Smarter Than the Average Joystick

Bored with regular controllers and sitting on your butt to game? jimm wrote to tell us about FPGameRunner, a treadmill that acts as a keyboard and mouse. Reenz wrote in about a lightsaber controller "in production" by GameTrak (the folks who brought us the award winning Cyberglove). And just think, you could use both in Jedi Academy. (warning: running on a treadmill with a lightsaber not recommended)

lightsaber controller?

[WormholeFiend]

wouldnt that be a ripoff of the Soul Controller made for Onimusha 3?

disclaimer: I haven't played Onimusha 3.

Re:lightsaber controller?

[EddieBurkett]

IIRC, the Onimusha controller was a regular controller that happened to be shaped into a sword. You held it (rather oddly) and you still had to press the usual buttons. It seems like it was intended more for display purposes than practicality. This lightsabre thing looks like its intended to be wielded like a virtual sword. It looks like you hold on to the "hilt", and either by tracking the movement of the cables, if not some camera, its able to interpret your motion. These products are vastly different.

Gross 3-D graphics

[standsolid]

At least in real jedia training I'll have my blindfold on...
http://www.in2games.uk.com/private/light%20 sabre%2 0v2.jpg

Re:Gross 3-D graphics

[Enrico Pulatzo]

It's for internal testing purposes. Be happy it's in color with textures. Not everything has to be Doom 3, ya know?

but wait...

[nusratt]

"treadmill that acts as a keyboard and mouse"

I don't get it.
The whole point of computers (and games),
is that your actual body never has to be involved, right?

Re:but wait...

[muel]

Not exactly... the point of games is entertainment and immersion, physical activity aside. DDR, anyone?

I'm not sure how immersive it'll feel to have your own walking on the treadmill converted to the game world, but at any rate, this controller allows you to use more of your body to control the virtual world. I'm sure plenty of FPS gamers in fat America could use an increased heartrate while satisfying their hours-per-day habit, and I'm sure even more will willfilly ignore this product. But who can knock t

Re:but wait...

[nusratt]

whoooossshhhhhh!! [sound of irony passing undetected above /.er's head...] ;-)

No more hipoglicemic diets!

[DreadN]

Yeah! No more fat, no more nerd-fisionomy... you can connect to a server at 7:00 instead of doing your jogging session every day and you'll be more healthy than a triathlon performer wow!

Porn version...

[hoggoth]

I hear they are working on a pelvic-mounted game controller for porn games.

Just saying is all...

Re:Porn version...

[Mitaphane]

Well there's always this. [fu-fme.com]

Space issues

[Capt_Napalm]

People complain about their joystick taking up too much space. A treadmill probably takes up even more desktop space than a joystick.

But seriously, where would you put a treadmill? I like the idea (as it helps combat obesity) but the only way this would work was if you had a plasma or LCD TV like they show in the pictures. Most people I know don't leave enough room for a treadmill to go where their chair usually is. Plus, I'm poor and only have a 19" CRT. I'd feel like I'm running to catch up to my charac

Re:Space issues

[mattgorle]

>> As for the lightsaber, I forsee a few beaten up monitors in the clouds....

Well that'd be good for the monitor makers...

Re:Space issues

[Minna Kirai]

But seriously, where would you put a treadmill?

In a gym. You know, the usual place to find treadmills.

Don't think of it as adding a huge controller to a video-game... it's really adding video-game entertainments to workouts.

Internal use only?

[wikdwarlock]

Anyone else notice that the link for the light saber is "for internal use only"? Is the internet not external anymore? Maybe I missed a memo...

Re:Internal use only?

[harrkev]

Anyone else notice that the link for the light saber is "for internal use only"?

This means that it must be inserted into the body. Ouch!

Running Backwards ?

[DrSkwid]

OK I can accept strafing is on a button but surely running forwards to run backwards will probably be *very* confusing.

I have often thought about treadmill with kb to fight the flab but in-game ?

Perhaps it is more suited to Everquest than Quake, can't be anywhere near as responsive as someone with an Icemat!

Treadmilling

[wgnorm]

Ugh. This will give a whole new meaning to "treadmilling" in MMORPGs.

FINALLY!

[Lord_Dweomer]

I've been waiting for something like this for the longest time.

Think of the possibilities for multiplayer games. Finally we'll be able to have a solid medieval warfare FPS with good melee combat that will be as much about skill with the sword as aiming is with a mouse.

Plus, this also opens up the possibility of using the tool as a magic wand. Imagine a game where based on how you move it, certain magical effects are generated based on very precise movements. Want to get better at a spell? Practice the m