Experience Half-Life 2 with the Novint Falcon
Want to see something fascinating/weird? Alix over at That Video Game Blog was able to get her hands on the Novint Falcon, one of the most atypical machines this side of game controllers. Don’t let its strangeness fool you—the device is nothing short of innovative, as you’ll see in the video.
The small ball attached to the three arms is what players are supposed to hold when playing. Moving the ball would move the cursor/hand onscreen. Sounds simple enough, right? The kicker is the feedback that one receives when interacting with objects in the game. When the player moves the cursor on an in-game surface, a variety of textures would be felt.
The feedback given by the controller would correspond to the material being “touched.” If the onscreen material is like sandpaper, moving the ball over the surface would feel rough and grainy. Syrups are thick, while ice is smooth.
How does this doohickey work with Half-Life 2, you ask?
Based on what I’ve seen in the video, aiming seems to be a bit of concern. Using the pistol alone causes strong recoil, so I can only imagine what the bigger, nastier guns can do. You’ll also probably notice that the ball kicks back when you’re hit, though it wasn’t clear if it would cause a corresponding reaction when the FPS protagonist is shot in different parts of the body.
Now if it weren’t as expensive, I’d probably get the Falcon in a heartbeat. According to Alix, the doodad will come with a bundled set that would cost $189. The set would include the Falcon, a pistol grip, The Orange Box, and an indie game titled Gish.
