Valve's new controller, salty tears everywhere

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blank_czech

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Mar 16, 2008
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controller.jpg



controller_schematic.png


prototypes.jpg


Has 16 buttons, the touchpads apparently have magic haptic feedback and can also function as speakers (just for fun). The touchscreen in the middle is clickable, and shows up on your monitor whenever you touch it (so you can see what you're doing without taking your eyes off the screen).

Steam Controller

This was the last day of a week of Steam announcements. The first two weren't very interesting and have mostly been known about for awhile. SteamOS (steam + linux) and computers running SteamOS. This controller looks fun though.

What I got out of it is that most people won't read any of the text on the announcement page, realistically, even the first paragraph. Funny pictures below.
 
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Shack said:
Instead of making this, valve should put their brains in releasing Half-Life 3.
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I'm so fucking stoked for this. Finally some innovation in the field. Might be optimistic, but could be the end of the other consoles. Unlike other companies, they don't want to be closed, they want to be open. I think it can only be good for the consumer.
 
Shack said:
Instead of making this, valve should put their brains in releasing Half-Life 3.
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I have a feeling that HL3 will coincide with the release of the Steam Console. That's assuming that they are even working on it. Which I hope they are. That there is some dark dungeon where coders and designers are chained to their desks and kept under heavily armed guard working on HL3 day and night.
 
It seems like most of the developers that have tried the test models have been mostly positive towards it so far:

Gamasutra - Select game developers used the Steam Controller. Here's what they said

Yzc2NjQ1MzQyNDU2MjMyMz - My time with the Steam Controller

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6457988

I'm pretty excited to get my hands on one of these. I've always wanted a controller where at least one thumbstick was replaced with a trackball or trackball equivalent and this is exactly that.

Valve managed to set themselves up for a good spot in the future. Effectively decoupled from MS if shit hits the fan, good DRM (what MS and probably Sony wanted to do this gen, but couldn't so far), and better relations with some of the graphics card producers to make sure SteamOS goes well. The controller is just the icing on the cake.

Definitely going to be picking up a controller and one of the cheapest Steamboxes. You can stream your games locally to one from your computer, and my computer is beefy enough, so I'm all set.

This gen is going to be real interesting. I wonder if they can even keep it another 10 years. The consoles can barely handle 1080p, 30fps games (rip 60fps), and 4k is right around the corner. Plus you have all the mobile people rapidly catching up.
 
Another device I am extremely excited about is the Oculus Rift. I'm waiting for the consumer version, and will be buying it as soon as it comes out. It's a virtual reality headset with head tracking, and it's pretty fucking amazing.

Like all the really cool hobbyist shit, it's PC exclusive. There's already a developer prototype out with rave reviews, and it doesn't even have an HD screen like the consumer version will.

Oculus Rift - Virtual Reality Headset for 3D Gaming | Oculus VR
 
bluechinagroup said:
Another device I am extremely excited about is the Oculus Rift. I'm waiting for the consumer version, and will be buying it as soon as it comes out. It's a virtual reality headset with head tracking, and it's pretty fucking amazing.

Like all the really cool hobbyist shit, it's PC exclusive. There's already a developer prototype out with rave reviews, and it doesn't even have an HD screen like the consumer version will.

Oculus Rift - Virtual Reality Headset for 3D Gaming | Oculus VR
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Second gen one and I'll be onboard as well. Thanks to phones we're getting these high res screens which normally would be expensive, but don't cost that much now. Hopefully they can keep bringing the latency down. I almost want to say Valve is going to wait for this to pick up before releasing HL3, because there's nothing they could do right now that would really wow people.

Also more reactions, mostly positive: Steam Controller in use: game developers sound off on the beta version's highs and lows, how it feels

From reading comments on other sites it seems like many people don't understand it's not just a regular laptop touchpad they threw in a controller.
 
bluechinagroup said:
Another device I am extremely excited about is the Oculus Rift. I'm waiting for the consumer version, and will be buying it as soon as it comes out. It's a virtual reality headset with head tracking, and it's pretty fucking amazing.

Like all the really cool hobbyist shit, it's PC exclusive. There's already a developer prototype out with rave reviews, and it doesn't even have an HD screen like the consumer version will.

Oculus Rift - Virtual Reality Headset for 3D Gaming | Oculus VR
Click to expand...

As if EVE Online wasn't incredible enough as it is, they are also going to be releasing a title that take advantage of the Oculus.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmNQEiJUthc"]EVE: Valkyrie Announcement Trailer - YouTube[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVWZoqhGbow]In the EVE VR cockpit: CCP's dogfighting demo for Oculus Rift - YouTube[/ame]



EVE: Valkyrie

They way they tied Dust 514 into the EVE universe was pretty fucking awesome. I can't wait to see how Valkyrie is integrated. CCP is super fun #1.
 
bluechinagroup said:
Another device I am extremely excited about is the Oculus Rift. I'm waiting for the consumer version, and will be buying it as soon as it comes out. It's a virtual reality headset with head tracking, and it's pretty fucking amazing.

Like all the really cool hobbyist shit, it's PC exclusive. There's already a developer prototype out with rave reviews, and it doesn't even have an HD screen like the consumer version will.

Oculus Rift - Virtual Reality Headset for 3D Gaming | Oculus VR
Click to expand...

It's cool, definitely different. I don't know that the interest will be there in the consumer market though. I used mine twice before I gave it away, just not how I want to play, and as a dev I doubt the market so for now, pass.
 
SkyFire said:
It's cool, definitely different. I don't know that the interest will be there in the consumer market though. I used mine twice before I gave it away, just not how I want to play, and as a dev I doubt the market so for now, pass.
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You've never heard of a niche market? I think this will be a good niche product, with the potential of mainstream appeal.

I also think the developer support already is quite good.

Also admit it: You might be a dev, but you're an entrepreneur first. You flipped your rift on ebay for a really nice profit. I've seen them on ebay there for double the price of what you pay for it if you ordered direct from oculus.

How much game development do you do? Do you have any examples of your work?
 
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