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Joystiq

Two joysticks and 40 buttons: Steel Battalion controller as VJ tool

by JC Fletcher on Nov 18th 2009 9:00PM

It might be silly to keep a giant Steel Battalion controller around for use with two games (Steel Battalion and ... the other Steel Battalion). But to use one for those two games and a custom VJ setup -- that's ... well, it's still kind of silly, but it's also pretty awesome.

One "visual performance unit" called Bonsajo rigged up one of Capcom's indulgent Xbox controllers to control an audiovisual display. It turns out that with all those crazy, light-up buttons, the controller is well suited to use for VJing in dark environments! And it also looks really cool, in a way that we wouldn't expect of a mech game controller at a party. See the controller in action after the break.

[Via Kotaku, GSW]

Source

Tags: bonsajo, capcom, Microsoft, steel-battalion, vj, Xbox-360

Reader Comments (32)

Very nice. Just got one from hunting them down from GameStop. I had one shipped to the store I work at after calling all 6 places in the U.S. The others just took the game itself with no controller. Seriously, taking a game for $50 with no controller, come on. I am really considering this mod though. Game is very blah.

You know, there was a third title that would have used this controller.

First person to guess it gets a Dark Side Cookie.

Steel Batallion 2: Electric Boogaloo?

*Battalion

Wrong!

If I don't know what game it is, can I still get that Dark Side Cookie?

No.

Here's a hint: The game was never actually released.

A Star Wars ATAT game?

NO! NO! YOU ALL FAIL!

It's Pimps At Sea!

The Pimpwheel! ARGH!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEjUOz-fbAY

Funfact: Pimps at Sea was released as Age of Booty by Certain Affinity, which was founded by ex-Bungie employees.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_Booty

It was related, yes.

But it's not PaS. There wasn't 'mermaid sea bitches'.

Finally something I can do with this huge controller I keep in my garage.

Hey, at least you have a garage! Mine's here in my home office in my apartment, sitting at an angle on some boxes... Too epic to throw away, too outdated to use.

I agree, the thing is too epic to just trash.
Before I got my new house, I actually drove around with the thing in my truck for like 6 months.

Anytime I had to open the trunk with someone around I had to explain what it was, and why I had it in my trunk. If I said, "Oh, it's a DJ interface" I might have had a better reaction.

Freakin sweet! Damn that controller is bad ass, I always wanted to try one but never had the chance.

video games + art = win

But... video games = art
So therefore by your statement we also have the following:
art + art = win
video games + video games = win

Personally I agree with all the above.

I have still not become re accustomed to spelling joystiq with a ck

Or it can be used by MS to give money to the religion bashers in Washington. Like they did last month

How the hell is this related?

'Please' go away.

Best. Game. Ever. Oh if only it were ported to the 360 I'd pay full price for it. Not the controller of course, but the game+adapter.

That's cool and all, but where are the drivers?
I would love to be able to plug mine up to my PC for Mechwarrior or somesuch.
Considering the mac gui I saw, them releasing drivers wouldn't help me much.

Mmmmmm, here?

http://vt.beckament.net/

"VJ tool"

too easy. i'm not gonna go for the easy joke.

i remember Steel Battalion...only played once at a buddy house. Its to bad the controller wasn't really utilized in other games.

But now its being used for art, which is cool i suppose lol

So that's what I can do with this one I've got lying around here... and here I was just planning to use it for Mechwarrior or something.

I remember laughing at the price of $200 for the game back when it was released.

Time has changed ;_;

I've never seen the controller in actual use, so I had no idea there were so many lights on it. Just awesome.

What the hell was he doing? What's VJ? (guess I'm old).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VJ_%28video_performance_artist%29

Was I the only one who got the Weebl "Badger Badger" song in his head, to the beat of this video?
http://www.weebls-stuff.com/toons/badgers/

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Two joysticks and 40 buttons: Steel Battalion controller as VJ tool

Reader Comments (32)

Posted: Nov 18th 2009 9:05PM psych7111 said

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