Hands-on with the Oculus Touch

It started with a point of the finger.

I move on to making a fist and testing other hand gestures. Then I check out a block. I hold it in my hand, turning it to look at it from different angles. Then I toss it aside and tinker with other moves: punching a toy robot, playing ping pong, shooting targets with a sci-fi laser gun.

All of this is happening virtually, through Oculus Rift, and all my hand gestures and activities take place through Oculus Touch, the VR-friendly controllers revealed in June and shipping next year.

Performing tasks through Touch felt almost as natural as the real thing, based on a recent demo of the device. Of course, that helps lead Oculus toward its goal of full immersion when enjoying any VR adventure.

The Touch is actually two controllers, one for each hand. If you think of the standard video game controller, imagine it split it half. That's how it feels to use Touch. Each controller has an analog thumbstick, two face buttons, a shoulder button called the "hand trigger" accessed with your index finger and a second analog trigger closer to the grip pressed with your middle finger.

The last two buttons mentioned are important because they controlled hand actions during the demo. I pressed the hand trigger to point my fingers, or press and hold on the analog trigger to make a fist. This is how a user would grab virtual objects.

What was most impressive about Touch is how natural the experience felt. Playing ping pong, I would time my shots and adjust my strength no differently than in a real game. Same thing when throwing punches. I could gently tap the giant robot or throw haymakers. Even the feeling of picking up objects seemed comfortable.

The potential for Touch appears high. Imagine playing a first-person shooter where you mimic holding the weapon in your hand, or a sports game where you must grip and throw a football. There were no games running Touch, but I'm curious what experiences will be available for Touch when it's available.

Using both Touch and the Rift could require some planning. For the demo, I had someone assist me with putting on the Rift first, then held out my hands as he passed the Touch controllers. So what happens when you're playing solo? If you're sitting down, then maybe you keep the controllers on your lap or attached via wrist strap as you adjust the headset (remember, you can't see surroundings once it's on). But what if it's an experience that requires standing?

Of course, Oculus will likely spell all this out when Touch ships during the first half of 2016.

Follow Brett Molina on Twitter: @brettmolina23.