Ideas for next Gen Controllers

[Kyle Meadows]

In all honesty, physical controllers are as good as they're going to get at the moment. The next step IS controllerless technology, but not the Kinect rubbish we've had so far.

I recommend a series of Light Novels called "Sword Art Online." It has a pretty good concept behind it and while I'm not entirely sure of whether or not it would actually be viable, the books are still pretty damn good.

The first 4 novels have een translated and you can find them pretty easily by goolging the title. A good read with a lot of good ideas behind it.

Thank you for the recommendation!

 

[Kyle Meadows]

Face buttons underneath the controller.
No longer will I have to stop aiming to reload or jump.
Edit: Probably be better just to build them into buttons inside the handles of the controller, where your fingers rest.

The only problem I can foresee is much like the complaint lodged against mine: To high risk of accidental activation.

 

[Smooth Operator]

Rectal controllers, well you may not like the sound of it but it's totally innovative
And you better hope Nintendo doesn't get wind of this.

 

[Kyle Meadows]

I think this was discussed years ago when the PS3 first came out, but what about a controller that actively changes temperature depending on the context of the game itself? If you're in a cold area, the controller goes cold. If you're in a hot area or get hurt, the controller heats up. It'd be cool if when you're firing a turret and the gun heats up, the controller gets hotter gradually.

Might post safety risks or seem gimmicky, but when done right, this could enhance immersion. Like motion controls in a way. What do you guys think?

I actually like how you put that. It does sound gimmicky, but not entirely obstructive to gameplay. Its different than how one would implement motion controls. And you are correct-- if done correctly immersion could be greatly enhanced.

 

[Kyle Meadows]

Rectal controllers, well you may not like the sound of it but it's totally innovative
Just hope Nintendo doesn't get wind of this.

Lulz it took me a second to get it. But when I did... hoo buddy...

 

[gigastar]

What i would do is take a 6th console generation controller, make it wireless and add a couple more buttons for additional control options in the future.

As well as death to the Move and Wii Motion, Kinect can stay around because it found other uses outside of being a controller.

 

[Kyle Meadows]

Sorry, sounds terrible. If you're really grasping that hard for extra buttons, use a god damn keyboard+mouse setup. And tell your friends to do the same.

Unfortunately, a keyboard mouse set up isn't applicable for a lot of people who really don't have the extra money to spend, like me. I have a controller. Its the controller that came with my PS3. I have had no new ones since. I don't have the extra money to burn. So to alot of us, this innovation would give us slightly more freedom.

 

[Kyle Meadows]

doesn't sound as something I want to use.
my personal idea is just the 360/PS3 controller except in different sizes to accommodate different hands (for example the PS3 controller is to small for my giant hands.)
also a USB cable with every new controller regardless of wired or wireless.

That's an idea. The twist of it would be required to be deliberate. Like, wanting to twist it. But I like your bigger controller idea. It would make things better for a lot of gamers everywhere.

 

[Kyle Meadows]

What i would do is take a 6th console generation controller, make it wireless and add a couple more buttons for additional control options in the future.

As well as death to the Move and Wii Motion, Kinect can stay around because it found other uses outside of being a controller.

I'm inclined to agree with the motion controls. Kinect is a very iffy subject. It has already been hacked to detect full motion movements. And while I see it as a gimmick relating to games, I recognize the possibility that something can come from it. My main problem with Kinect is that it lack an interface of any kind. it severely limits the gamer without some form of input other that motion. If had been incorporated as is with some adjustments to include interface, a lot more people may be inclined to accept it.

 

[Guffe]

For me that would suck, I am so often into the game that if I need to shoot/strike/run/do something more to the left/rigth I automatically make body movements and hope that'll help. I own a wii and I like it but it's been so ever since the snes.

 

[Lazy Kitty]

I'd take some kind of plank with a bunch of buttons, one for every letter of the alphabet, some numbers and some extra control buttons.
And that in combination with some kind of device with 3 buttons, one of which can rotate or scroll, the device can also be slide across a surface and sends the data of that back to the game platform.

OR

Some small device with 2 joysticks, a D-Pad and 10 buttons: 2 control buttons, 4 buttons which are really easily accessible with your righr thumb, 2 triggers on the back of the device and a button above each trigger. Oh, and the joysticks can be pushed like buttons.

 

[Arkley]

The Wii U's controller is the future. Okay, the idea of playing an entire game on its overly large screen whilst someone else uses the TV is gimmicky and largely unnecessary (not to mention the fact that it limits the console to the use of one and only one of these controllers), but the potential for a controller with an embedded hi-res touch screen is phenomenal.

There's the obvious stuff, like the ability to manage your inventory or view a streaming map & update waypoints etc without having to pause your game, but there's other stuff, too. Take Mass Effect & Dragon Age, for example. I don't know about you, but I sure do find it annoying to have to pop up that wheel and effectively pause my game to use powers/abilities/items. With a touch screen right there, you wouldn't have to. They could all be there, mapped out on little individual icons, usable with a single tap on a control pad that doesn't need to have a bajillion buttons. And the positioning of those icons could be entirely customisable. Hell the size of them could be customisable, too. God only knows how fantastic all of this interface potential could be if applied to the likes of Skyrim.

And then there's the potential for genuinely innovative gameplay enhancement, too. What if, in Deus Ex: Human Revolution, you had the ability to view hacked cameras through the controller? Not while standing in front of a terminal or in a little picture-in-picture box, but on a screen in your hands, while you continued to play the game on the TV. You could jump from camera to camera, checking the areas around you. Remember the Sightjacking mechanic in Siren? Where you could temporarily get a peak at the world through an enemy's eyes to help figure out the locations of your enemies and the dangers of the area? Same thing.

In FPS/TPS games, this thing do anything from allowing the viewing & piloting of a UAV or even a sniper rifle scope, all while the player can still see their surroundings somewhat on the TV.

In racing games it could be map, a display of stats, a rear view mirror or all three.

And let's not ignore its potential for a revival of the space-combat or mech warfare sim. How great would it be to be able to look out of the cockpit on the TV screen, and have your targeting computer, power readings and radar in your hands? Remember that enormous controller with countless switches and buttons made necessary by all the functions of your mech in Steel Battalion? They could all be there, on that screen, customised to your liking.

It's easy to dismiss this huge controller as Nintendo's latest gimmick, and hey - maybe all it'll ever be used for is gimmicky stuff, who knows. But its potential is enormous. It is the future of gaming, and gaming would be a lot better off if we realise it quickly.

 

[Wushu Panda]

Wow, that's funny. I tell its a gimmick, and you got all butt hurt dude. Get over yourself. I didn't say anything offensive. Those links were long because they were Google links. That how Google images work. I do know what E3 is. I dare say I watch it quite a bit more than you. Its still a gimmick. A game is designed to played either with a controller, or a keyboard mouse setup. Do you realize the cost and extended development time required to incorporated full motion control into a game, nonetheless connect? A lot. It reduces profits buy a large margin. You want to call me a noob too? Cute, buddy. Its funny. Look, I really don't want to think that you're an Xbox fanboy, so please tell me you aren't. But you need to realize if its tagged on, its a gimmick. The Wii is a gimmick. The Move is a gimmick. The Kinect is a gimmick. They aren't the future-- their experiments that will be incorporated into the future. Now, you honestly think I wouldn't take into account the twisting motion being done accidentally? Its called a prototype, even your precious Kinect had one. It was called playing outside. If you want to come in here and tell me that my idea I wanted to share with other is a bad idea, then say so. Tell me its a bad idea, and offer something constructive. If not, leave.

Exactly what do you know about profit margins? Do you even know a ballpark number that would cost Xbox to make a game compatible with Kinect? Or was "a lot" the figure you came up with from your expert calculations? A game is not necessarily designed to be used just with mouse or controller, there are already plenty of games made for the sole purpose of the Kinect that cannot be played with either aforementioned control.

Yea, I am calling you a noob. A noob would call entire platforms and integrated facial recognition a gimmick while they sit there and get all wet over their idea to add a spinning dial onto controllers. You have a pretty odd definition of gimmick.

I did say it was a bad idea. I told you that all platforms are largely leaning towards motion technology. Controllers have pretty much reached their peak, and turning them into a Bop-It, isn't going to fly over well with hardcore gamers. And if you think your controller would actually be anything but a non-selling third party accessory...then I'm not the one who should get over themselves.

 

[Yellowbeard]

You're missing the entire point. They aren't gimmicks, Xbox has been working to develop serious games compatible with Kinect. Ghost Recon: Future Soldier was revealed at E3 (you do know what E3 is right?) to be fully playable using the Kinect.

What, the same E3 that showed off that Kinect Star Wars game that was like Jedi Knight II running at 1/4 speed AND a rail-shooter? Yeah that was real impressive.

You know all those fun Sci Fi movies that show people interacting in virtual worlds using nothing more than vocal commands and body movement? Not a gimmick noob, its the future.

Lol. This just makes me think of the bit from The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy where Zaphod Beeblebrox is watching the news and has to keep perfectly still in his chair for fear of accidentally changing the channel. Having said that, this is literally the only desirable use of motion control I can think of.

It doesn't make for that much convenience, the damn controllers have more buttons than they ever did in gaming history...and you want to add ANOTHER?

Hey man, my controller's got 104 buttons and it doesn't cause me any trouble.

Doesn't matter what company, although some are already doing this, make your future controllers with an INTERNAL BATTERY.

Yeah, hooray for planned obsolescence, SCREW being able to use the controller once it's past its 1-5 year design life! I know I sure wish my N64 controllers had proprietary, non-replaceable, non-serviceable batteries!

I miss the old fighter-pilot type controllers.

Can you post an image link for that? It sounds interesting.

What, you've never seen a joystick before?

And let's not ignore its potential for a revival of the space-combat or mech warfare sim. How great would it be to be able to look out of the cockpit on the TV screen, and have your targeting computer, power readings and radar in your hands?

All that stuff is supposed to be in your HUD. Look at Freespace 2, absolutely everything you need is in the HUD.

It's easy to dismiss this huge controller as Nintendo's latest gimmick, and hey - maybe all it'll ever be used for is gimmicky stuff, who knows. But its potential is enormous. It is the future of gaming, and gaming would be a lot better off if we realise it quickly.

I don't understand how needing to look down at your hands constantly to check another display is any kind of advantage at all. Pretty much everything you mentioned sounds like a big step backward, not into the future. You wouldn't make a keyboard into a flat, textureless mat so you have to stare at your hands if you wan't to have any ideas what keys your hitting...oh wait, idiots already make those. Why did I expect any different.

 

[Arkley]

All that stuff is supposed to be in your HUD. Look at Freespace 2, absolutely everything you need is in the HUD.

Removal of the HUD typically facilitates greater immersion. Removing the HUD from the main screen in info-heavy games such as space combat sims not only means a lot less clutter on the screen where the action is, but also that even more info can be given, or the HUD elements can be shown greater detail without obscuring the aforementioned action.

I don't understand how needing to look down at your hands constantly to check another display is any kind of advantage at all. Pretty much everything you mentioned sounds like a big step backward, not into the future. You wouldn't make a keyboard into a flat, textureless mat so you have to stare at your hands if you wan't to have any ideas what keys your hitting...oh wait, idiots already make those. Why did I expect any different.

Taking a quick look down at your hands to view some info/your inventory/issue squad commands/use abilities is a lot less intrusive than pausing the entire game a dozen times a minute. Additionally, I already mentioned that another advantage of the touch screen could be customizable icon positioning - it's not exactly difficult to remember where you've placed the important icons. Even if they're not customisable, it's not exactly difficult to remember where things are, and even if you can't - as I mentioned earlier - a brief glance downwards is much less intrusive than pausing the entire game.

 

[Mr. Omega]

From what I assume is the double-posting of this thread:

I actually think the WiiU has the right idea. WiiPlus motion controls, the standard four-button/dual-analog/four shoulder button layout in this gen and a touchscreen. Reports from people who actually have held it said that it's pretty good to hold. I just wish the thing was a little more pleasant to look at.

They key with this set-up, however, is that devs need to show restraint. Just because motion controls are there doesn't mean you need to shoehorn it in. If it works fine with the standard control layout, stick with it. If having a touchscreen would genuinely benefit the experience of the game, use it.

 

[Yellowbeard]

Removal of the HUD typically facilitates greater immersion. Removing the HUD from the main screen in info-heavy games such as space combat sims not only means a lot less clutter on the screen where the action is, but also that even more info can be given, or the HUD elements can be shown greater detail without obscuring the aforementioned action.

But for immersion in a space combat sim why wouldn't you expect a HUD? I wouldn't expect to pilot a combat spaceship without one because I can't exactly avert my eyes to check my afterburner reserves in mid-manoeuvre. Modern fighter jets have HUDs, combat helicopters have HUDs, Again, Freespace 2 is my golden example, with an customizable translucent HUD overlaid over an unobstructed field of vision. No auxiliary screens needed, but even if it did I'd rather have them as overlays. For more information or greater detail I'd rather use my big, high resolution main screen than a small one in my hands. How can a HUD obsure action where focusing your eyes somewhere completely different won't? Why do you think they're even putting HUDs in cars these days?

If anything's going to break my immersion it's looking away from the screen and reminding myself that I'm not actually in a cockpit...man I really want to play Freespace 2 again.

Obviously you can do whatever works for you, but I see everything as completely the opposite.

Taking a quick look down at your hands to view some info/your inventory/issue squad commands/use abilities is a lot less intrusive than pausing the entire game a dozen times a minute. Additionally, I already mentioned that another advantage of the touch screen could be customizable icon positioning - it's not exactly difficult to remember where you've placed the important icons. Even if they're not customisable, it's not exactly difficult to remember where things are, and even if you can't - as I mentioned earlier - a brief glance downwards is much less intrusive than pausing the entire game.

Could be a matter of taste, but if I'm switching my attention from one screen to another I find it a hell of a lot faster and less disorienting to do it virtually on my main display and keep my eyes pointed in the same place. Touch and muscle memory with programmable controls (yeah, I'm a keyboard purist) is a lot faster than having to look first if when time is actually of the essence Besides, the main display is invariably bigger and of higher quality (or at least it should be).

 

[Dyllbert]

Gloves. Eventually it will happen and it will work.

 

[Dyllbert]

Actually, the keyboard and the mouse are the best way to play almost every game (excluding platformers maybe, and racing for sure).

 

[Yellowbeard]

Actually, the keyboard and the mouse are the best way to play almost every game (excluding platformers maybe, and racing for sure).

Platformers are great on a keyboard. The first PC game I ever played was a platformer, and lots since, up to Prince of Persia.

Driving and flying are total bullshit with a keyboard, though, which is why we have so many awesome joysticks, wheels and pedals available.

Did I mention PC gaming is awesome?