Eidos Montreal: PS4 Touchpad Is Really Intuitive, Explains Functionality In Thief

Level designer Steven Gallagher also talks about the length of the campaign.

[miyamoto]

Of course

PS4 and PC are cousin bros

X86=check!
Clickable Track Pad=check!
Ease of Development=check!
Full HD 1080p Power=check!
Free to Play Games=check!

What's not to like?

PS4 & PC=Bro Fist!!!!!!

[Dehnus]

*Flees to other consoles* I HATE DUDEBROS! HELP!

[miyamoto]

Good riddance, one less jealous man-kid from gamings greatest platforms... PC and PS4 = PCS4.

Go! Scram! Play on your kiddie console.
https://www.youtube.com/wat...

Some people are so ignorant they can't comprehend where videogames are made....PC WorkStations, kid. PC WorkStations.

Games made on PC WorkStations will be played on PlayStation 4!

Simple logic kids can't comprehend.

[Ju]

"Games made on PC WorkStations will be played on PlayStation 4! "

Unfortunately....and it shows :( People think those games "just work" and it shows in the performance. Big studios still optimize for consoles others don't and will have a surprise awakening - how can "Tiny Brains" screen tear when BF4/KZ/Resogun doesn't? I hope we aren't getting swamped by "cheap" PC ports.

That said, Eidos is taking advantage of the PS4 and controller. Sounds interesting. The touchpad isn't utilized enough yet, but where it is, it works quite well, actually.

[Dehnus]

LOL! From someone named Miyamoto.

Seriously the last time I called my programming PC a Workstation is like ... well never.

And yeah, there are games on there for children, but then it is A TOY! A TOY THAT OLDER PEOPLE ALSO ENJOY! ;).

Seriously what's next claiming Football is for kiddies as they use a toy to play :P. Oh you insecure little Dudebros ;).

[sinjonezp]

On topic, the touchpad is good. While it takes a little getting use to, the functionality is intuitive enough to enjoy. When playing killzone it offers a cool solution.to.control your drone. I like it and hope more games use it. Another thing is it offers more input. If you have the d pad mapped out for certain aspects, you still have the touchpad as additional inputs. Its not mandatory, but every little addition is good imo.

[frostypants]

Are you high?

[_LarZen_]

I find the touchpad to be ergonomically really bad placed... Not played one game so far that makes it a feature I would miss on any other system.

[saber00005]

Killzone? The touchpad gets used IF you get a PS4 exclusive game. You're not going to see it being used for a game that's on multiple platforms since each game console controller is way different.

[shivvy24]

yeah it feels so natural when playing killzone

[GribbleGrunger]

I know it's a very simple use of the touchpad but ACBF used it for bringing the map up. I just found it so easy to use rather than seeking out the start button or select.

[360ICE]

...It's in ACIV, Battlefield 4 and War Thunder...

[Ju]

AC4 ???? ^^ oh...should have read that first. (I mean, it is in AC4)

[saber00005]

Well, I mean the touchpad feature, not just simply pressing it to open the map up or something like that. I'm saying more functionality like Killzone.

[G20WLY]

^And what about Thief? Don't think that's exclusive and this article shows the devs love it.

I get your point though, it'll probably be put to best use in PS4 exclusives as Sony encourage third parties to use it by showing them it's a worthwhile addition to the controller and their next game.

[Edsword]

I was actually just thinking yesterday how great of a job they did fitting it on the controller without getting in the way. I thought it worked great in KZ. I may feel differently if a game used it for primary input, but right now I think it's pretty genius. Works great to navigate the map in AC4 as well.

[Stsonic]

"I find the touchpad to be ergonomically really bad placed..."

Where else could they have possibly placed it? It's not like you hold the pad from the middle. It's funny how the word "ergonomically" was never used until the xbox 360 pad became popular as a way of boasting they had the better system.

[ABizzel1]

I have no problem with where's it positioned, but I think it could have worked on the back of the controller in a similar but longer position, just like the Vita (if the back of the DS4 was flat).

Your hands don't touch that area, yet your middle fingers can easily access it, especially for up and down motions. I also think it'll be better for actual games since you NEVER have to take your hands off the thumbstick to swipe the back of the controller, but you do to swipe the front.

As far as the front touch pad goes, there's no where else to put it, unless you replaced the D-Pad / face buttons or the thumbsticks, neither of which seems like a good idea (well until we see how the steam controller works). But if there was a front and back like the Vita, it would make Vita TV compatibility even better.

[Ju]

Back touch doesn't really work on the Vita. It's a nice idea, but much to often you'd touch this by accident.

[Sabrewolf82]

The 360 controller was only passable poor triggers bad d-pad terrible for games other then fps I own 3 360

[ABizzel1]

@Ju and the disagree. Put your hand on the back of the DualShock 4. None of your fingers rest naturally on the back of the controller, near the touch pad.

However, your middle fingers can easily access that area if needed, without taking your hands off of the thumbsticks for navigation.

Now swipe the back of the DualShock 4 where the touch pad could have been, with your middle finger. PLAIN AND SIMPLE IT WORKS, and better than the front touch pad, because you don't have to take your hands off the other controls.

For something like the OWL in Killzone Shadow Fall, it just works better so you can swipe the back up, down, left, or right. Your other fingers rest naturally on the grips of the controller.

[skydragoonity]

Can't wait to see what other game developers will do with the touchpad, so far so good for the PS4 & DS4

[curtis92]

Touchpad is my big gripe about PS4. It's just not necessary AT ALL and no matter what ANY developer says, it's not intuitive or useful if there's a proper UI design in place. Just another thing to eat the battery of the DS4.

[NicSage]

I know right! Lets stay stagnate with the vision of a mole, how dare Sony do something different.

All the controllers have been very similar for all platforms for so long, all three are trying to add or tweak to give each controller something unique.

Sony - Touch Pad / Light bar.
Micro - Rumble in the triggers.
Ninten - Tablet with controls, odd pro controller( that feels good oddly enough)

[Callediceman]

@curtis92--"Touchpad is my big gripe about PS4. It's just not necessary AT ALL and no matter what ANY developer says, it's not intuitive or useful if there's a proper UI design in place." ---- Wow, ok so, no matter what "ANY" developer says the touchpad is basically useless? and you know this from all the years you have spent developing games? designing useful UI's? developing technologies to increase battery life in controllers? I mean come on, lets give the touchpad a little bit more time than 1.5 months before you make a snap judgment like that.

[curtis92]

@nikrel
So by your logic, there's no bad decisions when it comes to adding things to a controller? It's just all gold and we shouldn't EVER question it. Touchpad is useless. Yeah yeah, props to them for trying something, but it's a failure, not hard to see. Just like SixAxis.

@Callediceman
Okay, so let's meet back on this page in a couple years and discuss how the touchpad really helped move things along with PS4. Call it a snap judgment if you want, but again, with proper UI and controls, there's zero need for it other than to pad the 'features' list.

[sarcastoid]

Pretty sure the touchpad was originally suppose to be a touchscreen wasn't it? Sounds like the touchpad is more of an afterthought. I seriously doubt when they were talking to developers about the DS4 they were saying "we need a small pad that we can swipe with." Just my 2 cents.

[MetaReapre]

@curtis92
I can see where your coming from, however that is still very closed minded to say. For one I don't find its in a bad spot as I play warframe on the ps4 and it uses the touchpad for using different powers depending on the motion. In a game like that more inputs are necessary as all the buttons have designated actions. It will actually more than ever make PC games easier to come to ps4, IMO. Also, if a game doesn't use it or if it is under utilized, is it really in the way to the point of getting angry at it? No, it isn't. As for extra strain on the battery, the ds4 has an approximate 6 hour battery life, this is plenty time for me and in the times I'm not using my ps4 I charge my controller while its in standby so next time I play it, its fully charged. I see no issues with the touchpad.

[DanielGearSolid]

Get another console then...
Whiner

[sarcastoid]

Unlike some people here, it is possible to love a system and yet not love everything about a system.

[mabreu]

I have a feeling the trackpad will be used mostly for complex menu navigation rather than gameplay controls. As a PC gamer, I can find many uses for it.

[DigitalRaptor]

It was pretty smart of them to put it in there.

It translates well to interfaces that were designed for PC. Using it on Trine 2 to cast spells, create boxes and other items is really intuitive and quicker than trying with analogue sticks.

[Orange Juice]

In war thunder it makes navigation a breeze. I love it personally.

[Ju]

Speaking of War Thunder...how can I use my PC account to play that game? Don't want to create another one.

[Orange Juice]

I dont think you can at this point. Fresh start for everyone.

[DigitalRaptor]

@ Ju

You can't. Got to create a new one. They are in the process of trying to get your PC account to work on PS4, but have made no promises.

PS4 ver. FAQ here: http://warthunder.com/en/ga...

[kidhero99]

DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMN