Haptics Applications for Gaming: Console & PC

Status and Alerts

A rumble or tactile cue provides information that makes the gaming situation more compelling or challenging. It can be used to intuitively give players information through touch — and avoid making them use eye sight, which many say distracts from game play. Status and alerts provided using rumble are as varied as game genres. Gamers say that receiving this type of information through rumble helps maintain their focus and improve their reaction time.

• Health
• Life
• Injury
• Attack status
• Reminders:
  • Check progress
  • Take your turn
  • Keep playing
  • Keep focused

Warnings and Forewarnings

Warnings and forewarnings are actions or events that can be sensed, but not seen. They warn the player of an impending event or hidden object, enemy, or target and can really only be provided using rumble. Rumble warnings and forewarnings also have been creatively used for assisting mastery by supplying aiming guidance in sports games and for locating a monster’s weak points so it could be slain.

Action and Reaction

Rumble lets gamers feel the action and reaction of the virtual world, making it seem real. This realistic response gives players the information they need to move quickly and more precisely.

With good timing and detail, rumble can emphasize a player’s accomplishments by making them feel they’ve used all their faculties to win — an all-out effort was needed — and they triumphed. For example, players talk about being able to feel even slight variations of force in the car they are racing. When they feel they can judge the amount of stability or instability, traction or the lack of it, they feel more in control and better able to apply the effort and skill needed to win.

Emotion

Touch being the most personal of the senses, it provides a physical connection that can fuel strong emotion. Involving the player at this level elevates the experience beyond the passive and helps propel the gamer out of “trying to imagine what it’s like being in the game” to simply “being in the game.” Effective across many game genres, gamers report that rumble can intensify a wide range of emotions:

Atmosphere

Combined with graphics and sound, rumble can be used to create a palpable atmosphere to strengthen the illusion of the game. It adds drama, suspense, and intensity with a sense of realism that brings the game to life.