With only a few hours remaining in ForceTubeVR’s crowdfunding campaign, the creators behind the VR haptic gun accessory are facing the facts: either their Kickstarter gains the outstanding €16,000 (~$18,00) for their all-or-nothing campaign to succeed, or they head to ‘Plan B’.

ProTubeVR CEO Romain Armand took to Reddit today to address concerns about just what will happen in the eventuality the campaign doesn’t reach its mark. To Armand, the potential lack of full crowdfunding support doesn’t spell the end for ForceTube though; the company is still seeing the project through as outlined in the campaign.

While the project may have a hard time hitting its €80,000 funding goal with so little time left (currently seven hours), Armand maintains that backers will still be able to get the exact package promised through the campaign at both the same price and order priority advantage. This, Armand says, will only be offered to Kickstarter backers though, which ought to put some fears to rest.

“Backers are safe and will get a ForceTubeVR at the kickstarter price by one way or the other,” Armand concludes.

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ProTubeVR is a Marseille, France-based startup that’s been active since 2016, creating several versions of its eponymous modular motion controller accessory. ForceTube was new territory for the company though, as all versions of their previous products were essentially ergonomic controller cradles that allowed for more precise and immersive shooting, but didn’t include any form of integrated electronics.

ForceTube’s haptic engine is said to simulate impact with up to 60 newtons of force, rumble at different intensities, and do it all with a battery life that is said to deliver seven hours on intensive arcade use and more than 10 hours of regular at-home use.


At the time of this writing, ForceTube is said to work natively with a number of shooters, including H3VR, Onward, Contractors, Wardust, StandOut, VirtualBattleGround, and more yet to come. An OpenVR-compatible companion app is also said to ‘sniff’ an actual rumble signal and transfer them to the device “with a wide range of possible settings.”

Since the haptic portion connects to both their ProTube accessory, the company is offering versions for HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Oculus Quest, Windows VR, and Pimax.

Through its Kickstarter the company is still advertising early dev kits for €200 (~$225) with delivery slated for May 2019. The final version (at least for backers) is said to arrive December 2019. It’s uncertain how following through with ‘Plan B’ will effect the delivery times at this point though.

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Scott Hayden
Well before the first modern XR products hit the market, Scott recognized the potential of the technology and set out to understand and document its growth. He has been professionally reporting on the space for nearly a decade as Editor at Road to VR, authoring more than 4,000 articles on the topic. Scott brings that seasoned insight to his reporting from major industry events across the globe.
  • Trenix

    Is kickstarter offering something new to backers now? Because usually after a kickstarter, if it doesn’t meet the goal, no one gets charged.

    • Andrew Jakobs

      It depends on which option is set in the kickstarter campaign. I think a couple of years ago there was an option introduced so the money goes directly to the initiator.

      • mellott124

        Says all or nothing.

  • impurekind

    It’s actually a pretty cool idea as a peripheral, but I think it would make more sense as something for VR arcades and the like.

  • iThinkMyCatIsAFlea

    More plastic crap.

  • Nifty, Wardust support! Downside seems to be the cost. A little shake like that shouldn’t be more then $100. They’d have to *REALLY* upsell me to get $225.

  • Dave Graham

    Good idea – waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay over-priced.

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  • Nice idea, but pricey and targeted at a niche. It is understandable.