Control in PC gaming may have just gotten much easier, or stayed relatively the same depending on how well a new glove peripheral works.
The Peregrine has been around for a while, but just now started shipping to customers. For those that haven’t heard of it before, the Peregrine is a PC controller that is worn on the hand like a glove. In fact, it basically is a glove.
Based on most of the videos and the FAQ on the controller’s website, the Peregrine seems to have been developed with the RTS gamer in mind. It uses touch points on the thumb, palm, and along each finger that allow for 30 programmable actions to be triggered, such as unit abilities in Warcraft III. Supposedly, it can also be used for non-gaming applications like Photoshop with a little customization.
I’m not a big RTS player, so I’m more interested in the glove’s use for games like Bioshock or Bejeweled. After a lifetime of gaming, pain and uncomfortable feelings in my hands and wrists are now the norm, so it would be great if a controller could allow for less pain to be involved with my unstoppable gaming habit. Its uses as a general computer controller to replace the keyboard, or as an addition to it, are also intriguing.
The idea of the Peregrine certainly gives me the feeling of being part of Fred Savage and crew as they visited that kid that played Rad Racer with the power glove in The Wizard, but watching it in motion doesn’t really give me an idea of how well it works. This may be one of those things that must be tried to get the full picture. The problem there is that it costs $149.99, and I don’t have that many spare clams lying around to try out something new despite my hefty salary from being someone that writes on the internet.
The following video shows how the Peregrine is used while playing Warcraft III. Does this look like something that will change PC gaming? For all we know, the Peregrine could be the next mouse, but probably not at its current price point. It can be purchased through its official website.
