Future Now
The IFTF Blog
Flailing into the future of game input
In the evolution of home videogame consoles, progress on the controller has taken a backseat to graphics, raw processor power, even the industrial design of the case. Nintendo is poised to put the input mechanism front and center with their next-generation console, the Nintendo Revolution. The controller still has a few traditional buttons but the real innovation is the inclusion of sensors to recognize gestures. Slash across the air--controller in hand--and your on-screen sword will take a swipe at your opponent. In a fishing game, you'll make the same motions as casting a line and then have to tug upwards to actually get the virtual fish in the boat.
We've seen gesture recognition before in videogames and virtual reality systems in the past (see Nintendo's own Power Glove and the more recent Eye Toy for Sony's Playstation 2), but Nintendo's decision to make this input style a core feature of the Revolution is poised to take it mainstream. Rumor also has it that Sony is including visual recognition a la the EyeToy®.
What 's the connection to pervasive gaming? The Revolution controller is already quite cell phone-shaped; imagine if most phones included gesture recognition sensors, or even sensors to know when we're sitting, standing, walking, or running. One theme we're exploring in this project is how pervasive gamers will strike a balance between the "real" world and the fictional game they're simultaneously playing. Just as the man talking to himself on the street is now often using a hands-free addition for his cell phone, the woman swinging her phone around wildly in the future may actually be scoring points and completing an activity in an otherwise invisible game. One thing seems certain: as is the born right of future generations of gamers to mock the games of their ancestors, one day the concept of using buttons and knobs to interact with games will be ripe for youthful scorn.
Links:
The gaming site 1up.com gets a sneak peak at the Revolution's controller and some demo gesture-based games.
1up.com also offers a hilarious Nintendo PR video that demonstrates the controller in action