Sinister Gamepad hopes to Replace Gaming Keyboards

Control is the one single element which can create a line between the console and PC gamers (obviously apart from all graphical outputs and portability issues). Everyone has their own favorites and those who are loyal to their consoles have the controls with all the necessary buttons while the ones enjoying their gaming experiences in front of monitor screens have control over their QWERTY keyboards and the high-accuracy mouse. When one is trying to move on from one platform to another, it might be very difficult to adjust and these differences can be quite frustrating as noticed by inventor Chris Zhao-Holland. Mouse control might be giving a lot of control to gamers but the stiff keys on the keyboard might give a hard time as compared to the built-in sensitivity of the console’s dual-analog joysticks.

Sinister Gamepad

With Sinister, inventor Chris Zhao-Holland has come up with the perfect solution. This is a modular PC keypad which is going to draw upon the positive and user friendly points of both the platforms. It all began when the early prototype was shown by him at Engadget’s West Coast office which was a 3D-printed palm-rest adorned with Xbox 360 buttons and a single analog nub. The modular buttons featured on this can be rearranged mid-game without forgetting their function. The switches on the unit’s side are going to see whether the PC is going to recognize it as a Xinput device, a mouse and DirectInput device or a mixture of both.

Sinister Gamepad

The default Xinput mode allows Sinister to be used right away with any game which provides support for the Xbox 360 controller but it must be kept in mind that this makes the device act like a Xbox 360 controller. This can be a bit of a problem if the mouse is being used because it emulates the gamepad’s right analog stick while in this mode. This is also going to be difficult to adjust to by users who are used to the precision mouse control.

Source: Engadget | News Archive