Input on mobile

How input actions map to touch on the Decentraland mobile client.

Decentraland's input system is designed to be device-agnostic. The same InputAction enum that the SDK exposes on desktop is also routed from the on-screen controls on mobile, so most scenes work without any changes. There are, however, a few rules and gotchas worth knowing when you're building for touch.

For the full input model, see Click events. This page focuses on what is mobile-specific.

What touch maps to

Every InputAction that exists on desktop is also available on the mobile client — the on-screen controls simply route touch to the same SDK inputs. This means any scene that relies on the standard InputAction values will work on mobile out of the box.

The on-screen controls map as follows:

• On-screen joystick — drives IA_FORWARD / IA_BACKWARD / IA_LEFT / IA_RIGHT and avatar movement.

• Interaction button (bottom right) — fires IA_POINTER (the left mouse button on desktop) against whatever the player is aiming at.

• E button — fires IA_PRIMARY (the E key on desktop).

• F button — fires IA_SECONDARY (the F key on desktop).

• Jump button — fires IA_JUMP (the Space key on desktop). This is the largest button on the HUD and is always easy to reach.

• 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 buttons — fire IA_ACTION_3 / IA_ACTION_4 / IA_ACTION_5 / IA_ACTION_6 respectively. These live behind a secondary menu (see below).

• Camera drag — rotates the camera; not exposed as an InputAction.

Inputs to avoid for key actions on mobile

All InputAction values are reachable on mobile, but IA_ACTION_3–IA_ACTION_6 (the 1/2/3/4 buttons) are tucked away behind a secondary menu and are not easily reachable during gameplay. If your scene uses them as primary actions, mobile players will not be able to trigger them comfortably.

Avoid binding key actions to:

• IA_ACTION_3 — the 1 key on desktop / 1 button on mobile

• IA_ACTION_4 — the 2 key on desktop / 2 button on mobile

• IA_ACTION_5 — the 3 key on desktop / 3 button on mobile

• IA_ACTION_6 — the 4 key on desktop / 4 button on mobile

Prefer instead:

• IA_POINTER for the main tap / interaction button

• IA_PRIMARY for the E button action

• IA_SECONDARY for the F button action

• IA_JUMP when an action maps naturally to jumping (it's the largest and most reachable button on the mobile HUD)

• Proximity-based triggers (see Proximity Events) when an action should fire automatically as the player approaches an entity

Cursor lock

The PointerLock component is a desktop-client concept (locked vs. unlocked mouse cursor). It does not apply to touch on mobile and is safe to leave in your scene — it has no effect there.

Related

• Click events

• Proximity Events

• Detect the platform from code

• UI best practices for mobile