Saturation Diving Controls

This page is the canonical reference for every input in Saturation Diving. Bindings are the same for solo (you + 3 bots) and four-player co-op. The game has four role-specific input layers, plus a global layer that works in any state.

1. Global Hotkeys

These keys work in any state — lobby, cockpit, in-water, terminal, sell bay.

Input	Action
Esc	Open pause menu
Tab	Open squad HUD
M	Toggle world map
I	Toggle inventory
J	Toggle journal
Shift (hold)	Sprint / swim fast
Ctrl (hold)	Walk / slow swim
F	Interact (terminals, NPCs, levers)
G	Drop held item
V	Voice push-to-talk

2. Sub Piloting (Captain Seat)

When seated at the Captain station in the cockpit, the following inputs are active:

Input	Action
W	Forward thrust
S	Reverse thrust
A	Yaw left
D	Yaw right
Q	Roll left
E	Roll right
Space	Ascend (vent ballast)
Ctrl	Descend (flood ballast)
Mouse Move	Look around cockpit
Mouse Left Click	Interact with cockpit panel
Mouse Right Click	Toggle free-look
1	Toggle autopilot
2	Toggle flood lights
3	Toggle exterior cam
4	Toggle sonar (co-pilot)
L	Launch lever (held 3s)
R	Return lever
Space + Ctrl (hold 5s)	Emergency ascent
P	Panic checklist trigger

The Captain controls the entire sub. Engine damage reduces thrust. Flood ballast too fast and the dive timer accelerates.

3. Sub Engineering (Engineer Seat)

When seated at the Engineer station in the cockpit, the following inputs are active:

Input	Action
W / S	Switch active panel
A / D	Cycle through panel modules
Q	Toggle sonar power
E	Toggle lights power
R	Repair module (held 2s, requires repair charge)
T	Reboot sonar (long hold, 10s)
F	Cycle power routing
1–5	Hotkeys for panel modules

The Engineer keeps the sub running. Damage panels flash red. Repair charges are limited — ration them.

4. Sub Spotter (Spotter Seat)

When seated at the Spotter station in the cockpit hold, the following inputs are active:

Input	Action
Mouse Move	Move reticle on sonar screen
Mouse Left Click	Deploy beacon at reticle
Mouse Right Click	Ping marked entity
Q	Sonar pulse
E	Cycle sonar band
R	Recall all beacons
Space	Mark retreat waypoint
1–4	Filter sonar (ore, entity, crate, squad)

Spotter is the second pair of eyes. Sonar pulses reveal entity shadows within 50m. Beacons mark objectives for the squad.

5. Sub Salvager (Salvager Seat)

When seated at the Salvager station in the cockpit hold, the following inputs are active:

Input	Action
Mouse Move	Move cargo bay cam
Mouse Left Click	Open cargo bay door
Q	Check cargo count
E	Sort cargo (auto-stack)
R	Seal cargo hold

Salvager is focused on cargo. The cargo count is visible in the HUD but a quick Q tap confirms it.

6. In-Water Diver Controls

Outside the sub, swimming through the dive site, the following inputs are active for every role:

Input	Action
W	Swim forward
S	Swim backward
A	Strafe left
D	Strafe right
Space	Ascend
Ctrl	Descend
Shift (hold)	Boost (drains O2 faster)
Mouse Move	Look around
Mouse Left Click	Drill (Salvager) / Deploy beacon (Spotter) / Scan (Captain) / Repair (Engineer)
Mouse Right Click	Secondary action (varies by role)
Q	Use role-specific ability
E	Ping / mark
F	Pick up ore / interact
G	Drop held ore
R	Recall to sub (3s channel)
Tab	Squad HUD

Diver physics are momentum-based. Stopping takes longer than accelerating. The HUD shows depth, O2, hull integrity.

7. Terminal UI Inputs

Any terminal UI (lobby, cargo bay, unlock shop) uses these inputs:

Input	Action
W / A / S / D / Arrow Keys	Navigate menu
Enter	Confirm selection
Esc	Cancel / close
Tab	Next field
Shift + Tab	Previous field
1–9	Quick-select slot
F	Favorite / pin item

8. Panic Checklist Hotkeys

When the Captain triggers the panic checklist (button P), the squad gets a 30-second window. During this window:

• F returns your diver to the sub.
• Mouse Left Click on a panel slot lets the Engineer reroute power.
• Space deploys the Spotter’s retreat beacon.
• R seals the Salvager’s cargo hold.
• P again (Captain only) cancels the panic if the threat has passed.

The 30-second timer is hard. If you fail the checklist, the sub takes hull damage and may emergency ascent.

9. Bindings and Rebinding

Open the pause menu with Esc. Select Settings → Controls. The game supports:

• Full keyboard remap.
• Mouse sensitivity sliders (X and Y independent).
• Invert Y-axis toggle.
• Controller support (Xbox and PlayStation layouts).
• Voice push-to-talk key remap.
• Colorblind UI palette toggle.

All bindings are saved locally and synced to cloud if you sign in.

10. Controller Layout

Saturation Diving supports both Xbox and PlayStation controllers. The default controller layout is:

Button	Action
Left Stick	Swim / move
Right Stick	Look / camera
LT	Descend
RT	Ascend
LB	Q ability
RB	E ability
A / Cross	Interact
B / Circle	Cancel
X / Square	Drop item
Y / Triangle	Pause
Start	Menu
Back	Squad HUD

Controller support is best for solo play. Four-player co-op squads typically use keyboard + mouse for the Captain and Engineer.

11. Common Mistakes

• Holding W outside the sub: drains O2 fast. Tap, don’t hold.
• Forgetting Shift discipline: sprint is a 5-second burst, then you need to recover.
• Double-tapping P: cancels the panic checklist. Only the Captain should press P.
• Mashing R as Salvager: each press seals/unseals the cargo hold. Spam breaks the seal.

12. Quick Reference Card

Print this card for your squad:

Captain:  WASD move, Q/E roll, Space/Ctrl ascend/descend, P panic, L launch
Engineer: WASD panel, R repair, Q sonar, E lights, T reboot
Spotter:  Mouse aim, Click beacon, Q pulse, Space retreat, R recall
Salvager: Mouse cam, Click door, Q count, E sort, R seal
Divers:   WASD swim, Space ascend, Ctrl descend, F interact, G drop