


Select an option to choose the consistency of lob passes and how strong the pass will be.
Assisted Lob pass direction and power will be assisted so lob passes will be played towards a team mate.
Manual The direction you point is the direction the lob pass goes, and the longer you hold the lob pass button, the stronger the pass will be.

Save Assistance


Select an option to choose whether balls relatively close to your body will be automatically saved.
Assisted Balls relatively close to your body will be automatically saved, for all the others you need to get positioning and timing right. Direction doesn’t matter.
Manual Just reflex saves are automatic, every other ball will depend on your positioning, timing, and the direction you attempt to save.
Semi Balls close to your body will be automatically saved, for all other balls you need to get positioning, direction and timing right.

Analog Sprint


Select ON or OFF to control how fast you sprint.
On Turning on Analog Sprint allows you to control how fast you sprint. The further you hold sprint button, the faster the player will run.
Off Turning off Analog Sprint doesn’t allow you to control how fast you sprint.

Pass Receiver Lock


Select an option to decide when the pass receiver is locked.
Late The pass receiver is locked as late as possible, close to the time when the ball is kicked.
Animation Start The pass receiver is locked early, at the time when the kicking animation begins.
Power Up N The pass receiver is locked as soon as the pass button is released or the power bar reaches full power. This is the earliest possible receiver lock.

User Vibration Feedback


Select an option to decide how vibration will work.
Enhanced An enriched gameplay experience as vibrations activate from different areas on the controller allowing you to get a true sense of real world actions.
Classic Full controller vibration when key gameplay actions happen.
Off Turn off all vibrations.

Trigger Resistance


Select an option to decide how hard is the trigger.
Off Disable the trigger resistance.
On Enable the trigger resistance.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you want to adjust FIFA 23 controller settings, follow these steps:
  1. From the main FIFA screen, navigate to [Customise];
  2. Select [Settings] and then [Customise Controls];
  3. Navigate through each setting and change them as you wish.
You can initiate a shot with your controlled player by pressing your shooting button. This will begin the animation for the shot, and assuming you press nothing else and are not interrupted; your player will try to shoot the ball. Timed Finishing allows you to press shoot a second time to potentially pull off a better shot.

When Timed Finishing is on, double-tapping the shooting button during the animation will help determine a shot’s result. Watch your player closely during their shooting animation, and press the shoot button a second time just as they’re about to connect with the ball.

If the second press is timed at the right moment, regular shots can receive an increase in accuracy and power. Finesse shots can receive more accuracy and curve, but not power. The same increases are applied to regular and finesse flair shots, respectively. If the second press is timed slightly early or late, the shot will likely go astray.

If the second press is timed exceptionally early, the shot will likely go astray. If the second press is timed after contact with the ball has been made, the shot will not receive any boosts or downgrade and will function as a normal shot.

Turning Timed Finishing Off means that you can ignore this mechanic. However, you will miss out on the ability to boost your shots.
The mandatory Competitive Settings changed by the Competitive Master Switch are:

  • Contextual Agile Dribbling: Off;
  • Auto Clearances: Off;
  • Auto Flair Pass: Off;
  • Auto Shots: Off;
  • Assisted Headers: Off;
  • Jockey: Manual;
  • Through Pass Assistance: Semi.
There are two options for the Next Player Switch Indicator, On (default) and Off. On means that you will see an icon above the player, which you will switch to if you use the default player switching button (L1 on PlayStation and LB on Xbox). The icon lets you know what to expect from your next player switch. Off means that you will not see an icon when you perform a switch with the appropriate button.

This feature was previously known as ‘Second Defender Switch Icon’.
When set to On, your controlled player will sometimes try to block or intercept passes within their range automatically. Depending on the situation, your AI teammates will also attempt blocks/interceptions. This setting has an element of risk vs. reward because it can naturally result in more automatic block attempts. However, this also means that there can be more missed blocks/interceptions, causing unwanted defensive situations. If you want more control over what your controller player does on defense, you might be more interested in the Off option.

When turned Off, the user-controlled player must manually perform a tackle or block to attempt a block. AI teammates will continue to try interceptions and blocks, depending on the situation. Turning Pass Block Assistance Off can give you more control over blocking attempts, but it’s generally more challenging as well.
Auto Switching always tries to select the best-suited player for the current situation based on who is most likely able to take the ball.

Air Ball and Loose Ball Auto Switching mean that the player you control can be switched by the game when the ball is 8 feet in the air or higher. This Auto Switch occurs once and selects the player best suited to get to the ball based on its trajectory. An Auto Switch can also occur during a loose ball situation, such as when a defender gets a touch on a pass and changes the ball’s path.

If you set Auto Switching to Auto, the game will try to switch to the best-suited player in every situation. However, remember that even when this assist is enabled, you can still manually switch with the right stick or the player switch button.

The Manual option means that there will not be any Auto Switching in effect.
Auto Switch Move Assistance keeps the player you’ve been Auto Switched to moving in their current direction for a short period. So if there’s an Auto Switch to a player moving right, they will briefly continue to move right. The Low and High options affect how long the Auto Switched player keeps moving in the same direction. None means that no Auto Switch Move Assistance will take place.

This setting has no impact when you manually switch players. For example, if Auto Switching is set to Manual and Auto Switch Move Assistance is set to High, the Move Assistance option has no effect. Depending on the circumstances, there will be times that your player will keep moving after you perform a Manual Switch. For example, this can happen when you switch to a player who is a mid-sprint and needs time to slow down. This is unrelated to Auto Switch Move Assistance.
Assisted means that when you Jockey with a player, they will try to decelerate if you’re about to run past the attacker. This assist can help you stick closer to the player you’re trying to mark. In this example, the defender is Fast Jockeying (Sprinting + Jockeying). Note how the assist helps decelerate him.

Manual Jockeying means that there will be no help with changing the speed of your player; it’s up to you to control them as you see fit. In this example, the Jockey Assistance is set to Manual, and the defender is Fast Jockeying (Sprinting + Jockeying). Note how he goes off in the wrong direction due to the sprint.
Agile Dribbling is a way to keep close control of the ball. Inspired by some of the best dribblers in real life, Agile Dribbling is intended to give you the ability to quickly move the ball from side to side to help dribblers get away from defenders and to use fast footwork to help you create space by tricking defenders into over-committing to tackles.
To ensure fairness in competitive modes across FIFA, playing with Manual Heading is mandatory in the following modes:

  • All FUT modes, including FUT Champions, FUT Rivals and Squad Battles;
  • All Pro Clubs modes;
  • FIFA Seasons, FIFA Co-Op Seasons and FIFA Online;
  • Friendlies.
Player Relative Right Stick Switching means that whoever you’re controlling acts as the reference point for your next switch with the right stick. You can picture that player as the center of your right stick so that directions will be about that player.

Ball Relative Right Stick Switching means that the ball acts as the reference point instead of the player. You can imagine the ball as the central point of your right stick so that directions will be relative to the ball.
Using the Assisted option, you can expect to receive help similar to regular passing. Assisted through balls avoid the opponent’s players and land neatly in the passing target’s path.

When using the Manual option, you will not receive any help. Like with regular passing, your player will attempt to execute your inputs to the best of their ability.
When using the Assisted option, your players will always attempt to aim shots in the direction of your opponent’s goal. This level of assistance generally makes it easier for you to aim at hard-to-reach areas of the goal since your player will always try to shoot towards the opponent’s goal. For example, if your back is towards the opponent’s goal, but you take a shot, this assistance will help your player direct their shot towards the opponent’s goal. Ultimately, things like your player’s attributes and the situation (open vs. under pressure, for example) they are in will determine the final result of the shot.

When Shot Assistance is set to Semi, you have to actively aim towards the goal to attempt a shot on goal. You will receive a little help with your directional input if you’re not quite aiming at the goal.

When Shot Assistance is set to Manual, there is no directional help with your shots. Instead, your player will try to aim their shots wherever you’re seeking, and you have to aim between the opponent’s goal posts to attempt a shot on target.
When the Assisted option is enabled, you will receive great help with cross-direction to target your teammate. How long you hold the crossing button generally has no effect, and the cross will generally be directed towards the front or back post areas.

Semi Assisted crossing will help you with the direction of your cross, but you’ll have to manually control the crosser’s target selection range by holding down the crossing button. Holding the crossing button for longer will generally result in the cross going towards the far post. However, keep in mind that your player’s attributes always play a role in every action, including crossing.

Manual crossing means you will not receive any help, and your players will try to execute your inputs to the best of their abilities. This option gives you the most control over the crossing, but you’ll need to carefully consider your direction input and how long you hold down your crossing button.
These options function the same way as the Passing Assistance ones, except that there is no “Semi” setting for lobbed passing.

Using the Assisted option, you can expect to receive help similar to regular passing. Assisted through balls avoid the opponent’s players and land neatly in the passing target’s path.

When using the Manual option, you will not receive any help. Like with regular passing, your player will attempt to execute your inputs to the best of their ability.
3 Save Assistance options affect a player-controlled goalkeeper, Assisted, Semi, and Manual. These assists can only be active when a user is controlling a goalkeeper.

When set to Assisted, balls that come close to your body will be automatically saved. All other balls require the right positioning and timing. The directional input of your save doesn’t matter due to the assist. If you aim your save towards the left, it could still get corrected towards the right side.

When set to Semi Assisted, balls that come close to your body will be automatically saved, but you’ll need the right positioning, direction, and timing for the rest.

When set to Manual, only reflex saves will be automatic. All other saves require the proper positioning, direction, and timing.
Turning on Analog Sprint means you’ll have to press your sprinting button to maximize the speed of the controlled player’s sprint. If you press it only halfway, the controlled player’s sprint speed is reduced accordingly. To clarify, when you push your sprinting button, you’re telling your player to run at 100% of their speed, as dictated by their attributes. When you push your sprinting button halfway, you’re telling your player to run at 50% of their speed, as dictated by their attributes.

When you have Analog Sprint Off, your controlled player will try to reach maximum sprint speed no matter how far you’ve pushed your sprint button. So think of it as either sprinting all the way or not.
Tactical Defending uses modern controls and mechanics, giving you more direct and indirect control when defending. Tactical Defending lets you dictate the intensity of your challenges and enables mechanics like jockeying and Teammate Contain.

Legacy Defending uses controls and mechanics from older FIFA titles for a more old-school experience. You can use this setting for a more “retro” FIFA experience, but remember that Legacy Defending is not available in online play.
When the Late option is enabled, you’ll have time to alter your passing directional input as close to kicking the ball. Simply put, Late means that you can change where you’re aiming your pass until very late in a passing animation. This option can give you control of the passing direction for longer, but it requires you to be more careful about accidentally changing your aim at the last moment. If you’re used to playing past FIFA titles, you will likely be more comfortable with this setting. Keep Pass Receiver Lock set to Late if you want to maintain aiming control for as long as possible when you make a pass.

When the Early option is enabled, it will lock in your directional input early in the passing animation. This means you cannot change where you’re aiming your pass in the last few moments before making contact with the ball. It allows you to worry less about accidentally changing pass direction, but it generally requires you to be more precise with your passing.