HP Labs meets GamePro Labs
- April 11, 2007 15:31 PM PST
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Panoply
Describe by HP as a "seamless, curved display that fills a gamer's field of view," the Panoply system was an intriguing display solution that uses multiple projectors to project a large, curved image onto a screen. We saw the impressive display paired up with a Voodoo Envy and a D-Box GP-100 Gaming Platform. A racing game was used to demonstrate this technology, as well as another setup with Quake 4 Deathmatch.
The playable F1 racing game at the event wasn't much to look at, but it showed how immersive playing any game can be with a screen that literally wraps around you, blotting out just about anything or anyone in your peripheral vision. The result of using the Panoply to play games, whether it's Pac Man or Crysis, is your very own home arcade, especially when you throw in the D-Box GP-100, a high-end gaming rig that uses hydraulics to shake and shift your body in response to what's happening in the game.
A horrendous crash in the racing game we played didn't cause the D-Box GP-100 to just vibrate like a giant chair-shaped Dual Shock controller, it rattled our bodies to the point where we actually tried much harder not to crash again. We can just imagine how intense of a gaming experience it would be to fire up a game such as the graphically astonishing Formula One Championship Edition on the Panoply. But the Panoply isn't built solely for racing games. The Quake 4 Deathmatch session that was taking placing exhibited crisp visuals and the game worked as well together with the Panoply as the racing game.
Unfortunately, the logistics involved will probably keep Panoply out of the reach of most gamers--much like the company's Pluribus tech, the setup requires multiple projectors and a special curved screen--and even HP is admitting that the setup is more suited to other applications, specifically its HALO video conferencing system. But seeing it in action, it was hard not to imagine all the possibilities that it could offer.
