Let's get ready to rumble!

[Vertigo]

The implementation of force feedback in the vast majority of games is shit.
One massive industry watchword is immersion, yet how can you hope to get involved in the scene and setting of a game when you have this big lump of plastic in your hands that's jumping about all over the place?
My first couple of experiences with rumble motors were good ones, specifically Starfox64 and especially Ocarina of Time, where the rumble pak wasn't necessary to complete the game but numerous secrets could be found with it. Part of Nintendo's "Buy absolutely everything or miss out" method of hardware sales, but still, effectively implemented nonetheless.
Example of the bad way: death in BG&E. Why does the motor do a complete mental at its hardest setting for at least a full 3 seconds? Do I need to knacker my hands and wrists even more every time I've died? Nope, but in other places in the game it's nice to have the feedback. So why not just a soft rumble as your character drops to their knees when they die, and a slightly harder one when their hits the floor, or in BG&E's case just one when she lands?
Driving games. I always turn it off because I don't value feeling a massive judder every time I powerslide or touch the grass/rumble strip when I'm trying to concentrate on that fastest (yeh, right) lap time.
I didn't even bother with it in Vice City because of the huge number of bumps and scrapes involved in playing the game so it got turned off in the options before I started.
Both of Nintendo's feedback pads have felt a lot more tactile and realistic than the PS2 and XBox ones where the effect is often unnecessarily overused.
I feel that Halo gets it right, doesn't often overdo it, provides a nice amount of feedback when using weapons and being shot without going overboard and generally enhances the experience.
It's all about good implementation, but why is it so hard to get right?
I don't want to talk about Rez.

[benzaldehyde]

Yes, let's never talk about Rez and it's specialty force-feedback controller [size=8]for the ladies[/size]. Ever... :lol:

The only form of force feedback I see as applicable (presently) is in driving games. Adding proper resistance and reaction to your wheel and maybe even the pedals would be an amazing application. Such aims have been perused by Logitech with their Gran Turismo 3 setup. Unfortunately, I've only heard stories as I was never enthused to pay $100 for a steering wheel.

I feel that for proper feedback, you need a proper control mechanism to enhance the immersion. For example, Tekki/Steel Battalion had its mammoth setup with a decent amount of feedback in the bells and whistles of your console there. Most people feel that feedback relates only to a tactile response, as in a PS2 controller or when better executed in a FF steering wheel. But visual and aural cues can be just as striking, as in SB or Konami's Bemani collection. You won't find a group more concerned about the feel and response (in many ways) of their experience than a group of DDR enthusiasts.

I feel that feedback is only getting started because we've only begun expanding our ideas of how to control a game. The days of a lump of plastic sitting in our hands may be eclipsed by something new. In some ways, it already has (i.e. the Bemani series). Nintendo can't stop ranting about their new "Revolution," and how it will change how we play games. Having seen the DS and its stylus capability, I feel they may have something up their sleeve that could set us farther from the traditional controller than ever before. With novel control mechanisms, we may well solve our problem of feeling detached from the immersive elements of gameplay. I can hardly wait...

[Vertigo]

As far as control mechanisms go, I posted something on another board about how the major barrier to the real mass market entering the game world properly was the controller. Even if a game only uses 2 buttons, the fact that this thing has 3 directional devices and 10 other buttons on it is a daunting thing to a non-user. Removing the controller all together, now that truly is a holy grail. Funnily enough, the day after I posted that a news story appeared on Gamespot where Satoru Iwata pretty much said exactly what I'd said, so if you want to know more, just go and read last week's Gamespot news  :rolleyes:  

[CAsmithers]

Good points about the feedback hits and failures. I just can't imagine what is next in gaming control. Whatever it is, it must take a good beating. You can't deny that you really need some sort of controller to take out your anger on when you are unpleased with the results of your performance during gameplay. I think people forget how much they beat on ther their controllers.

It really feels good beating on the buttons while virtually beating friends into the ground playing fighting games. Can you imagine playing a game by sensory controls or something that doesn't require near as much physical interaction as todays controllers? I would be reaching for something to twist, pound and throw at someone during the heat of battle and/or after.

But back to the subject the rumble pads are annoying and just a novelty. I remember plugging in the first rumble packs into the N64 controllers, heh. It was new and something to try out. The only feedback that actually helped my gameplay was during some driving games for PS. The feedback/rumble would begin when you hit something or got closer to the edge of the track and progressively increase as you went off the pavement. This is the only rumble affect I can actually say helped during gameplay.

Wasn't there a chair for the NES that vibrated when you played some games?? I can't remember.