Forget fancy graphics, it’s all about innovative control
schemes – at least that is what one would surmise after looking at the
tremendous success of the Nintendo Wii. New Mexico-based company Novint Technologies is hoping to bring some
major interface innovation to the PC with the Novint Falcon, an entirely new type
of 3D game controller that makes virtual objects
and environments feel real.
The Falcon brings a whole new dimension to the concept for
force feedback in game controllers. The Falcon transmits the feel, shape,
weight, texture, dimension, dynamics, 3D motion, and force effects when playing
enabled games. For example, in one particular baseball mini-game, where the
object is to catch a pitch, the Falcon simulates the “knock-back” feeling with
alarming, realistic force.
“The concept of touch in computing is as foreign to most
people as television was in the age of radio, but the Novint Falcon changes
computing in the same way the addition of sound changed motion pictures.” said
CEO, Tom Anderson. “It takes gaming to a whole new level, letting you feel
everything that happens in the game in rich detail. The launch of the Falcon represents a
significant step in an entirely new field of computing that we feel is about to
explode into the mainstream. The Falcon enables one of our most basic human
experiences, our sense of touch, with computers.”
The Falcon is now shipping in a special limited edition $189
bundle that includes Newton’s Monkey
Business, with 24 minigames, and the Feelin’
It: Sports Pack, with full versions of Table Tennis, Golf, Top Pin Bowling;
Homerun Smashout, and 3 Point Shootout
The real killer-app for the Falcon at this point is a
special version of Half-Life 2,
called Haptics-Life 2. Thanks to a special driver that
modifies a full version of Half-Life 2,
the Falcon will replicate all the bumps and knocks in Valve’s shooter.