> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://aldertlake.gitbook.io/docs-full-modern-menu/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://aldertlake.gitbook.io/docs-full-modern-menu/core-features/custom-input.md).
# Custom Input
Here, you are going to learn how to customize, change, and update your input for gamepad, keyboard, and mouse to fit your game's needs.
## GamePad Input Layout
In this tutorial, you are going to learn how to customize your own gamepad layout, apply it, and set its name depending on your game's needs.
GamePadTemplate_WB
### ✏️ Customize Layouts Names
You're going to need to change layout names to fit the style and needs of your game, but how do you do it?
**1 Reach the designer part of the widget blueprint** \
**2 Manually select the target layout text, and modify it.**
Me trying to change the recon layout name to show you how easy it is !
{% hint style="info" %}
This would require you to update Your Localization For The New Key (It May Appear in the review Tab).
{% endhint %}
### 🎮 Customize Input Actions Names
The input action names in each layout are just placeholders for you to set and change them to fit your game's needs. (You've probably heard "to fit your game's needs" a lot, huh? 😉)
1. Inside **GamePadTemplate\_WB** reach the `LayoutsSwitch` Graph
2. Inside this graph, there are 5 custom events that set all input action names. Modify them to meet your needs.
3. At the end of each layout, there's a section to set new input rules using the built-in input library system, allowing you to change input specifically for this layout on a gamepad.
### 🕹️ Applying GamePad Layouts
#### Applying GamePad Layouts using the Build-In System
You can now apply gamepad layouts by simply assigning an IMC to each layout and adding it to the 'Gamepad Layouts IMCs' section in the `Settings_Configuration` DataAsset.
To use this system, which manually applies the corresponding gamepad IMC as a layout, you need to enable the **"Use Built-in Layout System"** option.\
The **priority** value determines the input priority of the gamepad IMC. It should be set based on the number of IMCs already injected.\
For example, if you've injected 4 IMCs, the gamepad layout IMC would be the fifth and should have a priority of **5**.
{% hint style="info" %}
The index of each IMC in the array determines its corresponding Layout Index.\
The layout system supports 5 layouts, with each layout using an index from 0 to 4 in order.
{% endhint %}
#### Manually Applying GamePad Layouts
The layout variable is stored in **Menu User Settings** under the name `ControllerTemplate` (of type `int`).\
To access its value—for use in the GameMode or Controller—simply **Get Menu User Settings** and retrieve the `ControllerTemplate` value from it.”
{% hint style="danger" %}
**Use Built-in Layout System** should be disabled inside **Settings\_Configuration** DataAsset.
{% endhint %}
{% hint style="info" %}
Use this if you have another methode to apply layouts other than creating an IMC for each layout !
{% endhint %}
## Keyboard Key Mapping
Any IMC intended for key mapping must be added to the **"IMCs for Key Mapping"** section in the `Settings_Configuration` DataAsset.\
This ensures the IMC is registered at startup—without registration, key mapping will not function correctly or may fail to detect the IMC entirely.
### 🖱️ Setup Actions For Mapping
Let's set up your Actions to work with `InputUserSettings`—a new and convenient system by Epic that makes key rebinding easy. Open your `Input Mapping Context` (IMC). You should see your input actions listed there, with each action assigned to a key!
**Let me break it down for you in a simple way.**\
Inside the input action you want to include in the key mapping menu, expand one of the keys you want the user to modify (usually the keyboard one), then:
1. **Set "Setting Behavior"** to **Override Settings**.
2. **Assign "Player Mappable Key Settings"** to your **`PlayerMappableKeySettings`** class.
3. **Key Name**: This is the name the widget will ask for when adding the key—**make it unique and meaningful**.
4. **Display Name**: This is the user-friendly name that will appear in the menu for this key.
5. **Localization Flag**: Enable this if you want the Display Name to be translated (localized).
**For Category,** leave it set to **None**, and **disable the localization flag** (the small flag icon) for this field.
### 🔤 Add New Input Elements
The input key mapping widget is called **KeyMapping\_WB,** Adding your keys is very simple and easy after completing the User Input Settings steps above, now lets dive inside this widget and add our keys.
**You may notice that some keys already exist.**
You have two options: either delete them all or modify the existing ones.\
In this guide, I’ll cover how to add a new key.\
If you plan to modify already added elements, simply **skip the step where I add the element to the widget.**
**This is called an Input Element just to help you understand more accurate it's**`Input_Element_WB`
**From the Palette on the left, search for `Input Element WB` and drag it into the Scroll Box.**\
You can add a **Spacer** with a **Y size of 20** between each input element, or simply duplicate an existing one!
After adding the required number of input elements, open the Graph.\
Under the Event Construct node, add your new elements **in order** to the Input Element array.
{% hint style="info" %}
Note that in X Versions of the plugin. this process is automated & you only need to add an input element & set an mapping name for it !
{% endhint %}
Return to your designer tab and select each Input Element to fill it with its settings
**Mapping Name** refers to the **Key Name** we set up earlier in **Step 3**.\
**Element Index** is the position (order) of the selected input element—make sure it matches the same order in both the widget and the Input Element array.
The **'Search for Duplicated Key Rules'** section might be a bit hard to understand at first, but it's very useful & explained below.
### 🎬 Exclusive Action Explained
**Imagine your game has separate inputs for the player and for when the player enters a vehicle.**\
For example, the player uses **W** to move forward, and the vehicle also uses **W** to accelerate. This would normally cause a conflict and break the key mapping menu, right?
**Well, not necessarily!** You can fix this by enabling **Exclusive Action**.\
This option checks whether the key the user entered is already used **only within the same target category**.
To set this up:
* Assign the **same category** (e.g., "Vehicle") to all vehicle-related actions.
* **Enable Exclusive Action** for each of them.
* Make sure you also fill in the **Target Category** field.
This way, the system will prevent duplicate keys **within a category**, not across the entire input set—allowing you to use **W** for both "Move Forward" (player) and "Accelerate" (vehicle) without conflict.
{% hint style="danger" %}
Remember a field called Category in [#setup-actions-for-mapping](#setup-actions-for-mapping "mention") , You should give each Key you want to use the Exclusive Action Feature the same category (the one you choose as Target Category).
{% endhint %}
This is the result after i set up my jump key as an example :thumbsup:
***
> Now the input system is working, and the player can map each key! Head to [Save & Load System](/docs-full-modern-menu/core-features/images-and-media.md) to configure the save system and learn how it works.
