Here’s a novelty: Playing Unreal Tournament 2004, using only one hand – and kicking ass. No, no it’s not some obscure gamepad / wireless setup that you need to sink $300+ into – rather, “Game O’”, the world’s first practical 3D gaming mouse from Sandio Technology. I had the pleasure of checking out Game O’ 3D gaming mouse in Kentia Hall today, and came off very intrigued at the possibilities.

The mouse was for all intents and purposes fully functional on the show floor and seemed representative of how the final product would handle. Basically, take your standard optical mouse (wired for the moment – though future plans for a possible wireless version are on the drawing board), add in a number of unexpected side buttons and extra analogue inputs, and you get the Game O’ mouse. Thanks to the way this mouse is designed, the driver software enables you to map just about any key binding or input function to any of the controls on the mouse itself, and this was demonstrated to me as I was shown a copy of UT2k4 being played with only one hand, and yet the representative was still effortlessly pulling off maneuvers such as jumping, dodging, crouching, switching weapons, changing angles, and all kinds of other moves – all just using the mouse.

I quickly requested a hands-on demo and got to try it out myself – my performance in UT2k4 was less than exemplary, but after a few minutes I was able to gradually settle into the control differences. By using my thumb, I could initiate strafing or jumping maneuvers without having to touch the keyboard. Changing weapons was also a breeze, and thanks to the sheer simplicity of UT2k4, this left my other hand useful for any other task which may be required. The theory however is that the mouse can really come into play while being used for games that require an exceptional level of multitasking and keystrokes – be they RTS games, or something like Freespace 2 (assuming you’d be willing to play it without a joystick). The mouse even comes built in with an integrated adjuster for the mouse speed and DPI level, and the drivers will enable you to externally adjust many facets of the mouse, and is also expected to ship with numerous pre-fabricated templates for popular games (with more planned to be released via Sandio Technology’s online website).

Here’s the kicker; I was told that the goal of the mouse was to combine some of the best features of other advanced mice like the Logitech G5 and the “Spaceball”, but with a very affordable price within the range of $79.99. The company also has some big plans for the future to roll out more advanced products as time goes on, depending on the success of the Game O’ and feedback from the community. Depending on how this turns out, I my have just found a replacement for my MX510 mouse. The Game O’ is expected to ship this summer, and you can find more information on it at Sandio Technology’s website at www.sandiotech.com . - Dave VanDyke.