Mindlink: myth or just ahead of its time

[Max-T]

I am very curious about the few bits of informatin and promotional material I've seen for Atari's mindlink system, which was a sort of headband based controller for their home units whereby brainwaves would be used to control the games on screen.

 

It might have sounded absolutely ridiculuous then, but twenty years later, the U.S. militar is pursuing similar techonlogies for flight control and fire control systems in our attack jets and heicopters.

 

Did any mindlink hardware make it out of Atari, or is the whole program gone by now?

[CPUWIZ]

I know 2 people who own the mindlink, what do you mean ?

[Tempest]

I am very curious about the few bits of informatin and promotional material I've seen for Atari's mindlink system, which was a sort of headband based controller for their home units whereby brainwaves would be used to control the games on screen.

 

The controller didn't work by brainwaves (this was 1983 after all). What it was was simply a set of sensors iin a headband that would detect when the player moved the muscles in his forehead. Basically what you had to do was scrunch up your forehead to make the thing move. To move left and right you'd almost have to scrunch up your left or right eye. The people who used it must have looked like they had facial tics or something. Obviously this idea was wisely abandoned.

 

Some Mindlink units exist. Curt Vendel has a working one with the reciever (I think), and one or two other collectors have either broken or partially working units. There are at least two games that work with the Mindlink (Bionic Breakthrough and Telepathy), but I don't know if Telepathy has actually been played with a Mindlink (anyone?). There are actually two versions of Bionic Breakthrough out there, so one might work better with the unit.

 

Tempest

[DracIsBack]

The controller didn't work by brainwaves (this was 1983 after all). What it was was simply a set of sensors iin a headband that would detect when the player moved the muscles in his forehead. Basically what you had to do was scrunch up your forehead to make the thing move. To move left and right you'd almost have to scrunch up your left or right eye. The people who used it must have looked like they had facial tics or something. Obviously this idea was wisely abandoned.

 

No kidding! I'm getting a headache just thinking about it. Ugh ...

[TheRedEye]

Wasn't Mystique working on a lower-extremity variant on this idea for controlling Beat 'Em and Eat 'Em?

[sku_u]

Wasn't Mystique working on a lower-extremity variant  on this idea for controlling Beat 'Em and Eat 'Em?

 

Indeed, Mystique was working on a prototype controller which when slipped on over an erect penis could control the left and right movements needed to master Beat 'em and Eat 'em. The controller functionality was based on movements generally associated with masturbation. The project, codenamed Rosie, was later scrapped because most of their male test subjects lost interest after about 5 minutes of playing for various reasons. :wink:

[+davidcalgary29]

I am very curious about the few bits of informatin and promotional material I've seen for Atari's mindlink system, which was a sort of headband based controller for their home units whereby brainwaves would be used to control the games on screen.

 

It might have sounded absolutely ridiculuous then, but twenty years later, the U.S. militar is pursuing similar techonlogies for flight control and fire control systems in our attack jets and heicopters.

 

Did any mindlink hardware make it out of Atari, or is the whole program gone by now?

 

If you're interested in biofeedback hardware, you might want to try to investigate purchasing Relax, which was released for the A8 in 1984 by Synapse. The included headband measured "muscle tension", and so actually provided some useful function to users.

[MadLynxer]

There was another feedback module release around '95 I think, for the PC, I cant remember what the name was but it included a skiing game and you just held this controller in your hand and it controlled the left and right movement.

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There is also a new game with a more advanced biofeedback setup:

http://www.wilddivineproject.com/

[+moycon]

The project, codenamed Rosie, was later scrapped because most of their male test subjects lost interest after about 5 minutes of playing for various reasons.

 

I heard the same thing...But what really killed the project is when the test subjects used the controller with Decathalon... They lost interest after 10 seconds.

 

How does one come to posses a Mindlink? They sound incredibly rare. Take out a second morgage on the house? Or luck out and have someone give you one? Would be interesting to see how the folks that have one, actually obtained it.

[homerwannabee]

Why isn't Mystiques little invention one of the did you know's for Atariage.