Neural Interface for Gaming Getting Closer?

An anonymous reader writes "Mercury News is reporting that a neural interface for gaming may be in the not-so-distant future thanks to at least two start-ups developing this technology. From the article: 'The goal is to create game console add-ons costing less than $100. Some of the game play features can be conscious -- such as forcing someone to concentrate in order to drive a car faster or toss something at an enemy. Others can be subconscious. The game could slow down, for instance, if the sensors pick up an increase in anxiety, Lee said. The company hasn't set a timetable for the product launches of its customers.'"

Launching customers?

[MikeWasHere05]

The company hasn't set a timetable for the product launches of its customers.

Well thats certainly not a way to win over your demograph...

Has to be said...

[daitengu]

I for one welcome our new video game console overlords...

That's not good...

[tktk]

If this happens, gamers will get even weaker. As it stands, gamers can be proud of their oddly-muscled forearms, fingers and thumbs. But what will they have in the future? A vein on their forehead that they can pulse on command.

Re:Someday soon ... like 2050

[Reality Master 101]

What you can measure from an EEG is the sum of all the neurons in your cortex firing all the time.

If only there were some way of connecting the video game controller directly into certain neural pathways. Simply by thinking about, we could stimulate those pathways and control the game. Maybe there's some way we could piggy back onto existing neural connections... in fact, given that much of our neurology is connected to our masculature system, I wonder if there was some way we could tap into that. Like, when our brain stimulated these "muscle nerves", we could have that activate the controller in some direct way.

Nah, sorry. I'm getting waaaaaaay too blue sky here.

Slowdown

[Anonymous Coward]

The game could slow down, for instance, if the sensors pick up an increase in anxiety.

Ingenious! When fighting a boss, the game freezes!

Re:Screw gaming

[Flimzy]

And how about a google interface to your brain? GoogleBrain, which helps you retrieve that phone number you got last night when you were drunk..

So what happens if FPS Doug gets one of these?

[VGfort]

BOOM HEADSHOT!!! [google.com]

From the Article

[Orrin Bloquy]

"Playtesting with Tomb Raider and BloodRayne did yield a larger percentage of goo-covered monitors."

What if the City Voltage fluctuates ?

[unity100]

Huh ? what if something like this happens ? a little 'transistor' or 'capacitor' breaks somewhere and ?

Will i just 'pop' while playing in the middle of my living room at 21.30 with a cup of tea in the holder ?

Oh man. games have become already much tiring to play. I cant handle extra input from the game from now on. maybe im older now.

"Concentrate" in order to drive ? we already do that while driving to work. Whats next ? Wearing gloves while cleaning in Sims 2 ?

Re:Screw gaming

[brucifer]

This is /. you're talking about. Drunk? Probably. Phone numbers? Doubtfull.

What they should do

[Aqws]

make you feel pleasure everytime you let them bill your credit card in-game.

You got to be kiding me, give these companies direct access to my brain! You must of had a lobotomy or something!

Re:That's not good...

[Eideewt]

"A vein on their forehead that they can pulse on command."

Surely I'm not the only one that thinks that would be pretty cool.

Re:Screw gaming

[rts008]

"Person drops dead on the floor in front of you, all of a sudden you can look up exactly what to do and what could be wrong."
WTF??!!
He's dead, Jim....bury the poor f*cker already!
What do you need to look up on Google?

Re:Output?

[Sathias]

Someone might also invent some sort of device to turn one of our hands into a printer. Oh wait a second...

Long fingered cyclops?

[EmbeddedJanitor]

There was once a semi-theory that GUI interfaces use would would cause us to grow one long finger (for mouse clicking) and cause one eye to get bigger and the other to disappear (since you only need one eye to look at a mionitor).

This is however countered by the more recent text messaging two-thumbed theory that we only need two thumbs and other fingers will waste away. Perhaps it is safe to assume that these trends change faster than evolution/intelligent design can change us, so we'll stay just as ugly as we ever were.

Re:Screw gaming

[slashname3]

It's all fun and games until you realize that Microsoft controls the code and the first virus hits that takes control of your BRAIN!

User: Uh, tech support, I have OUCH a problem. I keep poking OUCH my self in the eye. This started happening after I OUCH played that new came that OUCH interfaces with your brain.

Tech support: Yes sir, you have the Three Stooges Virus. You did not update your system did you? The patch was out three weeks ago.

User: OK, so I have a OUCH virus how do OUCH I get rid of it? OUCH

Tech support: This requires a complete reboot. Do you have one of our home difibulators? You will need one to stop your heart and then restart it after 30 seconds. If that does not work you will need to reload the OS. You did make backups didn't you.

User: Uh, backups? Of my brain? OUCH Uh no, I don't OUCH have any backups. OUCH

Tech support: Well sir that requires a complete reinstall. We sell a reinstall kit.....

Re:This stuff is not a game

[alienmole]

Sucker. Haven't you figured out yet that every advance in technology is used either to commercially exploit you, or politically control you? Accept that shiny new implant at your peril! But did I mention, it's shiny?!

Adjusting for anxiety levels...

[Sathias]

This could cause an uneasy oscillation between terror and soothing gameplay. Imagine walking through Ravenhold in HL2 and all of the sudden a headcrab zombie lunges at you, claws grabbing for your throat... You jump in your seat and the game detects that you have freaked out. The zombie stops, visibly relaxes, then produces a bunch of flowers for you. Realising that it means you no harm, you relax. It then detects your newly found relaxed state and just before it gives you the flowers, it lunges for you, taking a considerable chunk of flesh out of your face. You jump again, and the game detects this and tells the zombie crawling up behind you to go into "backrub mode". In the end, I think I'd prefer nice predictable adrenaline inducing terror :P

Nethack

[dhasenan]

Now just imagine Nethack with one of those.

Oh great

[nickthisname]

Now Sony can rootkit our brains.