9 votes

Playing video games with mind control

6 comments

  1. [5]
    onekuosora
    Link
    I don't want this to sounds antagonistic or anything, but is there more info on the actual tech? I've seen this style of interface a few years ago and it was extremely unreliable even after long...

    I don't want this to sounds antagonistic or anything, but is there more info on the actual tech?

    I've seen this style of interface a few years ago and it was extremely unreliable even after long training.

    3 votes
    1. [4]
      cfabbro
      (edited )
      Link Parent
      The setup she uses apparently has more than just an EEG, it also has gyroscopic and eye-tracking controls as well (presumably for more precise movement and aiming control). From her channel...

      The setup she uses apparently has more than just an EEG, it also has gyroscopic and eye-tracking controls as well (presumably for more precise movement and aiming control). From her channel description:

      Mind control gaming (EEG, eye-tracking, and gyro controls) --> completed Elden Ring + played Trackmania, Dark Souls III, Only Up!, Halo Infinite, & Armored Core VI, etc.

      And I suspect the EEG + visualization technique might only be being used to trigger certain things in the games (like shooting in Halo, activating a spell in Elden Ring, or striking things in Minecraft). And given how excited she was in the clip when she actually managed to kill someone in Halo, I suspect it's all probably still somewhat unreliable, inaccurate, and/or slow. :P

      I was unaware of who she was before this video though, so can't vouch for anything. And I have only now started sifting through some of her Twitch VODs, so I'll update this if I learn anything more. :)

      Edit: Yeah, watching her setup for playing minecraft, she's using the gyro for character movement control, eyetracking for aiming and selecting things in the menus, and the EEG for striking and placing blocks. Still pretty impressive, and she seems quite skilled at controlling everything! Although she did get trapped in her house for a few minutes, accidentally placing blocks in the wrong places over and over again, and punching holes in her floor, so her control over things is clearly still a bit wonky at times. :P

      6 votes
      1. [2]
        cfabbro
        (edited )
        Link Parent
        Just found out this is the EEG/gyro device she's using, @onekuosora: https://www.emotiv.com/epoc-x/

        Just found out this is the EEG/gyro device she's using, @onekuosora: https://www.emotiv.com/epoc-x/

        5 votes
        1. onekuosora
          Link Parent
          Thanks for the rundown, this makes a lot more sense. Still impressive and interesting so I'll keep it on my radar.

          Thanks for the rundown, this makes a lot more sense. Still impressive and interesting so I'll keep it on my radar.

          1 vote
      2. TemulentTeatotaler
        (edited )
        Link Parent
        Been a good while, but I used the original Emotiv (...and OpenEEG when shipping delayed 1.5 months) for a shoddy research thing as an undergrad. At the time the EEG functionality broke down into a...
        • Exemplary

        Been a good while, but I used the original Emotiv (...and OpenEEG when shipping delayed 1.5 months) for a shoddy research thing as an undergrad.

        At the time the EEG functionality broke down into a cognitive suite (the push/pull/etc. visualization training with a block), detection of facial muscles (e.g., raising an eyebrow, the expressive suite?), and "mood" detection from brain wave frequency correlation. The muscle stuff was pretty good, and I'd assume gyros/eyedetection are fairly polished, but it may never be particularly good for faster twitch gameplay. Which isn't to say bad, or not very useful for the disabled. Just that the bottleneck is thought, and hands are really handy for actuating thought.

        Getting a good contact was kinda annoying. Part of that it looks like they resolved using polymer caps instead of felt(?), but you still have to moisten them. In my use I never got good settling it through my hair or feeling comfortable the electrodes were sampling the same spot.

        It was also surprisingly fun/draining to do the training. At least for me and the folks I busted it out as a conversation piece for. It was interesting to see how much variation there was in people's ability to just sit still and think a thought for a bit.

        My sibling was doing bio/neurofeedback in psych at the time, which seemed to be one of the more compelling use-cases. Give a kid with ADHD immediate feedback if their attention wanders, and make some element of a game better (e.g., you run faster) the higher more attentive you are. The visuals while streaming look great for that.

        One of the things I thought was cool at the time, but which I haven't followed/done any sort of reasonable research on was that brain imaging technologies had been following an exponential curve for spatial/temporal resolution, with a doubling period of ~7 years (iirc). Would be cool if that kept up, or to see some of the optical alternatives like in HEG get used.

        2 votes
  2. cfabbro
    (edited )
    Link
    Perrikaryal actually just went live on Twitch a short while ago, and is supposedly planning on playing The Kidnap for charity today (although not mind-controlled). VODs of previous streams (ctrl-f...

    Perrikaryal actually just went live on Twitch a short while ago, and is supposedly planning on playing The Kidnap for charity today (although not mind-controlled).

    VODs of previous streams (ctrl-f "mind control" for those vids):
    https://www.twitch.tv/perrikaryal/videos?filter=archives&sort=time

    Edit: Video (with timestamp) of her playing Minecraft using the EEG/gyro/eye-tracking is worth checking out.

    1 vote