At #FSExpoFriday, director of Tobii Gaming Thomas Papa took to the main stage to present their newest feature in eye tracking intended for video games and simulators. They introduced the new Camera Boost feature. This feature is designed to enhance the user’s immersion while using eye-tracking hardware. It increases head tracking sensitivity when you look at different parts of the screen. If you look at the edges of your screen, you can now see previously difficult areas to look at. Allowing users to navigate the in-game environment more smoothly while staying focused on the screen and within their head rotation limits.
Who is Tobii?
Tobii is a company that specializes in eye-tracking and head-tracking hardware. They have been developing eye-tracking technology since 2001. During the presentation, they presented their latest model for gaming setups, the Tobii Eye Tracker 5, and demonstrated its use in a simulator setup. With this hardware, you can control the in-game camera using your eye and head movements. This is all without needing to wear any special equipment, as the hardware is installed beneath the computer screen. This all results in an incredible sense of immersion while playing.
The Camera Boost Feature
The new Camera Boost feature is very intuitive. Allowing to more easily look around in-game without the use of a special configuration or acceleration curves. The way it works is that when the user looks at the edge of the screens, an increase in head tracking sensitivity will occur. The effect of Camera Boost will increase the further away you are looking from the center of your screen. Making scenarios like looking behind you or looking at overhead instruments possible. Thanks to their work with the community, this feature is possible in current head tracking hardware.
This feature was demonstrated in a video during the presentation. They showcased Camera Boost in the video game called Star Citizen, where this feature is already available. In this case, they showcase the head and eye tracking of a user inside a spaceship. They look around the cabin showcasing all the possibilities of this feature. For example, you can look to the far right with your head and the feature will act to move the in-game camera accordingly to look behind the cabin. We were only able to look at gameplay so we were not able to look at the user’s head movements for this demonstration.
The Tobii Camera Boost feature is now available for DCS World, Star Citizen, and War Thunder. In the future, Camera Boost will arrive for Arma3, Elite Dangerous, and X-Plane. According to the presentation, more games will be announced with this feature. You are required to use a Tobii eye tracker like the Tobii Eye Tracker 5 to access this feature in-game.
You can test this feature yourself at FSExpo 2024 this weekend at the Thrustmaster booth. Where you can experience Camera Boost in DCS World. That’s all for the Tobii presentation here at FSExpo 2024. You can follow our special coverage of FSExpo 2024 here.
