Atari Mindlink

Mindlink

A Mindlink controller at the National Videogame Museum.
Developer	Atari
Type	Video game controller
Connectivity	Controller port

The Atari Mindlink is an unreleased video game controller for the Atari 2600, originally intended for release in 1984. The Mindlink was unique in that its headband form factor controls the game by reading the myoneural signal voltage from the player's forehead. The player's forehead movements are read by infrared sensors and transferred as movement in the game.

Specially supported games are similar to those that use the paddle controller, but with the Mindlink controller instead. Three games were in development for the Mindlink by its cancellation: Bionic Breakthrough, Telepathy, and Mind Maze. Bionic Breakthrough is basically a Breakout clone, controlled with the Mindlink. Mind Maze uses the Mindlink for a mimicry of ESP, to pretend to predict what is printed on cards. Testing showed that players frequently got headaches due to moving their eyebrows to play the game. None of these games were ever released in any other form.

Usage

The Mindlink consisted of an elastic band to be worn on the forehead, containing a sensor for the movement of the eyebrows and front muscles. The band is connected with a short cable to an infrared transmitter, to be placed near the player, which communicates remotely with the corresponding receiver, in turn connected with a short cable to the Atari joystick port of the console or computer.  The sensor is based on the detection of weak electrical impulses linked to the activation of the muscles  (as in electromyography ), through three metal contact plates.  The headband fastens with a Velcro closureon the back of the head.  Transmitter and receiver are the size of a small radio of the time and work up to a distance of about 6 meters.  Any interruption of the infrared connection can be detected to automatically pause the program, if for example the player has to temporarily move away from the console.

History

Mindlink's development is mainly attributed to Atari-Wong of Hong Kong . A Chinese group affiliated with the company designed the headband and external body of the transceivers, under the direction of Anthony Jones of Atari. The electronics were designed at Atari-Wong by Jim Scudder, an Atari consultant, and Bill Lapham, senior engineer at Atari. Official tests of the peripheral at the parent company were never done. According to Lapham, with the first prototype the user took about 10 minutes to get used to the system, after which the muscles began to send an excessive amount of stress, overloading the system; to mitigate the problem, the signal amplifiers were redesigned to reduce the amplification accordingly.

The Mindlink was unveiled in June 1984 at the Consumer Electronics Show in Chicago . Commercial release in the United States was scheduled for the fall for consoles and early 1985 for the Atari XL computers , at a suggested price of $ 79. Initially, three software programs were planned: a Breakout clone , an adventure and a relaxation and biofeedback program .  Two compatible games for the Atari 2600 were actually presented at the show, Bionic Breakthrough and Mind Maze ,  and 6 working units of the peripheral.

Although it is now rumored that the presentation was a failure  and that the prolonged movement of the eyebrows caused headaches,  in the trade press of the time it does not appear that the Mindlink gave an obvious negative impression. According to Compute magazine ! , after the initial skepticism of some members of the press, the Mindlink proved to be easy to use, without the need to wiggle the muscles of the head as much.  The ANALOG reporter claimed that he was well impressed with MindLink and managed to play Bionic Breakthrough quite well in about a quarter of an hour of testing.  Computer and Video Games correspondent, after trying it out for himself, he was not very enthusiastic about the device, which he thought was an interesting idea, but doubted that it could adapt to more complicated games that required more than basic directional movements.

In the long term, there was also the possibility of exploiting systems of this type for disabled people who have problems with conventional peripherals.

Despite the general crisis in the sector which occurred shortly before, a US television advertising campaign for Mindlink was also launched in the first months of 1984.  The same year, however, Atari's Home Computer division was sold to Jack Tramiel 's Tramiel Technology , creating the Atari Corporation , and the new management decided to immediately abandon the extravagant project, despite the sums already invested.

Shortly after, Synapse Software put on the market another similar device, Relax , always based on a front fascia that detects muscular electrical impulses.  Relax was sold only with a dedicated computer software package and not as a generic peripheral.

Video games

The peripheral-specific video games, never released but gace existing as prototypes for the Atari 2600, are:

• Bionic Breakthrough , a Breakout clone .  Higher scores are obtained if the player is able to relax during the game.  The recovered prototype is actually a copy of Super Breakout with a Mindlink calibration screen; it is not known if Atari intended to produce it commercially or just use it as a demo.
• Mind Maze , a strange game based on guessing images, as illusionists do with supposed extrasensory perception . The recovered prototype does not actually use the Mindlink..

• Telepathy , action game with mixed genre sequences. The recovered prototype is also playable with the joystick. It is unknown if Atari intended to produce it commercially or just use it as a demo.