Reachin, Frictional Games Partner For HaptX Enabled Penumbra

Sweden-based Reachin Technologies and developer Frictional Games have announced the release of a version of Frictional's first-person adventure game Penumbra: Overture - Episode 1, which is designed to take advantage of Reachin's recently released HaptX technology. According to Reachin, HaptX is a computer games-focused haptics engine that lets players “feel and physically interact with the game environment and everything that he or she sees on screen.” Using hardware such as the Novint Falcon, players of this specialized version of Penumbra: Overture will be able to experience the game “in genuine 3D,” says Reachin, something that Frictional Games' co-founder Thomas Grip feels is “really cool.” “We thought that HaptX combined with the Novint Falcon would fit very well with game-play mechanics of Penumbra: Overture,” adds Grip. “Since the start of the project we always thought the mouse lacked one dimension, and now we can get that along with a sense of touch as well.” “We immediately saw the huge potential of using HaptX in Penumbra Overture as soon as game was initially released,” commented Reachin Technologies' CEO Mats Lordin. “The actual game play, based on exploration, immersion and puzzles along with the extensive use of physics was a perfect fit for giving the player the means of physically interacting and experiencing the environment.”