Support NeoGAF

[SystemUser]

What does this mean? does the touchpad "vibrate" depending on the acceleration of your flicks on it?

The press release from 2013 had this "The Steam Controller is built around a new generation of superprecise haptic feedback, employing dual linear resonant actuators”. I have never seen a clear explanation of what that means exactly.


EDIT: I guess they mean these: http://www.precisionmicrodrives.com...resonant-actuator-lra-haptic-vibration-motors

 

[Lockjaw333]

The PC gamer in me is excited to see any sort of evolution of the standard dual analog controller. Hopefully the steam controller allows for more precise, mouse-like aiming with the goodness of analog movement.

 

[Refreshment.01]

It's not really. I don't see how you could fit two sticks and two touchpads on a controller. If you know how then show me a mockup. Adding one stick is something Valve found was useful in their testing and while I don't see why one would be necessary I guess they would have the better information available to make that choice.

Too bad Valve didn't go the extra mile and made some elements modular. Example, want to play a fighting game? Swap the Thumbstick module for a Dpad one. Or swap the position of the diamond buttons.

This would look even better in white with those black trackpads contrasting with the body of the controller.

So far this controller seems amazing. Quick selection and aiming will feel so sweet with those big trackpads.

 

[Poimandres]

I am entirely unsure about this controller... it looks strange, and I have no idea if it will be comfortable or work well for me. This is exactly why I am excited about it!

Finally something different than the standard dual stick set up that's been common for the last 15 years. Can't wait to try one of these out.

 

[Lactose_Intolerant]

It's not really. I don't see how you could fit two sticks and two touchpads on a controller.

You could get rid of the buttons on the right and just use the touchpad for them. Like the haptic feedback buttons here:

Though I have no idea how that would hold up after so many presses.

 

[aeolist]

impressions in the OP sound like people who don't have an issue with first person games on dual analog controllers, which is not something i can relate to

 

[Krejlooc]

impressions in the OP sound like people who don't have an issue with first person games on dual analog controllers, which is not something i can relate to

they also don't grasp the potential of the steam controller has. I've called at PC gaming duct tape in the past. I've used to steam controller to access and mess around with my BIOS settings. the thing is incredibly useful because it basically just works with all PC input

 

[UnrealEck]

People will HAVE to get used to the right trackpad working like the right stick in some games, but then with the left pad they can just decide to fall back to a true left stick?

Not to mention the right pad still clicks in, so they could have just done the same thing and moved abxy onto the pad right? lol, the whole controller itself is just starting to seem redundant to me.

The right pad is going to be typically used for swipes. Having face buttons under it is maybe not the best idea. The way it is now, is also closer to the standard controllers.
The pad on the left is going to be used typically for presses for navigation or for slow movements accross the pad.
I won't go into why it's good to have a left stick still there either because someone went over it on the previous page.

 

[Syphon Filter]

they also don't grasp the potential of the steam controller has. I've called at PC gaming duct tape in the past. I've used to steam controller to access and mess around with my BIOS settings. the thing is incredibly useful because it basically just works with all PC input

You tried this recent version of the controller?

 

[Krejlooc]

You tried this recent version of the controller?

No, the original version.

 

[ashecitism]

https://twitter.com/RealBenGilbert/status/573283385088598016

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2015/03/05/steam-controller-valve/

At first, I worried. I was handed it to play Talos Principle running on a mid-spec Steam Machine, via Steam OS, and my initial thought was: “Ooh, they’re close.” And then I asked if I could adjust the sensitivity.

It was immediately interesting to see that Steam OS overrode the game’s own input settings. Valve called up the controller’s settings, a lovely clean layout, dropdown menus alongside the buttons on a crisp illustration of the controller. On the controller, my right thumb sat on what’s essentially a clickable trackpad, and the sensitivity of this mouse-substitute was slightly boosted. Back into the game, and my mind changed. “Ooh, they’ve done it.”

Well, right-ish. What’s interesting about all of Valve’s efforts is that they’re doomed to never make anything that matches a mouse and a keyboard. The very best they can hope for is to get close. It’s about plotting a point on the line drawn between a classic console controller, and the office machinery that so mysteriously best suits our gaming needs. From a brief play, I’m not confident to plot that point, but I’m pretty sure it’s closer to a mouse than you might expect.

 

[Nzyme32]

Who said anything about two sticks? lol

Like I said, I'm not confused as to what their reasoning is behind it, I just think it's a stupid decision. People will HAVE to get used to the right trackpad working like the right stick in some games, but then with the left pad they can just decide to fall back to a true left stick?

Not to mention the right pad still clicks in, so they could have just done the same thing and moved abxy onto the pad right? lol, the whole controller itself is just starting to seem redundant to me (slight hyperbole, before anybody freaks out lol).

But they do not have to get used to it, if they don't want to. All PC games have a form keyboard and mouse controls, so people can switch the control to that should they prefer and have their own binding set as well if they want. People will work out what kind of bindings work best and circulate them via the community/workshop integration so it is already default. The issue is that when the controller comes out, there would have been no community input, so that will take time to build and it is unknown how well that process will work out, or rather how quickly

 

[homerhendrix]

November is disappointing. It looks complete and ready for manufacturing. Wonder if concern is around native support for newer software. Can't wait to get one.

 

[BigTnaples]

I'll definitly use it in conjunction with my other gamepads, but this will be awesome for certain titles.

 

[Alex]

I'll definitly use it in conjunction with my other gamepads, but this will be awesome for certain titles.

Yeah, there's a lot I want to mess with in it. I really detest the stance that this should be another nth iteration of the old Dual Shock design, especially when you can hook up all of those things to PC and use them fine as is. I'm just looking for a really nice bridge controller, something that fills the gap for all of the mouse and keyboard games, be nice to go back through old Bioware games or play stuff like Starbound, Prison Architect, etc, there's a lot I'd like to try it out on.

 

[Maniac]

https://twitter.com/RealBenGilbert/status/573283385088598016

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2015/03/05/steam-controller-valve/

I can't even begin to tell you how much I wish I could automatically override any games' sensitivity easily and just use my mouse.

I think I'll have to get this, even if the stick is offputting and honestly lessening my love of it.

And dang that's a comfy looking controller.

 

[Nabs]

I wish I could buy one today.

 

[jblank83]

Wonder what it'll cost.

 

[aeolist]

Wonder what it'll cost.

$50

 

[Nerrel]

This interests me a lot as someone who swears by the Wii remote and nunchuk for shooters. I can't go back to dual analog without feeling the huge downgrade, but keyboard and mouse is awkward and unusable to me.

I'm looking forward to this more as a middle ground between dual analog and IR aiming than dual analog and kb/mouse, honestly.

Who said anything about two sticks? lol

Like I said, I'm not confused as to what their reasoning is behind it, I just think it's a stupid decision. People will HAVE to get used to the right trackpad working like the right stick in some games, but then with the left pad they can just decide to fall back to a true left stick?

Most early testers were able to adjust to the right trackpad much more easily than the left one. The advantages of a trackpad over an analog are much more apparent there, since that's where precise actions like aiming and camera control are done.

Character movement is a comparatively simple and clumsy action. You usually hold the left stick full forward to get around in games, and there's a lot of muscle memory associated with how that tension and pushback feels.

That's why it makes sense to add an analog for the left side but not the right. The trackpad may be more precise, but for most multiplatform games it's totally unnecessary. It's the right stick that holds dual analog back, not the left one.

 

[ashecitism]

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2015-03-05-valves-missing-link

Which is why it's the triggers that leave me the most impressed. Not that they do anything new, but in how they replicate one of the best analogue triggers ever to have graced a controller - pull down on each of them, and after a well-judged amount of travel there's a little final click into place, a feature seen and then seemingly forgotten on Nintendo's ageing yet still brilliant GameCube pad. For a dyed-in-the-wool console gamer like myself, it's that kind of detail that makes me eagerly anticipate diving into Valve's new ecosystem.

The force feedback witnessed in console controllers is also enhanced - there are numerous possibilities, such as directional feedback on the left pad that corresponds with where you're taking damage from in a first person shooter, or the persistent chug of a machine gun being sent through your right thumb when you're pulling down on the trigger. Combined, they're the kind of forward-thinking innovations that were perhaps absent when Sony and Microsoft rolled out their own new generation of controllers to accompany their new hardware.

There are some reservations about the new controller, although some of that's down to how new and slightly alien it still feels in the hands. The face buttons are a bit too far of a stretch away from the right trackpad, and while the button layout is to all intents and purposes similar to that of other consoles - there are four face buttons and four shoulder buttons - the two additional buttons that can be found on the back of the pad where your ring finger grips add further wrinkles to a control standard that was already getting congested.

IGN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdMe4mHUH2c

http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2015/...team-machines-valves-hardware-push-in-photos/

We demoed three games, all of which launched with WASD-and-mouse control schemes on PC: The Talos Principle, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, and the new, in-development version of Unreal Tournament. In all three, Kyle and I still struggled to feel competent with the right-hand touchpad as a mouse replacement. We played against easiest-difficulty bots in the latter two games and could barely line up solid gunshots most of the time. It's one thing to say we'll "get used to it" after more time with the controller—the increased speed and "momentum roll" of swiping the touchpad seem like features that will really pay off for people who get used to the Steam Controller—but the bots we faced practically stood still most of the time, and we're not that bad at first-person shooters.

Weirdly, we were more annoyed with the controller's final ABXY buttons. I thought they were too small—that's my thumb right there—while Kyle complained about their placement where you'd expect to find a joystick on both Sony and Microsoft's pads. The buttons' general action, at least, felt smooth and easy enough.

 

[Castef]

Quite tepid comments all around.

Mmmh...

 

[ashecitism]

I think if Valve really wants the press to form opinions on it and write impressions, they'd be better off sending the controllers out to them. Let them spend a week or so with them. 10-30 minss simply aren't enough. Otherwise it"s like barely anything changed since last year.

 

[Visualante2]

I'm not sure how I feel about 6 buttons on the rear of the device, particularly the ones around the grips. I appreciate you can probably turn them off but I just worry it will be pressed accidentally, get filled up with grubby sweat, skin and detract from the overall solid, robust feeling of the device- something I value in a controller.

I just don't understand why we're waiting until November for this finalised product. Overall I respect they're doing something different and the price seems fair if it is comparable to what we expect from Microsoft and Sony.

I do think that it's a mistake to require Steam machines to come bundled with this- what if I buy the controller and then buy a Steam machine? I have to sell the controller?

 

[ducksauce]

As someone who plays 90% of their pc games on the couch in BPM I see myself using Xbox/DS4 for games with controller support and the Steam controller for games that don't.

Simple as that.

Part of the appeal of the pc is it's versatility and I think being able to choose between all three plus mouse and keyboard if you want is a big plus.

 

[Basileus777]

I'm eager to try this out, especially to see if the placement of the face buttons is as awkward as it looks. It reminds me of the WiiU Pro controller except worse, and I hate the face buttons on that. Though it may be better as a lot of my issues with the WiiU Pro controller buttons are their small size and lack of texture.

The design is pretty damn ugly, but I don't really care about that.

 

[orava]

I want to see this versus mouse and keyboard

I'd say it gets pretty close but never surpasses. Definitely performs better than a traditional xbox or ps controller.

 

[Zalman]

The button placements don't bother me. It's like the Wii U Pro Controller, which I love. I'm actually pretty interested in trying it out. It's refreshing to see something different.

 

[SteveWD40]

I think if Valve really wants the press to form opinions on it and write impressions, they'd be better off sending the controllers out to them. Let them spend a week or so with them. 10-30 minss simply aren't enough. Otherwise it"s like barely anything changed since last year.

Bingo.

Let them spend a few days getting used to it, it might generate a much more positive vibe. Guys at Valve MUST be good with these things now or they would scrap it, difference is they have all the time to get used to it.

 

[orava]

I was hoping it would be even bigger. My thumb covers all the buttons of x360 controller already. But definitely getting one when possible.

 

[Nzyme32]

I think if Valve really wants the press to form opinions on it and write impressions, they'd be better off sending the controllers out to them. Let them spend a week or so with them. 10-30 minss simply aren't enough. Otherwise it"s like barely anything changed since last year.

On top of that, community driven configurations have some good potential, but I dont know how long those good ones will take to emerge

 

[Seanspeed]

We demoed three games, all of which launched with WASD-and-mouse control schemes on PC: The Talos Principle, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, and the new, in-development version of Unreal Tournament. In all three, Kyle and I still struggled to feel competent with the right-hand touchpad as a mouse replacement. We played against easiest-difficulty bots in the latter two games and could barely line up solid gunshots most of the time. It's one thing to say we'll "get used to it" after more time with the controller—the increased speed and "momentum roll" of swiping the touchpad seem like features that will really pay off for people who get used to the Steam Controller—but the bots we faced practically stood still most of the time, and we're not that bad at first-person shooters.

This is what concerns me most. Button layouts and whatnot - not worried about it. I just want to know if this thing is capable of precision. Not just for shooters, but for maybe clicking and dragging over the correct units in a strategy game. For selecting a skill from a small-ish menu bar in a CRPG. For dragging and placing roads in a city builder. These are the sorts of games I hope to be able to play with a Steam controller and if aiming is not precise, then it might just be not good enough. And I hate to say that, cuz I want it to work really badly.

 

[Visualante2]

On top of that, community driven configurations have some good potential, but I dont know how long those good ones will take to emerge

If Valve just creates a profile badge or gives some silly incentive for creating config they will be flooded.

 

[viveks86]

This is what concerns me most. Button layouts and whatnot - not worried about it. I just want to know if this thing is capable of precision. Not just for shooters, but for maybe clicking and dragging over the correct units in a strategy game. For selecting a skill from a small-ish menu bar in a CRPG. For dragging and placing roads in a city builder. These are the sorts of games I hope to be able to play with a Steam controller and if aiming is not precise, then it might just be not good enough. And I hate to say that, cuz I want it to work really badly.

I wonder when the press will get preview units so that they can spend a few days with it… Very curious to see how this pans out. So far the response has been lukewarm at best.

 

[Cheeseman Battitude]

It's really weird using the trackpad at first because the haptic feedback really does make it feel like a trackball is inside the controller.

I wondered why those circular marks were removed, but if it feels like a trackball it probably doesn't need them.

 

[danielcw]

What is the (rumored) price?

 

[Nabs]

What is the (rumored) price?

It's going to be 50.

 

[Foggy]

Maybe I'm just not getting the appeal, but as I see it, it's supposed be a controller solution for games that have traditionally best been played with kb/m and even though this controller would be inherently less precise, the benefit is that you can meet somewhere between traditional controller and kb/m so you can use on the couch(because why not just go back to kb/m). Is that a fair summation?

An optimal controller for traditional kb/m games that can be played sitting on a couch?

 

[joshbob1985]

impressions in the OP sound like people who don't have an issue with first person games on dual analog controllers, which is not something i can relate to

This. FPS on dual analog is unacceptable to me and I'm not a fan of WASD so the steam controller is a potentially ideal solution. Actually, wii mote and nun chuck with some extra buttons is the ideal solution but I don't see that coming back.

 

[Serianox]

An optimal controller for traditional kb/m games that can be played sitting on a couch?

Pretty much. Its not 1:1 to a m/kb but its a good enough compromise of having something similar to that with the comfort of a controller. It also adds controller support to games that were never intended to support it by simulating the m/kb inputs with whats available on the steam controller.

 

[SteveWinwood]

On top of that, community driven configurations have some good potential, but I dont know how long those good ones will take to emerge

for popular games? hours

for niche games? a week or so

 

[Owwari]

Looking good.

 

[danielcw]

It's going to be 50.

Thanks.

Are therer any rumors on bundles, like controller + game download code?
(50 for just the controller, even a really good one, is too much for my taste)

 

[Tobor]

Maybe I'm just not getting the appeal, but as I see it, it's supposed be a controller solution for games that have traditionally best been played with kb/m and even though this controller would be inherently less precise, the benefit is that you can meet somewhere between traditional controller and kb/m so you can use on the couch(because why not just go back to kb/m). Is that a fair summation?

An optimal controller for traditional kb/m games that can be played sitting on a couch?

Yes, exactly.

 

[Nerrel]

It's going to be 50.

...How? It seems so much more advanced than the $60 DS4/One pads that I wonder how it can end up being cheaper. Even a bare-bones controller like the Wii U Pro costs $50.

 

[Nabs]

Thanks.

Are therer any rumors on bundles, like controller + game download code?
(50 for just the controller, even a really good one, is too much for my taste)

No idea, but I wouldn't be surprised if it came with a TF2/Dota item or something like that. That would be amazing.

 

[therapist]

Kinda worried about this as it seems like itll take a lot of practice to get used to it , by that time youd likely be out of luck if you dont like it and want to return it.

Wish i could try it beforehand - still intersted

 

[LordOfChaos]

...How? It seems so much more advanced than the $60 DS4/One pads that I wonder how it can end up being cheaper. Even a bare-bones controller like the Wii U Pro costs $50.

Those other controllers don't need to be 60, is the obvious answer. They use pretty simple technology, the price is overinflated (not knocking that - they do need to turn a profit)

 

[Graphics Horse]

What does this mean? does the touchpad "vibrate" depending on the acceleration of your flicks on it?

Custom vibrations so clicks, buzzes or anything. They've said it's technically possible to play music through them.

 

[Jashobeam]

I can't wait to try this out, it might be the incentive I need to play all the damn steam games in my library.