3D touch interface for WoW due later this year
by Natalie Mootz 
Jul 8th 2008 at 8:00PM
Keyboards, mice, and hand-controllers are so 2007. Get with the modern times, willya? Today we discovered that a 3D touch interface is on the horizon for WoW gamers. Using this weird robot-type gizmo, you'll be able to actually feel everything your character does in the game: casting spells, reeling from enemy attacks, feeling objects, bumping into things, and whacking ogres on the head! (I seriously want to bonk some ogres on the head with this thing. I expect it will feel somewhat hollow, like smacking a pumpkin.) The gizmo is called a Falcon game controller and it aims to replace your mouse or joystick. The Falcon is already usable with some other games, but Novint Technologies is now creating WoW drivers for the device using the LUA scripting system. You can map up to 36 actions to it for which the controller will provide feedback that you can feel in your hand and arm. You can watch a demo on the company's website, or a more hands-on demo in the video below. When the drivers are released, you can download them at Novint's website. We'll keep you up to date so you'll know when you can grab them. The Falcon controller sells for $189.99 on Novint's website. No word on what the drivers will cost, if anything.
Filed under: News items, Hardware
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
vlad Jul 8th 2008 8:05PM
im not sure anyone in the history of computing has $old drivers. kind of an odd thing to say.
i could be wrong, its common :P
Slayblaze Jul 8th 2008 8:17PM
I've tried this out. Trust me... you'll be sticking with the mouse/keyboard combo. For anyone actually considering it, seriously: give it an extensive hands-on test session or three before purchasing.
Saiforune Jul 8th 2008 8:26PM
I think arthritis would set in faster with the people using guns since it has recoil and you're using a doorknob to hold. I saw awhile back a version of this that actually had a gun handle to it, but the testers didn't like it because the shooting wasn't fast enough because of the recoil and their hands got tired after a while. I saw it on G4TV a few weeks ago.
PhyerFly Jul 8th 2008 8:47PM
I've seen these for sale at electronics stores and didn't understand what it was for. I'm still not sure I get it (like does this just act as a mouse and i still need to use the keyboard for movement?)
but my wife already is ashamed of me because I have one of those wolfking keyboards - I can't imagine the crap I'd get for this monstrosity.
Soulbento Jul 8th 2008 8:52PM
The force feedback on the device is pretty amazing....but the control feels very "muddy." Definitely not a replacement for the mouse, especially if you're a clicker. In games like wow, it might be ok for moving your toon....but not something I'd use in frantic arenas or anything. If anything the force feedback could impair your ability react quickly.
I'd recommend it even less for first person shooters...as the fidelity of the control is nowhere near the precision of a 1600+dpi laser mouse.
Quickshiv Jul 8th 2008 8:52PM
This is such a novelty. No one wants force feedback for more then 10 minutes. Why would you want to tire your hands and arms out?
milsorgen Jul 8th 2008 9:05PM
Think about the response your keys provide as you type, take that away. Typing really sucks, force feedback can be a positive thing adding one more facet to the many enjoyable things technology provides. Steering wheels and video game controllers come to mind. If this was applied lightly with an inexpensive controller it could take off. But no one in their right mind is going to spend more then a few bucks on a tech that isn't going to add anything more to the game then rumble paks did to the consoles.
Quickshiv Jul 9th 2008 9:12AM
This is true for casual gaming but after a 2-4 hour raid think of what your hand would feel like. Tactile response from a keyboard is not the same as the keys vibrating and getting harder to push depending on what word you're typing.
Brian Jul 8th 2008 9:10PM
I wonder if a CAD space mouse has ever been tried or is being used?
Verit Jul 9th 2008 3:46AM
Remember the SpaceOrb from SpaceTec (they made those 3d cad balls as well)? It worked ok, but pro-longed use was pretty painful.
Derick Jul 8th 2008 8:58PM
I've seen this product floating around the webs for a while now, and its never interested me...
It seems like a Wii remote like device could do the same thing a lot better. Or we could just wait until we can stick a long metal rod into the back of our head and log into some sort of virtual-matrix-world.
I definately wont be an early adopter.
ErsatzPotato Jul 9th 2008 1:00AM
"It seems like a Wii remote like device could do the same thing a lot better."
It's *nothing* like the Wii remote. That you wave in the air with no resistance. The point of this device is the resistance. Think about sword fighting with the Wii remote: it's awful. There's no feedback on miss or contact.
I've tried this, and it's amazing. It's one of those "you have to try it to get it" items. That said, it'd add nothing to WoW. Terrible match.
deviationer Jul 8th 2008 9:00PM
looks like another gimmick. Just like the OCZ Neural Impulse Actuator, Zalman FPS Gun Mouse, and that other gun mouse out there.
Lump all those inline with every single one of those 3D glasses that also are gimmicky.
And this looks like another gimick:
http://www.martintall.com/neovisus/
Penta Jul 8th 2008 9:08PM
I personally don't see this device to be WoW friendly at all given the amount of time you will need to suspend your arm in mid-air. Probably best used as a form of parental control for the game by giving your kids RSI from playing for an hour, and have to stop because their shoulder/arm/wrist/hand are numb.
Blake Jul 11th 2008 5:19PM
One question... How is this revolutionary?
Arioch Jul 8th 2008 10:19PM
Yeah, right... like anybody wants to hold his hand in that position for hours on end... not practical.
jumala Jul 8th 2008 10:21PM
i have used this device, originally marketed for surgery simulator training, helping my friend as a research subject for her master's thesis. its ok for haptic feedback for laproscopic surgery simulators, but for video games, no thank you.
vlad Jul 9th 2008 10:59AM
you have to elevate it. talk about fast fatugue. cant imageine alot of long time users of it. the ball sample looks cool though.
Nacht_Engel Jul 9th 2008 1:09AM
great now not only do i get stun locked by rogues in game im gonna be able to feel it too!
Bradshaw Jul 9th 2008 2:32AM
I think that while the device itself may fall to the wayside as an overpriced gimmick, the technology that was created in its development will probably play a major role in the future of gaming.