Next-gen gaming controller to keep in ‘mind’
Who uses thumbs to play games anymore? Quite a ridiculous question, but one that may used in a couple years if a Silicon Valley company, NeuroSky has anything to do with it, as they look to games that can be controlled by brain waves.
At the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, an actor stood with a Darth Vader costume turning on and off his light saber without the use of a single button.
“It’s like magic,” one spectator said, while looking at Darth Vader in awe.
He was using a device developed by NeuroSky; which has managed to create these headsets at low-cost, and claims the device should be available by years end.
The actor shouted, “It’s like the Force,” as he mystically controlled his light saber by simply using, well, the force of his own mind.
“The technology has been around for a hundred years,” said NeuroSky spokesman Greg Hyver, “The problem was the cost, and we fixed that.”
Hyver noted that the headset senses an individual’s brainwaves while software translates the readings into actual commands that can be used for in-game actions.
So how much will these units retail for? That information is currently unknown, but we do know that they will be manufactured in Korea, and will be priced to vendors at $50 per headset if bought in high volume.
Quite a neat little toy which I’d certainly pay $50 for, even if it meant having to re-learn how to play Super Paper Mario. Hyver also added that this technology could also be used in MP3 players to match music to your current mood.
You won’t end up looking like Doc Brown from Back to the Future either, the device has a small form factor, and most importantly, is non-invasive, meaning you wont have to drill holes in your head to use it.
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October 1st, 2007
cool, bet you it takes ages before we have the same level of control but still… cool.