Lady Siara
Member
The recent post about Nintendos patent featuring a controller with a free form display got me thinking: how could the traditional controller evolve through the use of emerging technologies? My current prediction is this: a touch screen controller, much like the one in the Nintendo patent, that has traditional analog sticks and no physical face buttons.
Looking at this image from the aforementioned thread reminded me of a 2 year old prototype from Tactus where a thin fluid is pressurized to create a bubble over certain areas to give the illusion of a physical button. When this technology evolves, coupling it with localized haptic feedback a la the Steam Controller seems like it could end up being a similar experience to pressing a physical button on a touch screen. I would prefer keeping a dual analog setup, though having the sticks be interchangeable from the 10 & 2 o'clock or 7 & 5 o'clock positions (think Playstation vs Xbox vs Nintendo Pro Controller placement) would be nice, too. A d-pad using the same technology as the face buttons would be interesting, though I dont know how well it would perform.
With this format, you could adjust the placement and size of buttons to your hearts content. You could use it to make your own 6 button pad by bringing the triggers down next to the face buttons or other various tweaks. This sort of customization would also greatly open the accessibility options for disabled gamers. Developers' integration of lighter second screen experiences lately (Smartglass, companion apps, etc.) would also be perfect for this without having to have a second device. It's a shame the idea is currently stranded on the Wii U gamepad at the moment.
Of course, there are some caveats to approaching the controller this way. The cost of doing something like this would make it unfeasible currently and the technologies arent quite there yet. Nailing the exact size and form factor of the controller will be difficult as well, as it needs to be big enough to allow large hands some customization without being too difficult for smaller hands to grasp. Triggers are difficult to handle and may work best as remaining physical buttons due to travel distance/gradual pressure for things like racing games. Lastly, I wouldnt be surprised to see a large pushback from people asking, Why change it at all?
For what its worth, I dont think theres anything wrong with controllers currently. Im just thinking about how they could possibly change in the future. Is my prediction far-fetched? Do you think controllers will head in an entirely different direction instead? Will they largely remain the same as they are now?
Looking at this image from the aforementioned thread reminded me of a 2 year old prototype from Tactus where a thin fluid is pressurized to create a bubble over certain areas to give the illusion of a physical button. When this technology evolves, coupling it with localized haptic feedback a la the Steam Controller seems like it could end up being a similar experience to pressing a physical button on a touch screen. I would prefer keeping a dual analog setup, though having the sticks be interchangeable from the 10 & 2 o'clock or 7 & 5 o'clock positions (think Playstation vs Xbox vs Nintendo Pro Controller placement) would be nice, too. A d-pad using the same technology as the face buttons would be interesting, though I dont know how well it would perform.
With this format, you could adjust the placement and size of buttons to your hearts content. You could use it to make your own 6 button pad by bringing the triggers down next to the face buttons or other various tweaks. This sort of customization would also greatly open the accessibility options for disabled gamers. Developers' integration of lighter second screen experiences lately (Smartglass, companion apps, etc.) would also be perfect for this without having to have a second device. It's a shame the idea is currently stranded on the Wii U gamepad at the moment.
Of course, there are some caveats to approaching the controller this way. The cost of doing something like this would make it unfeasible currently and the technologies arent quite there yet. Nailing the exact size and form factor of the controller will be difficult as well, as it needs to be big enough to allow large hands some customization without being too difficult for smaller hands to grasp. Triggers are difficult to handle and may work best as remaining physical buttons due to travel distance/gradual pressure for things like racing games. Lastly, I wouldnt be surprised to see a large pushback from people asking, Why change it at all?
For what its worth, I dont think theres anything wrong with controllers currently. Im just thinking about how they could possibly change in the future. Is my prediction far-fetched? Do you think controllers will head in an entirely different direction instead? Will they largely remain the same as they are now?
