We played 'Assassin's Creed' with our eyes... partially
Taiwan's big tech trade show isn't just about CEOs shouting about their newest laptops and tablets. It's also the place for execs to shake hands, make deals and do ole' fashioned business. One deal is putting Tobii's eye-tracking tech inside high-end MSI gaming hardware. Yep, it's a concept, but it's underscored by a deal to work together on developing eye tracking in gaming hardware in the future. But we're not really about doing deals and shaking hands; we're about stabbing enemy soldiers and hiding in haystacks, which is where the Assassins' Creed demo came in. The trio of short-range infrared sensors monitors your eye movement, which (at least how they're utilized in this particular game) allow you to adjust your field of vision to where you want to in the game. Instead of rotating the camera with a mouse or buttons, you simply look to where you want to, and the detection software kicks in and sweeps the camera to where you (more often than not) want it to.
MSI's Dominator Pro laptop (which existed before this concept), supports Intel Core i7 processors and GeForce GTX 980M graphics, with a 17.3-inch full HD anti-glare display. The concept cranks up the specification with a Super RAID 3 with four M.2 SSDs, with support for up to four displays... if you want to make that eye-tracking tech work extra hard.
The eye-tracking functions extend beyond gaming -- although Tobii was also demoing a high-speed rhythm game to showcase faster response times. A brief (thankfully, brief) calibration test only has to be done once, and then the PC can assign that calibration data to Windows user profile. We were then able to unlock the PC by looking at three photo thumbnails nestled in a pile: This is your password. The use of infrared also means you'll be able to use the eye-tracking functions whether you're gaming in full daylight or in the dark. This gaming laptop remains a proof of concept of what both companies are looking to deliver. As Tobii's CEO (realistically) put it: "We are still in a very early stage in the development of the market for eye tracking in gaming," adding that it will likely take "much time and investment" before it's ready to be a hit. But hey, until then, at least you can order a pizza with your eyes.
