Within the GameController API, is continuously polling of navigator.getGamepads() required? - gamepad-api

Question

EDITED at end!
Within the GameController API, is continuously polling of navigator.getGamepads() required?
I ask because my single call to this function returns a length = 0.
According to my Mac’s Bluetooth System Preferences my Nimbus+ game pad is connected.
Given that, should I use isetInterval` and wait for a length > 0?
EDIT begins here:
Macintosh with Monterey OS 12.4:
Safari (15.5) reports length = 0
Firefox (102.0b6) reports length = 0
Chrome (102.0.5005.115) reports length = 4,
but each in the array being = null

Answer 1

You first wait for the gamepad to be connected, which typically requires "waking" the gamepad by pressing one of its buttons:
window.addEventListener('gamepadconnected', (event) => {
console.log('✅ 🎮 A gamepad was connected:', event.gamepad);
});
Once the gamepad is connected, you start your game loop:
const pollGamepad = () => {
// Always call `navigator.getGamepads()` inside of
// the game loop, not outside.
const gamepads = navigator.getGamepads();
for (const gamepad of gamepads) {
// Disregard empty slots.
if (!gamepad) {
continue;
}
// Process the gamepad state.
console.log(gamepad);
}
// Call yourself upon the next animation frame.
// (Typically this happens every 60 times per second.)
window.requestAnimationFrame(pollGamepad);
};
// Kick off the initial game loop iteration.
pollGamepad();
You should stop polling when the gamepad gets disconnected, which you'll be informed of via an event:
window.addEventListener('gamepaddisconnected', (event) => {
console.log('❌ 🎮 A gamepad was disconnected:', event.gamepad);
});