diff --git a/src/core/Game.lua b/src/core/Game.lua
index d38db05a..11d86c5a 100644
--- a/src/core/Game.lua
+++ b/src/core/Game.lua
@@ -793,11 +793,13 @@ function Game:joystickhat(joystick, hat, direction)
 end
 
 -- Window focus/visibility flips: a release due while unfocused/hidden can
--- be swallowed by the OS. Reset on both edges -- gaining focus with a
--- physically held key won't re-fire keypressed, so trusting leftover
--- state is worse than asking the player to re-press.
+-- be swallowed by the OS. Reset on both edges; on the regain, reconcile
+-- re-arms only what is still physically held -- a held key won't re-fire
+-- keypressed by itself, and without the rebuild a spurious lifecycle event
+-- parked the player until every direction was re-pressed (#799).
 function Game:focus(f)
   Input:reset()
+  if f then Input:reconcile() end
   TouchControls:reset()
   self:cancelPointers()
 end
@@ -814,6 +816,7 @@ end
 
 function Game:onResume()
   Input:reset()
+  Input:reconcile()
   TouchControls:reset()
   self:cancelPointers()
   -- Chip music may survive NX suspend as a duplicate stream; stop it and let
@@ -830,6 +833,10 @@ end
 
 function Game:recoverInput(event, joystick)
   Input:reset()
+  -- A hotplug can arrive with no hotplug (macOS Bluetooth re-enumeration),
+  -- and the blanket reset above also drops unrelated keyboard holds; put
+  -- back whatever is still physically down (#799).
+  Input:reconcile()
   TouchControls:reset()
   -- reset just dropped every source, mod holds included: retire the mods'
   -- outstanding press tokens so nothing stale can be released later, and
diff --git a/src/core/Input.lua b/src/core/Input.lua
index a576e15d..33543c97 100644
--- a/src/core/Input.lua
+++ b/src/core/Input.lua
@@ -301,6 +301,71 @@ function Input:joystickhat(joystick, hat, direction)
   self.hatDirs[hat] = dirs
 end
 
+-- Lifecycle resets (focus/visibility flips, joystick add/remove, resume)
+-- wipe held state because a release can be swallowed while the OS owns the
+-- event stream.  A direction the player is STILL holding never re-fires
+-- keypressed/gamepadpressed after the wipe either, so a spurious reset --
+-- macOS re-enumerating a Bluetooth pad fires joystickadded with no hotplug,
+-- and the blanket reset took unrelated keyboard holds down with it --
+-- parked the player in place until every direction was released and
+-- pressed again (#799).  Rebuild holds from the devices' ground truth
+-- instead: only what is physically down right now comes back, so the
+-- swallowed-release hazards the resets guard against stay cleared.
+-- Deliberately separate from reset(): the soft-reset chord path in
+-- Game:step needs the clean slate (re-arming A there would read it as a
+-- title-menu choice).
+function Input:reconcile()
+  local kb = love and love.keyboard
+  if kb and kb.isDown then
+    for key, btn in pairs(self.keyBindings) do
+      local ok, down = pcall(kb.isDown, key)
+      if ok and down then press(self, btn, "key:" .. key) end
+    end
+  end
+  local js = love and love.joystick
+  if not (js and js.getJoysticks) then return end
+  local ok, joysticks = pcall(js.getJoysticks)
+  if not ok or type(joysticks) ~= "table" then return end
+  for _, j in ipairs(joysticks) do
+    if GamepadMap.ignoreRawForJoystick(j) then
+      -- SDL-recognized pad: buttons + left stick, the gamepad surfaces
+      if j.isGamepadDown then
+        for button, btn in pairs(self.padBindings) do
+          local ok2, down = pcall(j.isGamepadDown, j, button)
+          if ok2 and down then press(self, btn, "pad:" .. button) end
+        end
+      end
+      if j.getGamepadAxis then
+        for _, axis in ipairs({ "leftx", "lefty" }) do
+          local ok2, v = pcall(j.getGamepadAxis, j, axis)
+          if ok2 and type(v) == "number" then self:gamepadaxis(j, axis, v) end
+        end
+      end
+    else
+      -- raw stick (#620/#632): the surfaces the joystick* events feed
+      if j.isDown then
+        for index, btn in pairs(self.joyBindings) do
+          local ok2, down = pcall(j.isDown, j, index)
+          if ok2 and down then press(self, btn, "joy:" .. index) end
+        end
+      end
+      if j.getAxis then
+        for _, axis in ipairs({ 1, 2 }) do
+          local ok2, v = pcall(j.getAxis, j, axis)
+          if ok2 and type(v) == "number" then self:joystickaxis(j, axis, v) end
+        end
+      end
+      if j.getHatCount and j.getHat then
+        local ok2, count = pcall(j.getHatCount, j)
+        for hat = 1, (ok2 and count) or 0 do
+          local ok3, dir = pcall(j.getHat, j, hat)
+          if ok3 and dir then self:joystickhat(j, hat, dir) end
+        end
+      end
+    end
+  end
+end
+
 function Input:isDown(btn)
   return self.state[btn] or false
 end
diff --git a/tests/engine/input_hold_reconcile_test.lua b/tests/engine/input_hold_reconcile_test.lua
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..7fc0fe5e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/engine/input_hold_reconcile_test.lua
@@ -0,0 +1,87 @@
+-- Held directions must survive lifecycle resets while physically held
+-- (#799).  Input state is event-driven, so any Input:reset (focus or
+-- visibility flip, joystick add/remove, resume) wipes a hold that never
+-- re-fires keypressed afterwards -- on macOS a Bluetooth controller
+-- re-enumerating mid-walk fired joystickadded under a held key and parked
+-- the player until the direction was released and pressed again.  Game's
+-- lifecycle handlers rebuild holds from device ground truth after each
+-- reset; only what is physically down comes back, so the swallowed-release
+-- hazards the resets guard against stay cleared.
+package.path = "./?.lua;./?/init.lua;" .. package.path
+if not _G.love then _G.love = require("tests.love_stub") end
+
+local T = require("tests.harness")
+local check = T.check
+
+local Input = require("src.core.Input")
+local Game = require("src.core.Game")
+
+local realIsDown = love.keyboard.isDown
+local realJoystick = love.joystick
+local function restore()
+  love.keyboard.isDown = realIsDown
+  love.joystick = realJoystick
+end
+
+Input:init()
+
+-- Keyboard: direction still physically held across a spurious pad
+-- re-enumeration must keep walking (the #799 report).
+love.keyboard.isDown = function(key) return key == "up" end
+Input:reset()
+Input:keypressed("up")
+Input:step()
+check(Input:isDown("up"), "up held before joystick re-enumeration")
+Game:joystickadded({ getName = function() return "Wireless Controller" end })
+check(Input:isDown("up"), "held key survives a spurious joystickadded")
+
+-- Same hold across a focus bounce (another reset source).
+Game:focus(false)
+check(not Input:isDown("up"), "focus loss still drops the hold")
+Game:focus(true)
+check(Input:isDown("up"), "held key re-arms on focus regain")
+
+-- A key released while unfocused (keyup swallowed by the OS, the hazard
+-- the resets exist for) must NOT come back.
+love.keyboard.isDown = function() return false end
+Game:focus(false)
+Game:focus(true)
+check(not Input:isDown("up"), "swallowed release still clears the hold")
+
+-- Controller: held d-pad across a disconnect/reconnect bounce.
+local pad = {
+  isGamepad = function() return true end,
+  isGamepadDown = function(_, button) return button == "dpleft" end,
+  getGamepadAxis = function() return 0 end,
+}
+love.joystick = { getJoysticks = function() return { pad } end }
+love.keyboard.isDown = function() return false end
+Input:reset()
+Input:gamepadpressed(pad, "dpleft")
+Input:step()
+check(Input:isDown("left"), "d-pad held before reconnect")
+Game:joystickremoved(pad)
+Game:joystickadded(pad)
+check(Input:isDown("left"), "held d-pad survives a reconnect bounce")
+
+-- Held stick across the same bounce (axis ground truth re-derived).
+pad.isGamepadDown = function() return false end
+pad.getGamepadAxis = function(_, axis) return axis == "leftx" and -0.9 or 0 end
+Input:reset()
+Input:gamepadaxis(pad, "leftx", -0.9)
+Input:step()
+check(Input:isDown("left"), "stick held before re-enumeration")
+Game:joystickadded(pad)
+check(Input:isDown("left"), "held stick survives re-enumeration")
+
+-- A pad that vanished for real reports nothing held: its stale hold must
+-- stay cleared (the stuck-flag hazard reset-on-remove guards against).
+love.joystick = { getJoysticks = function() return {} end }
+Input:reset()
+Input:gamepadpressed(pad, "dpleft")
+Input:step()
+Game:joystickremoved(pad)
+check(not Input:isDown("left"), "vanished pad's hold stays cleared")
+
+restore()
+T.finish()