The Kickstarter for the Stinky Footboard gaming controller ended yesterday. The project was successful, but only just; SteLuLu, the company behind the Stinky, managed to raise $79k, while the goal was only $75k. So the Stinky Footboard is going to get manufactured, backers who pledged $89 or more will all get their new Stinky hardware by July 2013 or so.
The Stinky Footboard is a game controller you operate with your foot. It creates a single key input when you press it with your foot, there are four keys which can be activated by rocking your foot in the appropriate direction. The product FAQ suggests only single keys are input so that the controller isn’t perceived as a cheat. However in-game macros will work with this controller.
Benefits of using the Stinky Footboard in your gaming setup, according to the makers, are as follows:
- “Allows simultaneous actions such as in FPS games players can strafe, change guns and throw a grenade without taking their fingers off the AWSD keys
- Increases actions per minute (APMs) for RTS gamers
- Makes it easier to access additional key bindings for MMO players
- Shaves precious seconds off for eSports players
- Simplifies controls for beginners”
Surprising success
In a press release heralding the successful Kickstarter campaign Stephane Rivard, co-founder and president of Stelulu Technologies, wrote candidly “To be honest, we weren't sure our Kickstarter would be successful.” He added that “We've been overwhelmed by the response from the gamer community and their support during our campaign.”
When I first heard of the Stinky Footboard I too thought it would be surprising if it was a successful campaign. There were several reasons I didn’t like it; firstly I don’t think it’s an invention as there are already plenty of foot controllers for PC and Namco famously made use of a foot pedal controller in their Time Crisis lightgun game in 1995. Secondly I thought the price was a bit steep, it’s going to be on sale for $119 plus shipping. Lastly I thought the construction didn’t look that great in the demo videos, I’ve bought several guitar foot pedals and controllers which seem much more sturdy (including all metal construction) at a better price.
Stinky Footboard specifications
- Description: 4 Button Gaming Footboard (up to 16 with game supported modifiers).
- Buttons: 4 Cherry MX Switches.
- Interface: 7 foot USB A Male to USB B Mini (included).
- Device: USB (HID - Human Interface Device), PC.
- On board memory for storage of active profile
- Construction: Heavy duty plastics, steel U-Chanel backbone and a T6 Aluminum top plate for performance and durability.
- TBOX: 4 Micro-ajustable Torsion Boxes for a personalized performance
- Springs: 6 spare replaceable springs; soft, medium and hard to easily customize the performance and feel of the footboard.
- Software: Operates on Windows 8, Windows 7, Vista and XP (all versions).
Currently the Stinky Footboard is just for PC gamers but plans are afoot to make available an Xbox/PlayStation and Mac compatible controller.
