Razer's Hydra Motion Controller To Get Exclusive Portal 2 Levels

At the Consumer Electronics Show last week, PC peripheral maker Razer has announced a special version of Valve's upcoming first-person puzzle game Portal 2 designed for use with the company's motion-sensitive Hydra PC controllers. A special version of the game, including new puzzles and maps designed to take advantage of the Hydra's unique abilities, will be included with a special bundle when the controller is released early in 2011, the company announced. Joystiq reports those special levels will utilize the ability to rotate, move, and scale in-game cubes by moving and reorienting the hand-held controllers in real space. Based on TrueMotion technology created by hardware partner Sixense, the Hydra senses the position and orientation of two handheld controllers using a magnetic field generated by a base station. These motions can be mapped to keyboard and mouse controls, or accounted for specifically in specially designed games. The controllers also include thumbsticks and buttons for non-motion-based controls. At last year's Consumer Electronics Show, a specially designed version of Left 4 Dead 2 let players use the prototype to swing an axe with complete freedom of movement. Price points for the controller and bundle were not revealed, but a Razer representative told Joystiq they were targeting a price under $100 for the two-controller set up. Portal 2 is currently targeted for an April 18 release date.