Time Crisis 4: Developing the Guncon 3, part 2

The Time Crisis series has always offered something new in a genre where it’s hard to innovate – and we get a close-up encounter of the Guncon 3, the third iteration of the peripheral that lets us play Time Crisis 4 right in our own living rooms, along with the help of the Sony PlayStation 3. In this update, we get filled in on how the second grip of the gun evolved, as well as just what the gun is capable of (in-game, at least).

Check out the Guncon 3 in the full article.

The last time we heard about the Guncon 3 for Time Crisis 4, we found out how the developers from Nex Entertainment had to overcome a specific hurdle with the hardware – specifically, how to give the player a way to move his character with the peripheral as well as shoot. Now, we get an update on that situation, and this time it’s about the second grip attachment sticking out of the Guncon 3’s side, as well as more info about its capabilities.

So, just what IS the new grip for? Takashi Satsukawa, the director for Time Crisis 4 and the mind behind the Guncon 3, didn’t quite reveal just how the new attachment is going to be used, but it’s a safe bet that the second analog stick will be involved in moving your character’s view (the first one at the back of the gun itself, after all, is for movement). And although it does look a bit unwieldy, Takashi Satsukawa reassures us that whatever hand you’re most dominant with, the Guncon 3 will be a comfortable peripheral to play with.

He also explained a bit more about the Guncon 3’s specifications, both in hardware and software. Takashi mentioned how the lens of the gun was made by a company that specializes in the production of precision lenses used in cameras and scanners. There are also chips in the Guncon 3 dedicated to computing the location of the peripheral’s sensors, and these little wonders can do their job within 1/60th of a second. They can detect movement and tilt, just like a SIXAXIS controller.

As for the software, Takashi Satsukawa revealed two main types of calibration for the Guncon 3: the standard Time Crisis two-point calibration, and a new five-point calibration mode that ensures the greatest amount of accuracy you’ll ever get. Great for us who practice precise shots rather than the good old-fashioned (and very fun) spray-and-pray tactic.

The director for Time Crisis 4 then went back to the second grip on the Guncon3, mentioning how hard it was to make it handle in such a way that it would be less of a hindrance and more of a necessity. From a simple, rough-and-ready paper mache model, the second grip has evolved into what we see it now, thanks to a lot of research and testing.

As it is, we can’t wait to get our hands on the Guncon 3 and see how it feels (and shoots) like as we play Namco Bandai‘s Time Crisis 4. After all, you can’t hold one in your hands and not feel like a total badass who’s able to take armies down all on his lonesome.