This is a Kurganets-25. It’s an infantry fighting vehicle. Covered with armor, it’s outfitted with a turret, a canon, and a controller that is inspired by a PlayStation gamepad.
Sputnik News (via Popsci) reports that Albert Bakov, the vice-president of the vehicle’s manufacturer, explained to the Russian media why the military vehicle uses controls that resemble a DualShock:
I spent two years on convincing the designers to make the console similar to a Sony PlayStation gamepad, to make it easier for a young soldier to familiarize himself with it.
But the reason is more than that. The video game style controller takes up less space inside the vehicle. Again, here’s Bakov:
As it turns out, a steering wheel is dangerous for the rib cage during an impact and when climbing out. It takes up more space but provides nothing
Clever, no?
The influence, however, shouldn’t be too surprising. In fact, it’s not surprising at all. We’ve already seen the military use controllers to robots, drones, and even laser guns. Plus, the twin thumbstick design does make sense for operating a vehicle like this. Countless video games prove that.
The Kurganets-25 is expected to going into mass production sometime next year.
Top photo: Russian Presidential Press and Information Office via Popsci
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