Using a Kinect, a Wiimote, a treadmill and a custom made head-mounted display (HMD), Veltrop was able to control a NAO robot remotely and almost entirely through his movement alone. A couple of cameras mounted on the robot allowed Veltrop to see what the robot was seeing, which in this case was his unimpressed cat.

Wow. That took a while. Then again, that was the work of one man operating on a meager budget. Can you imagine if more work was done towards perfecting this? Businessmen of the future could hold meetings remotely and brush each other while talking about fiscal years and mergers and burgers and stuff! Seriously though, this is some Daimos-level technology. From here we can have easy to operate robots that will sub for us when it comes to dangerous activities such as bomb disposal, search and rescue, cleaning the toilet… the possibilities are endless. And it started with a video game device with no decent games.

[via Popular Science]

Jut move your right foot a few inches forward to run, and a bit further forward to sprint. Your left foot forward gives you a slow walk. Leaning left, right, or back moves the character in that direction. The hack even offers voice control. This is one sweet hack for a game like Skyrim.

For more information on how the hack works, check out the description over on YouTube.

[via Destructoid via Kotaku]

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You can get the SRW-S1 controller right now for $119.99(USD) from SteelSeries.

[via Kotaku]

The system is called the Razer Hydra and it is a motion controller that has two handheld grips with an analog stick on one side and buttons on the other. The controller offers six degree-of-freedom magnetic motion controlling. The controllers have rapid-fire triggers, a slip-free grip and lots more. Razer says the Hydra will work with over 125 games right out of the box, though Valve developed special functionality and bonus levels for Portal 2. Here’s some demo footage showing how the Hydra is used to play both Portal 2 and Bulletstorm:

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You can get the Hydra and Portal 2 bundle for $139.99 (USD) with shipping set to start in June. Razer should start taking pre-orders in May.

Now, a geek in Japan has taken his Roomba and cobbled it and the Microsoft Kinect together in a mash up that allows him to control the Roomba using gestures sensed by the Kinect. The controls allow the guy to pretend to be pushing a vacuum back and forth and the Roomba moves forward when he does and backwards with him.

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It also supports other gestures as you can see in the video above. The downside I see is that the point of the Roomba is to not have to push the thing. Still, it’s a pretty cool hack and making a game out of this might actually get my kids to clean up after themselves.

[via NYT]

The AIWI kit includes a non-slip case with wrist strap for your iOS device, along with software that lets you use it either as an air mouse for controlling presentations or as a motion control for select games. From what I can tell, the system ships with SEGA Virtua Tennis 2009, but from the looks of this demo I caught at CES, it plays Street Fighter IV too.

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Looks like there’s a little bit of lag to me, but why not try it for yourself. You can grab a free version of AIWI now over at the App Store, which includes access to a handful of compatible Flash and PC games, or the full version can be purchased online for just $9.99, which comes with 10 PC games and 15 Flash games. I’m not sure where you can grab the version with the case, but you can always just put your iPhone in your own non-slip silicone case and play it that way.

Despite the “110+” labeling, the system comes with a total of 40 games (the higher count includes all levels you can directly select). Included are 15 classic licensed games, 7 “interactive sports games”, and 18 “arcade games”. I found a full list of included titles here. The system ships with a pair of wireless controllers, which both appear to have a traditional D-pad (presumably for the classic Genesis titles), but also motion control (probably for the other titles).

Perhaps the most intriguing part of this oddity is the SD card slot which lets you “easily expand your gaming library beyond the games built-into the system.” So far, the only downloadable games I could find are these lame looking ones. I’m not sure if you could use the SD slot to load up your own ROM on the thing, but for just $35 bucks, it might be worth a shot.

In my experience, previous SEGA Genesis products from ATGames have had issues with wonky sound emulation, so you should consider that before plunking down your money. Others over on the SEGA-16 Forums have stronger opinions than mine – like this guy: “You can get more accurately emulated Genesis hardware by slotting an original cart between your ass cheeks, then sitting down quickly onto it and screaming ‘SEEEEEGGAAAA’”. Okay, so maybe you shouldn’t buy one.

If you still want one, you can get your hands on the ATGames 110 Games Motion Control Sonic System over at DDR Game.

For starters, we have the PS Move Sports Victory set ($29.99 USD), which includes ping pong paddle, an archery bow, and a dagger and shield – just in case you figure out a way to play Zelda on your PS3.

Slightly more appropriate for hardcore players is the Hyperkin Special Ops Shooter ($24.99), which makes your Move controller look a little more like a gun than the rather dopey looking official Move “Shooting Attachment” from Sony. It’s designed specifically for use with Move gun games like Time Crisis: Razing Storm, The Shoot!, and SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy Seals

Frankly, I think no matter what you do with the Move controller, that stupid light-up clown nose on the end of it won’t go away.

iFixit found that Sony’s motion controller is easy to take apart and that the battery for the device is made to be removable rather than attached to the board. The controller has a vibration motor that is smaller than the motors you find in the Dual shock controller for the game console. There’s also an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a three-axis compass, and a Bluetooth transmitter under the hood.

There are three LEDs that make the orb glow when in use. Between those three LEDs just about any color can be reproduced.  As a matter of fact, it looks like the Move can handle 24-bit color on the LED “clown nose,” meaning over 16 million unique colors can be displayed. The colors can be used so humans can tell which controller is which player, but more importantly, the system uses the colors to help tell players apart.

You can check out all the teardown porn over at iFixit.

They also demo’ed a showroom-like feature, wherein you can view a car from different angles and even “step” inside, by actually moving around and craning your neck this way and that. Details about the car can also be accessed by selecting highlighted parts.

My problem with this game is that it’s not in real 3D, hence the features are more annoying than fulfilling. By real 3D I mean this: the day will come when our TVs are actually rooms, rooms that project holographic images, immersing us in real, legit threedee. If I’m still alive by then then I would gladly use controller-free motion controls, because that’s the best way to emulate the feel of, say driving a car: you sit inside a holographic car, you look around you and you see the car’s interior, the road in front of you etc. You sit down, hold your hands up to a holographic (or some other term yet to be invented) steering wheel and off you go. But this?

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Looking at a flat panel, standing while holding your hands up and moving your feet up and down, with no peripherals whatsoever? That looks tiring and makes no sense. If you ask me, the Wii-mote and the PlayStation Wii-mote Move are much less ridiculous ways of doing motion gaming, because they provide a tangible element which actually lends to the illusion of whatever act you’re supposed to be doing, while at the same time helping you act with more precision. And the showroom feature? If I’m staring at a flat image anyway, I’d rather sit on my couch and use the analog sticks to view the car, rather than move around tentatively. Seriously, what’s the benefit of doing that? Still, I’m sure the Kinect will have lots of fun games, and I hope there will be less games will be like this – tiring to play and awkward to navigate.

[via IGN's YouTube Channel]

The odd-looking attachment for the Move docs the main controller inside its body, providing you with gun control for FPS and light-gun style shooting games, computer with a proper trigger for firing.

I actually think that the cherry red and white gun controller wouldn’t look half bad, if it weren’t for the clown-nose-esque tip of the Move controller protruding from the front of the ray gun.

Regardless, it’s probably way more fun playing shooters with this than with a traditional controller, so will give Sony a pass on the ridiculous industrial design.

Expect the Move to hit stores September 19th, with prices ranging from $49 to $99 depending on the bundle you choose, and then add another $20 bucks for the gun accessory. You can pre-order the Move starter bundle over at Amazon now, but the ray gun add-on isn’t up there yet.

[via Engadget]

The game is described as a “multi-sensory shooter”, and is designed to work with Microsoft’s new Kinect controller-less controller system. Mizuguchi says the game will also work with traditional controllers, but from the looks of this E3 demo clip – starring the game’s creator – what fun would that be?

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Here’s a brief description of the setup for the game, which will help you make no additional sense from what you saw in Mizuguchi’s video performance:

“Child of Eden thrusts the player into the center of a battle to save Project Lumi, a mission to reproduce a human personality inside Eden, the archive of all human memories. As the project nears completion, the archive is invaded by an unknown virus. The player’s mission is to save Eden from the virus, restoring hope and peace.”

Maybe the official game trailer will help set things straight:

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Got it? Us neither. Still, the game looks and sounds cool, and we’ll surely be playing it when it hits our Xbox 360s in Q1 2011.

In their Game Hunters column, they also revealed some of the likely titles that we’ll see for the controller-free game control system. According to the article, the games in development include:

• Kinectimals lets you train and play with 20 different virtual cats, including a lion, cheetah and tiger.
• Joyride, a racing game, lets players use their hands to hold an imaginary steering wheel — pull your hands toward you and push back out for an acceleration boost — and their bodies to execute jumps and tricks.
• Kinect Sports has six activities including boxing, bowling, beach volleyball, track and field, soccer and table tennis. To serve a volleyball, you mimic the real motion; in soccer, you can kick the ball or do a header.
• Kinect Adventures includes a river-raft time trial and obstacle course, playable by up to four players. On the raft, playing as a duo, you and a partner must lean one way or another to steer. Jumping helps the raft reach special areas for extra points.
• Dance Central, in development by MTV Games, brings a So You Think You Can Dance experience home.
• Star Wars characters and iconic Disney favorites will be featured in separate new games being developed at Microsoft in conjunction with LucasArts and Disney.

There’s still no word on the pricing or release date for Kinect, but Microsoft plans on a big gala reveal during their Cirque Du Soleil spectacular, scheduled for Tuesday, 6/15 at 3:30pm ET on MTV.

[via Joystiq]

The PlayStation Move is actually a set of motion controllers, sort of like the Wii-mote and Nunchuk. However, the PS3 Move components connect wirelessly via Bluetooth, so there’s no annoying cable between the parent and child controller. The Move works hand-in-hand with the PlayStation Eye camera, and as such can be used to create augmented-reality objects inside games on-screen. The Move controllers are designed to provide a highly accurate gesture and motion tracking on new games and Sony says they’ll be able to create much more precise gaming experiences to appeal to both casual and hardcore gamers.

The main Move controller looks sort of like a Mr. Microphone, but with a color-changing LED ball at the top. I’m not exactly sure what purpose the ball serves other than to look silly, but it might be used as a key for the players to know which controller corresponds to their on screen characters.

Sony plans on releasing the Move in three versions, one with just the pair of Move wands (if you already own an Eye camera), a PlayStation Move Starter Kit that includes the Move wands, a PlayStation Eye and a game. They’ll also be selling a bundle with the PS3 Slim and the Move Starter Kit. They expect for the Starter Kit bundle to sell for  $99 (USD) and to ship the controllers September 19th, just in time for the busy 2010 holiday season. You can pre-order the Move Starter Kit now at Amazon.

[via PlaystationTEAM]

The Batman logo-esque Posimotion Helix clips onto the back of your iPhone or iPod Touch, and adds large hand grips on either side of the device. The grip is designed to provide improved gameplay on accelerometer-based games like racing, FPS and flight sim games, and works in either landscape or portrait modes.

While I like the general ideal of iPhone gaming control accessories, I’m concerned the added bulk of something like this defeats the purpose of having a gaming system you can always keep in your pocket. I plan on checking out the Helix in person at CES next week and will let you guys know how well it works.

The Posimotion Helix ships sometime this Spring and will sell for $19.99 (USD). You can pre-order one now over at the PosiMotion website.

The BLAZE PS3 Motion Freedom 3D controller can detect your movements and send them to the PS3 for use in games. The controller has a D-pad, analog stick, and all of the other buttons you’d find on a DualShock 3 control.

Now there’s no word on what games the Motion Freedom will support, but BLAZE makes mention of Tiger Woods PGA Golf and Sega Tennis in their announcement. No word on a release date or price either – so for now, you’ll just have to be satisfied reading the press release.

[via TFTS]

Super Turbo Arena is a motion-controlled fighting game. And we’re not talking about Wii Boxing here: the avatars pretty much do the same thing that the gamers do: Your avatar can pull off crazy moves like a fifty punch combo and then end with thirteen roundhouse kicks for good measure, but only if you can do the same. Well there are also projectiles and energy attacks, but if you have zero fighting skills then you’ll probably suck at Super Turbo Arena. I do not want this kind of gaming.

Turbo was written and directed by Jarrett Conaway for his MFA at the USC Cinematic School of Arts. Conaway says that he’s a “hardcore gamer”, whatever that means nowadays, and that he likes “Hadokening his friends into submission.” But enough chit chat, here’s the movie. Yes! Here it is, you can watch it right here:

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So? Quite flashy for a student film eh? You think Conaway and his crew can attract major distributors? What do you think of the word “Hadokening”?

[via Destructoid]

The new patent expands on the combination of wand and camera demonstrated at E3. Now, instead of simply recognizing and identifying that controller, it looks like Sony’s camera will be able to “read” any real-world item, coffee mugs to… is that a magnet? A 2D horseshoe? A giant wooden letter U? Whatever it is, the EyeToy will apparently be able to read it.

Used well, this could really opening up gaming to all sorts of experiences on a level heretofore unseen, edutainment games aside. It’s certainly something to keep an eye on!

[Siliconera via PS3Blog]

The V-Sports console from Hong Kong electronics outfit Rumdes does its best to copy the motion controller concept of Wii Sports, but without any of those pesky Nintendo games. The cheapie game system retails for just ¥8000 in Japan (about $74 USD) and comes packed with 11 sports games that use the included motion controller, making it even more of a bargain basement deal.

And if you act now, the console comes with an additional 10 arcade and puzzle games to keep your mind and reflexes sharp.

From what I can tell, the console plays what are old 16-bit games, modified to take advantage of a rudimentary wireless motion controller. And unlike the real Wii, the V comes in three colors: white, blue and pink, so there’s one each for boys, girls, and everyone in between.

With a real Wii retailing for $249, I suppose you could buy 3 of these instead, but I have a funny feeling that V-Sports console will be less than 1/3rd the fun.