gestureworks
Latest
Turn your Android phone into a PC gamepad with this new app
So you want a gamepad to play that new platformer on your Windows PC, but you don't relish the idea of buying an expensive peripheral that will collect dust after you're done. Are you stuck using the keyboard? Not if Ideum has its way -- it's updating its GestureWorks Gameplay virtual controller app with Android support, letting you use your phone or tablet to steer the action instead of either a real gamepad or on-screen buttons. You can still tailor the controls for specific titles, so you won't have to settle for a sub-par experience just because you jumped from Castle Crashers to Bastion. The new software supports more graphics standards, too, so more of your favorite games should be compatible.
Hands-on with GestureWorks' Gameplay virtual controller (video)
With the exception of the Razer Edge, Windows 8 tablets are at a disadvantage when it comes to gaming -- most PC games are built with keyboard, mouse or a gamepad in mind. Although Civilization V and other select titles have special multitouch controls for the Surface Pro enthusiast, the majority of games are simply unplayable without peripherals. The solution? Find a middleman. GestureWorks Gameplay promises to solve the tablet owner's mobile gaming woes by creating a virtual touch interface that emulates keyboard and mouse inputs. The suite allows users to create custom multitouch controllers with virtual joysticks, d-pads, buttons and even mappable swipe gestures. It's a curious proposition, particularly when one considers the efforts Android and iOS gamers go through to dodge touchscreen controls. We met up with the company to get a quick look at the program's beta.
GestureWorks Gameplay to add custom controls to 'hundreds' of Windows 8 games
GestureWorks Gameplay, an application that allows users to build custom touch and gesture-based controls for "hundreds" of Windows 8 games, was revealed at the Intel Developer Forum last week. GestureWorks is planned to begin assuming direct control release in November 2013. Developer Ideum plans to include "a dozen pre-built Virtual Controllers for popular Windows games" with GestureWorks. The software will also offer "easy to use, drag-and-drop" tools to allow for custom setups. Users will be able to place "joysticks, d-pads, switches, scroll wheels and buttons anywhere on the screen, change the size, opacity, and add colors and labels." The software will also support "over 200" gestures, some of those being multitouch. If you're frequently frustrated by predefined touchscreen layouts, sign up to become a GestureWorks beta tester.
GestureWorks Gameplay adds onscreen controls to almost any Windows 8 game
GestureWorks is smearing the lines between PC and tablet gaming with its Windows 8 app, Gameplay. The application lets you custom-design gestures and virtual buttons for most games, and place them wherever you see fit. It probably works fine with Castle Crashers' simplistic mayhem (pictured above), but we aren't so sure we'd want to explore Skyrim without a mouse and keyboard. Regardless, maybe now you can give those Steam sale impulse buys a whirl while you're on the go.
Ideum's MT65 Presenter: a $17,500, 65-inch, multi-touch display for your own museum
Ideum's 65-inch MT65 Presenter is a multi-touch 3D display designed for public spaces, so large that Surface 2.0's looking a bit sheepish right now. The aforementioned tempered-glass mega-screen has a sensor that'll identify 32 individual points of touch (to think: we thought five-and-ten finger touch was impressive) and a PC with a 2.2GHz Core i7 CPU, 256GB SSD and GeForce GTX 460 nestled inside the four-inch "vandal proof" aluminum frame. There's also a Carl Zeiss-lensed HD webcam with a stereo microphone for those moments when you want to see your beloved's face in eye-popping detail. Today's release of the unit is running Windows 7, but the company has announced that in March you'll also be able to get Linux editions of this and its MT55 Platform unit too. The $17,500 you'll spend also gets you access to the GestureWorks SDK for rolling-your-own tactile apps: museum curators with some budget to blow should head on past the break to read the PR before working out how to justify having one in your office to your boss.
Ideum releases MT55 HD multitouch table for hands-on museum-goers (video)
Ideum has taken the wraps off the latest addition to its growing family of multitouch tables, with the release of the MT55. The table, originally announced late last month, boasts a handsome 55-inch LCD display, which beams LED-backlit graphics in 1920×1080 HD resolution. As with its predecessors, the MT55's screen comes coated with a 5-mm layer of sturdy, tempered glass, and sits atop a pedestal made of aluminum and steel. Within that pedestal lurks an Intel Quad Core i7 CPU, with 4GB of RAM, a pair of 250GB SATA hard drives, and an NVIDIA Quadro 600 video card. The system runs Windows 7 Professional 64-bit, and comes packed with GestureWorks multitouch software for both Flash and Flex. The MT55 also features an integrated Bose Audio system, and can support up to 32 simultaneous touchpoints -- not quite as many as the 50 that its 100-inch counterpart can handle, but definitely enough to enthrall any class of 4th-graders on a field trip to the museum. Stroll on past the break to see the full press release and a video of the MT55 in action.
