Verified answer

Double check settings, my man. make sure you have the right controller plugin selected, that it says controller is default, not keyboard.

also go to devices and printers, find the gamepad, right click and there should be an option along the lines of configure or calibrate, it may be under properties or something. in this calibration screen you can press the buttons and see the response, so just double check that every button is wired where you want and that the analog sticks are actually working. after that, the device is recognized and working so the problem is entirely pcsx2, wether it be the plugin (try dling a different one maybe), or the configuration. best of luck. maybe try a clean install.

Pcsx2 Gamepad