I found my old force-feedback controller and decided to give it another go. It’s been ages since I used it. Anyone else have memories with these? Thoughts on how it worked or why it didn’t catch on?
I’ve never even seen one of these before. Looks so cool! How does it actually work?
Aubrey said:
I’ve never even seen one of these before. Looks so cool! How does it actually work?
It’s basically got a motor inside that pushes back against your movements to give resistance and feedback. It also vibrates a lot during use. The problem? Drivers would crash constantly, and you’d wonder why you spent so much money on it.
@Bay
Haha, sounds like a hassle. What games was it even made for?
Fox said:
@Bay
Haha, sounds like a hassle. What games was it even made for?
There wasn’t a ton of support for it. Valve games like Half-Life 2 and Team Fortress 2 supported it for a while. You’d use the pistol grip as your mouse, and instead of the screen shaking during recoil, the device physically pushed your hand. Reloading the revolver in HL2 even had it simulate the cylinder flicking out. Pretty fun, but definitely niche and didn’t take off.
@Nico
It worked with Left 4 Dead too! Carrying heavy objects like gas cans made it simulate weight with constant downward force.
@Nico
At that point, wouldn’t it just be easier to hit up a gun range and get the real feel?
Spence said:
@Nico
At that point, wouldn’t it just be easier to hit up a gun range and get the real feel?
Only in America do you have public gun ranges everywhere.
Spence said:
@Nico
At that point, wouldn’t it just be easier to hit up a gun range and get the real feel?
Only in America do you have public gun ranges everywhere.
It’s just a gun range… I don’t get the big deal.
@Spence
My point is, public gun ranges are mostly an American thing. That’s why stuff like this controller was more popular elsewhere.
Bran said:
@Spence
My point is, public gun ranges are mostly an American thing. That’s why stuff like this controller was more popular elsewhere.
Not true. Europe has gun ranges too. They’re pricier and you need a permit, but they exist.
@Afton
People I know who’ve gone to ranges in the US were surprised the targets were human-shaped.
Keegan said:
@Afton
People I know who’ve gone to ranges in the US were surprised the targets were human-shaped.
It’s wild to think that’s normal there. Kind of creepy when you think about it.
Fox said:
@Bay
Haha, sounds like a hassle. What games was it even made for?
It was mainly for gaming, especially flight sims like Descent. Added more immersion.
Fox said:
@Bay
Haha, sounds like a hassle. What games was it even made for?
It was mainly for gaming, especially flight sims like Descent. Added more immersion.
Some people used it for 3D modeling too.
@Flynt
I remember seeing ads for it being marketed as a 3D mouse for modeling. I wanted one so badly even though I didn’t even do 3D modeling.
@Flynt
I guess if your modeling project annoyed you, you could just add bullet holes for stress relief.
Fox said:
@Bay
Haha, sounds like a hassle. What games was it even made for?
It was mainly for gaming, especially flight sims like Descent. Added more immersion.
Descent was so good. One of the first games I really got hooked on. That, Diablo 1, and the first Quake.