If you’re like me, you’re sick and tired of waiting for the bleak robot dystopia outlined in films like Terminator and The Matrix. I want complete AI domination and I want it now! Thanks to Australia-based electronics company Emotiv Systems, the robot overlord is one step closer to ruling the world with a chrome fist.

The EPOC headset is a fashionable helmet that can read your thoughts – through the use of 16 brain-wave sensors – and translate them to your character on screen. It can read your emotions (if you get bored, it cranks up the difficulty) and expressions and it will ask you to imagine 11 cognitive actions – including lift, push, and pull. No, you cannot jack into the matrix, locate wayward mutants, or, as I had hoped, have sex with a virtual Anne Hathaway.

The technology is rooted in electroencephalograpohy, or EEG, where skullcaps with sensors intercept brain activity. Emotiv took this technology and spent five years applying it to a commercial product. Tan Le, the CEO of Emotiv, admits that EPOC has potential outside of video games, but they aren’t thinking that far ahead yet.

Brian Crecente, managing editor of Kotaku, had a chance to try the headset out, but wasn’t completely convinced.

“I don’t see it being a mainstream device in this form. That said, it’s certainly beyond a gimmick. Game issues aside, it’s uncanny.”

That sentiment was echoed by Jamil Moledina, executive director of the Game Developers Conference.

“When the (item on-screen) did what I thought it to do, it was surreal. This is science-fiction stuff. (Emotiv) has jumped the first hurdle in simply making the device. Now, they have to make it work with most games. If they do, this could hit the jackpot.”

Our very own Dan Landis attempted to check it out at GDC, and had the following to say about the device in his day two wrap up of the event:

“We headed from there to a press conference about the Emotiv headset, a device that reads your thoughts, emotions, and facial expressions. The event was almost a complete train wreck, mainly because the douchebags in the audience refused to disconnect themselves from dork headquarters — all those wireless signals in the room were messing up the headset’s reception.”

Personally, as curious as I am about the possibilities, I’m just as apprehensive. It sounds fantastic on paper, but, despite not having played it, I agree with Crecente’s assessment. I won’t call it a gimmick, but I think it will face the same problems trying to please gamers that the Nintendo Wii did (and still does). While I definitely want to take the EPOC for a whirl, I’m not getting excited just yet. Plus, I was really looking forward to having sex with Anne Hathaway.

Source: IndyStar

Tags: anne hathaway, emotiv, epoc

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2 Comments » Abaddon on August 22, 2008 4:23 pm EEG is objective in the same way an IQ test is accurate. We don’t know what Intelligence is,thoughts are abstract beings that live (in Solid Snake words)In between images and sounds,but they are neither of these. If something bores me,and doesn’t bore you;If my gestures for joy are similars to those you have when you’re bored,then How in the heck are this headsets going to be accurate? Of course,It would be supercool that this works properly.For now let me doubt it. naruto_freak on October 25, 2009 6:55 am dudes is this the only site you have been to on this well you don’t just put it on and it figures out what you are thinking no it has learn how your mind works including emotions it also picks up on facial expressions and horizontal eye movement for better avatar experience and with gyroscopes in the headset you turn your head the character turns i have been up all night looking this up i am fascinated i am beyond sold i will find a way to buy this product oh Emotiv has a site i would check it out just search emotiv and you will find it in no time RSS feed for comments on this post. Comment Now Note: Commenting on Ripten does not currently require registration, however to be eligible for contests on the site, you must be a registered user. Name (required) Mail (will not be published) (required) Website Commenting Rules: No hate speech allowed. If you must argue, please debate intelligently. Comments containing selected keywords or outbound links will be put into moderation to help prevent spam. Ripten reserves the right to delete comments and ban anyone who doesn't follow the rules. Thanks. Notify me of followup comments Tired of the Goomba? Upload your own custom comment avatar.