Steam Controller Demo

[irishScott]

Sensitivity is configurable, so you don't have to swipe more than you want to. Also, individually, fingers (even thumbs) are more dextrous than the whole hand, so there's no reason why most people wouldn't be able to handle insane sensitivity on this and still have pretty good accuracy... this is the idea behind the fingertip grip, where you hold the mouse by the tips of your finger, so you can perform precise movements without moving your arm or wrist...

I think people are underestimating the potential this has. For example, you can simulate a trackball pretty easily in software. Laptop trackpads already do this, for example when you have inertial scrolling enabled, you can accelerate by flicking the trackpad and stop by setting your finger on it as if you were spinning a wheel. So if you want inertial panning, well there you go. With the haptic feedback, you can simulate notches on scrollwheels... or a trackball with notches (which sounds incredible now that I think of it). Simulate button clicking. And so on.

And it can act as a traditional controller.

Overall I still think M+KB is better, but this has a lot of positives too. There's a lot of neat new things you can do with this. What will be really interesting is seeing how it's integrated into games, rather than seeing it just behaving like M+KB. Definitely an improvement over traditional controllers... actually I wish it had been released for a traditional console (PS4 or XBone), that way it would have had more game support instead of being tacked on to a possibly DOA system with no guaranteed game integration. Oh well.

I'm less concerned with accuracy than I am by my thumb's physical endurance. Swiping is a very intense action for a single joint, and in something like a fighting or action game, or even a mouse-intensive strategy game I can see it quickly getting to the point of discomfort.

 

[makken]

Does the controller interface via bluetooth? I wonder if I can pick one of these up to double as a mouse replacement/game controller for an HTPC.

 

[PrincessFrosty]

It looks better than analogue sticks for a great many games and closes the gap between analogue sticks and mice+keyboard combo, but I don't see people getting as good with this controller as the pros get with mice+keyboard. In RTS and FPS games especially, these players are going to be destroyed by the keyboard/mouse crowd.

 

[Imaginer]

I use my thumbs already with moving the trackball on my Logitech M570 in this manner.

The controller offers no benefit, other thank making my right hand lose A LOT of keys in favor of another trackpad, as well as making my hands converge, not spread apart with a keyboard and trackball, and thus my shoulders hunched like a caveman.

I will also have to toss the controller aside to type anything, like I already do with Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. And I do like the controller experience on that game, but do not like the duality of a keyboard and controller which I feel this Steam controller will also do. I may just go back to a trackball and keyboard control with FFXIV.

It is like playing with a tablet, but dropping it to switch to a laptop for things you feel you need to accomplish, then vice versa when on the go. No thanks.

 

[boomshard]

I'm trying to withhold judgment until I can actually give it a try, but I really don't think I'm going to like it.