In the age of multi-touch gestures, many people still feel the need of using joysticks and analog buttons when gaming. The Audojo gaming controller addresses this particular need iPad owners might have.
Last month, I wrote about a solar Bluetooth 4.0 iPhone gaming controller case, but not all iOS users enjoy playing games on such a small display as the iPhone’s. The designers of the Audojo gaming controller case realized that the iPad is perfect for gaming, not only because of its dimensions, but also because of its processing power. When they realized how difficult it is to play games at a professional level without joysticks and/or analog buttons, they started working on this concept.
As the creators of the Audojo iPad gaming controller case stated, “Our case is the first iPad case truly built for gamers. Gamers love the possibilities that a touchscreen offers: swipes, multi-touch gestures, contextual buttons and more. But gamers miss joysticks and buttons. We are delivering the best of both worlds in a form factor that combines the best attributes of a physical controller with the endless possibilities of touchscreen controls. ”
Basically, the case features one joystick and one speaker on each side of the display and two shoulder-buttons. Check out the following video to see how Audojo behaves in games of different genres, one of them being Quake 3 Arena, a FPS that I enjoyed quite a lot as a teenager. Needless to say, Audojo improves the accuracy of the gamers quite a lot, thus making eventual contests a lot more challenging.
As seen in the following video, shot by guys from fellow tech site Engadget, the case does not obstruct any of the ports or cameras of the iPad. In other words, not only is the initial functionality preserved, but it also is improved through the addition of joysticks and buttons. It should be noted that Audojo does not work only with games, but also with certain apps.
The case slides in and connects to the microphone input. The platforms on which the joysticks are located are a bit raised, to make using them more comfortable. Moreover, the ones who do not want to disturb people while playing have the option of using headphones. The case comes with its own batteries, but it won’t charge the iPad, so it doesn’t act as a dock. A mini USB port is used for charging that battery.
The concept is currently featured on Kickstarter, where the developers hope to raise $240,000. At the moment, the backers provided less than 10% of that amount, but there still are 26 more days to go, so anything could happen. Pledging $65 will secure such a case for early birds, but when all of the 200 spots are sold out, the ones wanting to get their hands on Audojo will have to contribute $80 or more.
If you liked this post, please check the solar Bluetooth 4.0 iPhone gaming controller case and the detachable game controller for iPhones.