Inspired of the recent discussion about the crank mod in the Arduboy forum, I begun to think about a wheel mod for Pokitto. A crank (introduced by the Playdate device) looks cool, but I do not like the usability of it.
You need two hands and you will eventually get a tenosynovitis
IMO a better solution would be a scroll wheel, like in some mouse controllers. That could be located in the right side of Pokitto. (Anyone care to make a mockup picture?). It could be either inside of Pokitto cover or attached to the right side. Maybe Pokitto’s right arm could be used to fix it.
So what kind of games could be made for it? Any suggestions?
A trackball would be good for something like point-and-click adventures, or Marble Madness, but I am looking for something simplier.
A scroll wheel would suit to e.g. Breakout or Tempest like games.
When you said ‘wheel’ I started thinking of a ship’s wheel or an industrial pipe/valve style wheel rather than a scroll wheel.
(If you recognise that image, you have excellent taste in video games. :P)
Thinking about it, if you had one of those and a few other bits you could use the Pokitto as an RC car controller. (The traditional kind that has a trigger and a steering wheel.)
I must admit, I’m in the camp that prefers scroll wheels to track balls.
I like my control systems to be clunky and mechanical, hence I’ll always opt for a proper old-fashioned keyboard rather than the modern ‘stick a keyboard UI on a touchscreen’ approach.
Though I admit a track ball’s second axis would be useful for other things.
