You know the Philips Ambilight feature that’s found on some of its flat panel TVs? Well that same technology is coming soon to a PC game near you, on steroids. Philips’ new amBX peripherals will include things like a rumbling wrist rest, surround speakers with built-in 16-million color synchronizing lights, and fans that sit on your desk “simulating everything from a gentle sea breeze to an approaching helicopter.”
In order for games to take advantage of amBX peripherals, they must include special extensions. So far, only five games support the hardware out of the box but Philips has developed the “amBX gaming FXGenerator” (or FXGen, for short) which allows you to apply the effects to existing games. There are about 80 or so supported titles so far, with more being added in the future.
The peripherals are being sold exclusively on German website MediaMarkt.de until September and then hopefully will be available everywhere else. Console support, peripherals, and games are also in the pipeline.
Philips amBX Peripherals [ambx.com] via AVING.net
