The two Sixense devs began with the tech demo with a proof of concept.  They demonstrated picking up objects and manipulating them while shifting views and focus in a 3D world.  After that we moved to the next station where we saw the technology in action in the form of Left4Dead 2.  The Sixense team had an opportunity to partner up with Valve to see what Sixense could do in the Source engine.  Right now, Left4Dead 2 is the only application from Valve's massive catalog with support, but future applicability is obvious.   

I went back on Saturday and was able to go hands-on with Sixense TrueMotion playing Left4Dead 2. I picked up the controllers and immediately felt at ease with the wands.  Moving the character in space was a breeze as well as firing the weapon, reloading, throwing pipe bombs and slicing with the katana. More specifically, aiming the reticule of the machine gun and firing made me wonder where it had been all my life.  It felt so natural compared to similar movements you'd make with a Wii wand.  The Wiimote just cannot compare. Your hands do not feel cramped and your thumb moves easily over the face buttons without sacrificing mobility.  I asked about why certain controls were mapped to movements and some to buttons.  They allayed my concerns that there would be "waggle for waggle's sake" and said that the motions that were mapped were for it to feel natural and anything that didn't feel that way was mapped to a button.

The technology behind the system is ahead of the curve.  Sixense uses magnetic tracking in physical space – relieving the need of an accelerometer in each wand – giving it precise control up to 1mm along with tracking within 1 degree.  This same tracking system eliminates the necessity of maintaining a line-of-sight between the wands and the transmitter.  You read this right -- true one-to-one motion.  And it's extremely precise, which is something the Wii has hinted at but never delivered.  If I really have any gripes at all, it's the amount of fixing my wrist when it was out of place due to my constant vigilance screening back and forth.  I was continuously trying to get my right wrist into the base position (they term the action "ratcheting").

Overall, Sixense TrueMotion is an excellent piece of equipment with a bright future ahead of it.  Hooking up with Valve was a fantastic start as Valve has both a good, consistent engine and a rabid, loyal fan base.  I look forward to seeing Sixense's next move as their partnership with Razer grows and this tech moves to market.  Check out the quick demonstration video of Sixense in action below.