Category: Video Games

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Input Video Games Virtual Reality

Get a jump on your virtual foes with the PAO omni-directional treadmill

At the moment, virtual reality is in a weird place. As refined as the technology currently is, virtual reality goers are still likely to experience motion sickness. Additionally, the illusion of virtual reality quick dissipates when users are forced to stay still and use some sort of controller to facilitate the experience.

Like many others before it, PAO aims to solve this immersion problem with a multi-directional treadmill. Not only is it designed to translate a person’s movement in any direction, it can also translate squats and jumps. What’s more, the product can be used with virtual reality headsets, traditional gaming consoles, and even Android devices. A PAO can be purchased for $300, with an expected ship date of December 2015. The Kickstarter campaign is looking to secure $10,000 in funding by May 20.

PAO is extremely similar to its predecessor, the Virtuix Omni, save for its current pre-production status. As a result, the Omni is a much more refined product, something reflected in its $699 price tag, not to mention its 160lb product weight and the large list of accessories it can be used with.  In comparison, the PAO is more than half of the Virtuix Omni’s size and costs less than half. Notably, the PAO doesn’t require users to wear specialized shoes like the Omni does. If PAO can ensure that these benefits remain in place when the final production unit ships, it will prove a worthy and compelling purchase for gamers looking for a full and immersive virtual reality experience.

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Input Video Games

Bliss-Box 4-Play could create bliss for gamers

The ability to use a controller from any old videogame console to play a game on a computer is something quite a few gamers would undoubtedly enjoy. Being able to achieve that with multiple controllers without having to buy a USB adapter for each and every console port would be equally helpful.

Solving the problem is exactly what the Bliss-Box 4 Play achieves. The device is a universal console-to-USB controller adapter with four ports, thereby allowing up to four players to play at the same time with almost any controller of their choosing. Bliss-Box 4 Play uses low cost adapter cables that allow a variety of console controllers to plug into the 4-Play’s universal controller port. The product allows most videogame controllers to be used on any computer and does not require the installation of software drivers. A planned retail SKU is expected to cost $79.99 and is slated to ship in November. Its maker is hoping to raise $75,000 by May 4.

The Bliss-Box 4 Play adapter will likely appeal to a niche segment of gamers, though it remains to be seen how big that segment actually is. The device seems uniquely designed for console and computer gamers, or at the very least, gamers who used to love console games and now prefer to play on a computer.

 

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Video Games

ZRRO Android console supersizes your favorite mobile games on your HDTV

Google’s Android platform is an absolute powerhouse, especially when it comes to gaming. With over one million games to choose from, a lack of choice is never a problem. Even so, the small screen sizes of both smartphones and tablets can’t compete with the gaming experience offered by a full sized HDTV.

patent-claimedThe ZRRO Android 4.4-based gaming console connects to any television and incorporates a proprietary, capacitive touch enabled controller capable of directly translating finger positioning onto the big screen. The controller’s zTouch technology detects fingers from up to 1.2 inches away from the screen, reflecting that positioning with circular cursors on the television itself to better guide users. This eliminates the problem of using a smartphone as a controller and inevitably having the user’s eyes glued to the wrong screen.

ZRRO is powerful machine, sporting a quad core processor, 2GB of DDR3 RAM, and 16GB of storage that can run the full gamut of Android apps with ease. Having access to the entirety of the Android app store from the outset makes it a far superior product to something like the Ouya, even if that access comes at a premium. Android enthusiasts looking to take their mobile gaming up a notich will certainly find ZRRO a compelling product. The $199 ZRRO is expected to ship in September of 2015 provided its campaign reaches its $200,000 goal by March 31, 2015.

 

 

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Video Games

It’s a blast from the British gaming past with the Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega

The early 80’s saw Sir Clive Sinclair release the one of the UK’s first mainstream home computer systems, the ZX Sinclair. Although its functionality included all types of programs, from spreadsheets to drawing and painting tools, it was most notable for its wide array of games and went on to be significant in the field of gaming. Over the years, many versions of the Sinclair were released with varying improvements until more dominant consoles started showing up.

Now it’s 2014, and startup Retro Computers wants to revive the past and bring it into everyone’s homes with the Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega. Similar to comparable Atari, Intellevision, and Colecovision flashback consoles, the ZX is a tiny box in the vein of the original design packed with over 1,000 of the console’s original games.

While it may be easily connected using composite and stereo cables, the company missed out on the opportunity to have it work with tablets, computers, and many other devices by not including Bluetooth functionality. In any case, backers can reserve their fix of grade-A nostalgia on a waitlist with a backing of £50 (~$76) as the current run of 1,000 units are all sold out. A successful campaign of £100,000 (~$155,200) will see the consoles shipped in June 2015.

Categories
Fitness Video Games

TreadGaming works you out without cheat codes

Video gaming is a fantastic way to spend a day off, but pretty a pretty terrible thing for the body. As much fun as it may be, a sedentary lifestyle is nothing but bad news. Although virtual reality is eventually promising a future where people will be able to move around with their favorite virtual worlds, that future is a considerably long way off.

Enter TreadGaming, a tiny, USB-enabled device that attaches a treadmill or an ergometer bike and transforms it into a giant video game controller powered by nothing but physical activity. The Mountain Dew and Doritos won’t be at arm’s length anymore but, in exchange, users will be able to sneak, walk, and run throughout whatever world they popped into the DVD tray.

What’s more, any action can be mapped to the exercise device or the two Wii Nunchuks that are able to plugged into the TreadGaming devices along with free I/O pins offer a ton of versatility when it comes to interacting with the game itself and expanding the device’s capabilities. Early birds can grab the device for kr380 (~$47) before it goes up to kr456 (~$57). The kr22,500 (~$2,800) campaign is looking to get people off their couches by March 2015.

The TreadGaming device is fairly limited at the moment in its execution, working out only with the PS3. Further revision and a deal with another company will be required to bring the rest of the current generation consoles up to speed. In addition, other types of exercise tools won’t work, like ellipticals and rowing machines. A similar device that combines exercise and gaming is the STABALLIZER, but works only with smartphones and tablets. Omni-directional treadmills that work with VR headsets have been teased, but are a ways off. Until then, something like TreadGaming can fill that niche.

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Input Video Games

3DRudder sets new course for game control from head to toe

Controlling interactive games by hand has long been the industry standard. Kinect and other motion-sensing systems have come along in recent years to enable players to control games by using their entire bodies. The makers of a small number of recent devices, however, are looking to take game control down another route, sticking with traditional hand-controlled keyboards and joysticks, but adding hardware that adds the user’s feet to the mix.

An example of the latter is 3DRudder. Created by created by a team of French designers, the device is a foot-controlled navigation and motion controller that works in conjunction with existing PC games. The controller can emulate keyboard keys or a joystick and is intended to be a companion device for virtual reality headsets like the Oculus Rift The 3DRudder is used while seated and users just rest their feet on it while playing a game. To move forward, the user tilts the device forward; to move to the right, the user tilts the device to the right, and so on. The pedal enables users to also move up or down.

The device supports a maximum user weight of 286 pounds. To use the controller, the user must have a computer featuring an AMD Phenom or Intel Core i3, I5 or i7 processor, 2 GB of RAM, a USB 2.0 port and an Internet connection. Backers can get a 3DRudder for $110 as part of an early bird special and the device will ship in May. Its makers are looking to raise $50,000 on Indiegogo.

The controller is similar in concept to the somewhat more primitive-looking, Kickstarter-funded Stinky the Gaming Footboard. But both devices seem targeted at only a niche segment of the gamer market. The lack of current support for the Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony game consoles only underscores that. The 3DRudder’s makers are targeting 3D professionals including designers as one core audience for its device, and it seems best-suited for that crowd–unless Facebook’s ultra-bullish prediction for virtual reality headsets comes true.

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Video Games

Hybrid Play brings digital games into the real world

One of the biggest critiques of video games is that they doesn’t promote enough physical and social activity, leading many to shun the medium entirely without considering their many positive benefits. The inventors behind Hybrid Play have a love for both video games and outdoor physical activity, leading them to create a product that bridges both worlds.

Hybrid Play comes in the form of a Bluetooth-equipped sensor that clamps onto any sort of rotational or static playground element, like swings or slides. Once attached, with the help on the onboard accelerometer, that element can be used as input for a game on a smartphone connected nearby. This leads to a group of children shouting instructions to another group of children on a slide or wherever else to successfully control the game, encouraging activity, verbal communication, and teamwork. And if the two exclusive games for Hybrid Play get stale, the iOS/Android companion app allows users access to the rest of the both exclusive and classic games like Pac-Man for the platform, along with the ability to create your very own. Hopefully, all this together will actually keep a child’s notoriously fickle attention span occupied over the long run.

Hybrid Play is not only about bridging this divide, but also teaching as well. Gamesonomy support means that users without any programming knowledge will be able to create their own games for use with Hybrid Play, and one of the campaign’s stretch goals includes Scratch Jr. integration, an introductory language that teaches five to seven year olds how to code. The campaign is looking to raise $140,0000 by November 28th, 2014. A Hybrid Play kit is going for $124 with an April 2015 delivery window.

Categories
Television Video Games

G-Pack packs a gaming PC into a TV

As SteamOS makes the move for PC gaming into the living room possible, it also allows manufacturers the freedom to do unheard of things with gaming PCs. The living room follows more aesthetic guidelines than the boxy, gaudy features that many computers tend to obey, so those interested in making Steam Machines have an extra challenge to meet.

The G-Pack is an incredibly well-designed gaming PC designed to offer access to Steam and all the latest PC games without cluttering the living room. The thin box comes with a universal mount and is meant to be affixed to the back of flat screen displays no matter their size or how they’ve been mounted. In order to keep wires and cables easy to access, the G-Pack can even be stretched out to more comfortably hug wider displays.

More than just a pretty face, the standard G-Pack is as easy to upgrade as any PC and comes with some powerful hardware. With the latest Nvidia GeForce video cards, a minimum of 4GB of DDR3 RAM, and a mixture of 1TB or larger hard drives and solid state drives, these machines are built to handle hardcore, graphically intense gaming. G-Pack creator PiixL is asking for $150,000 to bring G-Pack to production. Backers can get their game on for $1,645 for the base system.

The Steam Machines platform is already facing an identity crisis, trying to figure out what sets them apart from any decent gaming PC. A hardware design like G-Pack is a great response that keeps living rooms clean and sharp while opening the door to a whole platform of popular and fun games. Its smart aesthetic design will bring fun to the room without cluttering the walls and floors with cables.

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Cell Phone Accessories Video Games

GenX Cardtroller flattens the controller, possibly mobile game opponents

Smartphones are packed with enough power to tackle a ton of applications or functions, including games. For those that grew up on the classics, however, gaming just doesn’t feel right without a controller to hold on to.

There have been plenty of peripherals released for phones that better simulate the controller-holding console game experience, but the major issue with them is that they require owners to carry one more thing around with them, or increase the size of their phone with a bulky case. Genx Cardtroller is a controller the size of a credit card that gamers can use to play on their phones without carrying around extra weight. When the power switch is slid into the on position, retractable shoulder buttons emerge from the top of the Genx, providing a place for fingers to rest and more ways to enjoy the action.

Genx also has internal memory inside, which the phone will treat as an external storage device for games, emulators, or save files. The Genx charges through micro-USB and can run wirelessly for two hours on a single charge. Inventor Joseph Nathan Cohorst is asking backers to pitch in $30,000 of funding for Genx. Backers can press start on this product for $35 in January 2015.

One of the issues that the campaign video brings up is that not being able to feel the buttons is a big part of why touch screen controls fail for many gamers. At the same time, the compact design of Genx means that the surface appears either flat or near flat, not addressing this problem. It’s a neat little accessory, especially when it comes to size, but ask anyone who’s played with a tiny controller, and they’ll tell you all about the hand cramps.

 

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Cell Phone Accessories Video Games

Game Cover lets smartphone game controls slide

gamecoverMobile games have become an unignorable aspect of the gaming landscape. Players have access to thousands of games wherever they are, but the one complaint most people will always have is control. Game Cover is a thin Android gamepad that slides out from the side the way keyboards slide out on certain phones. Only 8mm thick, Game Cover fits any phone and provides plenty of buttons for precision control. Game Cover also works as a remote for media or camera controls. The thinness is great for compatibility, but long-term use may cause hand strain without something larger to grip onto while playing. Gamers can power up their phones with a Game Cover for €25.