A Spanish startup company, OWO Game, created a product that can be enjoyed by any user, especially gamers, that provides visual to realistic immersion, through the new Haptic Vest.
During the recently held Consumer Electronics Show 2022, the vest was awarded the Innovation Awards.
It can connect to games on mobile, PC, console, and VR platforms, and it can presently give 30 different experiences to wearers, with more on the way, according to its designers.
What is the Haptic Vest?
As stated by Extremetech, the OWO Game Haptic Vest currently doesn't have an official release date yet, however, the gadget is already available for pre-order.
The vest is marketed as being able to recreate a wide range of upper-body experiences including 30 different sensations.
For any game a user is playing, the sensations are transmitted wirelessly in real-time.
It is claimed to work whether a user is playing on a mobile device, in virtual reality, on a console, or on a PC.
OWO Game stated that all this sensation is possible because of the vibration pods they designed inside the Haptic Vest
These vibration pods are placed in ten spots around the vest, which is composed of lycra, a breathable fabric, and elastic cables.
How the Haptic Vest Works
When it comes to gunshots, the players have the ability to experience being shot and feeling the bullet enter your stomach area, then feeling the bullet leave your body out your lower back, then experiencing the sensation of bleeding out from your gut.
According to Owo Game, through wearing the vest and depending on the game setting, anyone using the vest can feel the following: insect bite, chest dagger wound, light, and severe abdominal wound, punching, being shot, and the exit wound from being shot.
However, if the sensation given by the Haptic Vest may cause too much discomfort, users can reduce or even turn off the severity of each sensation, so if they prefer their video games to be pain-free, they may do so while still getting a deeper level of immersion using the vest.
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'Ready Player One' Sensation of OWO
The Haptic Vest is battery-powered and is also made of conductive gels.
Even though this Owo Game vest sounds exciting and terrifying at the same time, a lot of players would like to try it on with all of their senses turned down to a safe level.
According to TechRadar, so far, the finest VR games have succeeded in immersing us solely through sight and sound, but with the addition of a third sense, the public expects the digital environments to feel less virtual than ever.
It is also expected of the Haptic Vest to alter its mental approach to compatible VR games.
As an example, when playing the game laser tag, a player carries on a carefree attitude and mentality in the game as it is a fun game that doesn't harm players in the end or even if your score takes a knock when you are shot.
However, when players switch to a game of paintball, a player's mindset changes since paintballs have the capacity to injure a player depending on how and where you're shot so that nagging anxiety motivates a player to play differently if a player wants to win and survive.
Aside from the exact release date, OWO Game hasn't yet declared the price of the Haptic Vest.
Nevertheless, Digital Trends reported a wireless haptic Vest last year from a Korean company, the price of that vest starts from $299.
It is safe to assume that that is also the same amount the OWO Game Haptic Vest will cost.
