{"id":5234,"date":"2025-10-20T11:45:01","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T09:45:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/between-installation-and-video-games-when-alternative-controllers-shift-the-codes-of-gaming\/"},"modified":"2025-12-27T11:55:40","modified_gmt":"2025-12-27T10:55:40","slug":"between-installation-and-video-games-when-alternative-controllers-shift-the-codes-of-gaming","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/between-installation-and-video-games-when-alternative-controllers-shift-the-codes-of-gaming\/","title":{"rendered":"Between Installation and Video Games: When Alternative Controllers Shift the Codes of Gaming"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"is-style-chapo\"><strong>While video games are still often associated with the home console, another indie scene is asserting itself on the margins. In it, artists and game designers create installation-based works that subvert traditional controllers. Gathered under the term \u201calternative controllers\u201d, these creations champion the hacking of everyday objects and the reclaiming of physical space\u2014often with a generous dose of humour. What exactly does this notion cover? Which artists make up this community? Can these installations still be considered video games? A dive into a creative movement that is now making its way beyond gaming circles.      <\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p>At Ars Electronica in September 2025, four participants stand gathered around a screen, shifting from right to left, contorting themselves, trading bursts of laughter. In front of them, a display shows a kind of giant, revisited Pong. In <em><a href=\"https:\/\/lingql.com\/playing-democracy-2-0\/\">Playing Democracy 2.0<\/a><\/em>, artist Ling Tan explores the mechanisms of democracy through a collective game based on bodily movement. Here, participants can choose to cooperate, negotiate, or break the rules. Each gesture becomes a political act. Together or individually, players change the course of the game\u2014even at the risk of triggering its collapse. Co-produced and presented at the Barbican Centre in 2024, this installation perfectly illustrates the spirit of alternative controllers: playful installations that put body, space and experience back at the heart of the work, increasingly present in the programming of cultural venues.       <\/p>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-vimeo wp-block-embed-vimeo wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Playing Democracy 2.0\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/946214525?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The Origins of the Alternative Controller <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Let us first return to the origin of the term \u201calternative controller\u201d. In the early 2010s, artists such as the collective One Life Remains began to assert a creative practice located at the intersection of design, gaming, and installation. At the same time, a few researchers, like anthropologist Nicolas Nova, took a close interest in gamepads and peripherals. In 2014, the Game Developers Conference (GDC)\u2014the annual gathering of video game creators in San Francisco\u2014dedicated part of its exhibition to independent projects, under the \u201caltctrl\u201d banner, that divert and rework traditional gamepads, keyboards, and mice. The initiative immediately resonated within the independent game community. \u201cI discovered a new diversity of games. For me, it showed that there was a physical space\u2014a materiality\u2014for video games,\u201d says Henri Morawski, production manager at Random Bazar, an association specialising in alternative controllers. Since then, alternative controllers have been studied in more depth, notably through the reference work of artist-researcher <a href=\"https:\/\/tatianavileladossantos.com\/\">Tatiana Vilela dos Santos<\/a>, with a PhD thesis defended in 2024: \u201cLe mouvement altctrl, repenser la mat\u00e9rialit\u00e9 du jeu \u00e0 l\u2019\u00e8re de sa d\u00e9mat\u00e9rialisation\u201d (\u201cThe altctrl movement: rethinking the materiality of play in the era of its dematerialisation\u201d).    <\/p>\n\n<p>From the outset, we can observe two trends in alternative controllers: the first category aims to distort the screens, as seen in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wobblylabs.com\/line-wobbler\">Line Wobbler,<\/a> a work by artist and developer Robin Baumgarten. Here, this very minimalist game consists of a simple joystick and an LED strip. So, without a screen in the traditional sense. The second category, the more common one, includes works that repurpose controllers standardized by the gaming industry (gamepads, mice, keyboards, but also tablets, phones, etc.). An example is <a href=\"https:\/\/filipevilasboas.com\/Scrollathon\">Scrollathon<\/a> by Filipe Vilas-Boas, a race played by scrolling with the fingers. Or, following the same principle, <a href=\"https:\/\/florentdeloison.fr\/projets\/digitalympics.html\">Digitalympics<\/a> <em> <\/em>by artist and teacher Florent Deloison, an athletics game inviting players to run a 110-metre hurdles race by scrolling with their fingers. Another is <a href=\"https:\/\/florentdeloison.fr\/projets\/rhetorique.html\">La rh\u00e9torique peut casser des briques<\/a>, where each player must use voice ommands\u2014speaking into a phone\u2014to control the pieces. \u201cThe player has to talk to control a Tetris game. But there\u2019s a constraint: each word can only be used once, so you have to find synonyms,\u201d smiles Florent Deloison. Alternative controllers, extensively documented on the website <a href=\"https:\/\/shakethatbutton.com\/\">Shake That Button<\/a>, therefore raise questions about game mechanics, playability, and of course about pleasure and fun in art.   <\/p>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"950\" height=\"632\" src=\"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Florent_Deloison-8-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4997\" srcset=\"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Florent_Deloison-8-1.jpg 950w, https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Florent_Deloison-8-1-900x599.jpg 900w, https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Florent_Deloison-8-1-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Florent_Deloison-8-1-768x511.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 950px) 100vw, 950px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">La rh\u00e9torique peut casser des briques &#8211; Florent Deloison<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A DIY Philosophy <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>This philosophy of d\u00e9tourning and bypassing manifests in handmade interfaces, designed in a resolutely DIY spirit. \u201cIt\u2019s really close to maker culture: craft-based fabrication, sharing, open source. Controllers are often designed in fab labs. With alternative controllers, I have a freedom I won\u2019t find anywhere else,\u201d explains artist <a href=\"https:\/\/playful-machines.com\/\">\u00c9milie Breslavetz<\/a>, who collaborates with <a href=\"https:\/\/neondelice.xyz\/\">L\u00e9on Denise<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/a-maze.net\/\">A MAZE. <\/a>or <a href=\"https:\/\/france.makerfaire.com\/\">Maker Faire<\/a> have thus become benchmark events for this experimental scene. \u201cVery often, we start prototyping with cardboard and tape,\u201d continues \u00c9milie Breslavetz. \u201cWe fund our works ourselves, so we often build them in low-tech ways. But a good controller can evolve: <a href=\"https:\/\/playful-machines.com\/projects\/crashboard\/\">Crashboard<\/a>, for example, had a second, more refined version following its public success.\u201d Without always explicitly claiming the permacomputing movement (see the article <a href=\"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/permacomputing-ephemeral-trend-or-lasting-phenomenon\/\">Permacomputing: fleeting trend or lasting phenomenon?<\/a>), these practices often share its principles: resource efficiency, technological sobriety, and reuse. Artist <a href=\"https:\/\/www.antoninfourneau.com\/\">Antonin Fourneau <\/a>recalls: \u201cWe had laughably small budgets. With Jankenpopp, we wondered how to produce ten installations with 500 euros. The solution: go to Emma\u00fcs and buy 8-bit consoles for 5 euros. For 15 or 20 euros, we would simply modify the controller. Instead of a 1,000-euro computer, we could create an installation for just a few coins. It was video game ready-made.\u201d<\/p>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1800\" height=\"1350\" src=\"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Eniarof31_TEAM-1-1800x1350.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4995\" srcset=\"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Eniarof31_TEAM-1-1800x1350.jpeg 1800w, https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Eniarof31_TEAM-1-900x675.jpeg 900w, https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Eniarof31_TEAM-1-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Eniarof31_TEAM-1-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Eniarof31_TEAM-1-2048x1536.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">ENIAROFAMILY FOTOROF<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Reappropriation by Audiences <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>Yet this videogame ready-made is probably not an end in itself. \u201cWhat interests me is the d\u00e9tournement: how you take an industrial object, coming from a cultural industry, and joyfully divert it from its original intention,\u201d explains Florent Deloison. In other words, what matters is less the end result than the intention and approach. As an artist and teacher at ESAD Orl\u00e9ans, Deloison uses alternative controllers as a teaching tool. I ask my students to choose a game on an emulator and hijack its interface or its controller. It\u2019s a fascinating exercise because it questions the very notion of interaction: we change the meaning of the game, reveal its limits, sometimes through deliberately absurd setups. Under those conditions, engagement is total.\u201d<br\/><\/p>\n\n<p>This collective and experimental approach can be seen in many public workshops, such as <a href=\"https:\/\/stereolux.org\/agenda\/workshop-make-play-fabriquer-une-manette-de-jeu-video-alternative\">Make &amp; Play,<\/a> led by Tatiana Vilela dos Santos during the Stereogame event at Stereolux. Collectives like <a href=\"https:\/\/ctrlaltbaguette.com\/activit%C3%A9s.html\">CTRL+ALT Baguette<\/a> also contribute to this democratization by sharing videos and fabrication tutorials online. The same logic of reclaiming a work can be seen when showcasing these alternative controllers: \u201cThe interactivity of a video game allows you not to be subjected to the system. And the controller allows you to reverse that power dynamic,\u201d comments Olivier Mauco, president of the <a href=\"https:\/\/videogames-observatory.eu\/\">European Video Game Observatory<\/a>. An analysis that echoes the <a href=\"https:\/\/dl.acm.org\/doi\/10.1145\/3301019.3324872?\">thesis<\/a> How Alternative Game Controllers Foster Reflective Game Design by researcher Enric Granzotto Llagostera. <\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Dissemination of Alternative Controllers <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>It is therefore hardly surprising to see alternative controllers making their way into museums today. First of all as mediation tools: \u201cGaming appears more and more in science museums, such as at the Cit\u00e9 des sciences. We learn better through experience\u2014a pedagogy of making\u2014than through the simple repetition of dogmatic discourses,\u201d emphasises Olivier Mauco. But beyond mediation, more and more cultural institutions are taking an interest in these installation formats and their experiential potential. One of the most striking examples remains <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eniarof.com\/\">Eniarof<\/a>, a key event bringing together <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eniarof.com\/category\/members\/\">around forty artists<\/a>. Conceived in 2005 by Antonin Fourneau and inspired by the world of funfairs, Eniarof transforms attractions into hacked games, absurd interfaces, and playful interactive devices. \u201cWe celebrated our 35th edition in 2025. Eniarof is hosted by digital-art festivals or commissioned by cities,\u201d says Antonin Fourneau. \u201cAt the beginning, alternative controllers were badly perceived, even within the video game scene: hacking retro gaming wasn\u2019t always seen as a tribute. Today, new structures\u2014immersive museums, hybrid venues such as <a href=\"https:\/\/meowwolf.com\/\">Meow Wolf<\/a> in the United States\u2014are taking a closer interest.\u201d   <\/p>\n\n<p>In France, Random Bazar is now looking to shine a spotlight on this vibrant scene through a dedicated festival. \u201c<em>We want to showcase this independent community and support it with two<\/em> <em><a href=\"https:\/\/random-bazar.fr\/open-calls-for-festival-2026\/\">open calls<\/a><\/em>. <em>Our goal is to present brand-new installations,\u201d<\/em> explains Antoine Herren, co-founder of Random Bazar. The Dutch collective Katpatat\u2019s piece Hoki Doki was selected as one of the winning projects. From 13 February to 7 March, around ten setups will be exhibited at the Shadok in Strasbourg, including Keyboard Olympics by the <a href=\"https:\/\/mechbird.fr\/\">Mechbird<\/a> collective and <a href=\"https:\/\/random-bazar.fr\/label\/lallumeurdereverberes\/\"><em>L\u2019allumeur de r\u00e9verb\u00e8re<\/em><\/a>, in which a player\u2014stranded on an island\u2014must build bridges using real pieces of wood. <em>Ultimately<\/em>, for Antoine Herren, the aim is to highlight <em>\u201cthe diversity and creativity of alternative controllers.\u201d<\/em><br\/><br\/>   <\/p>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Allumeur de r\u00e9verb\u00e8res - Trailer + Technique\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/79fT7kUSD2s?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>To Freeze the Term, or Move Beyond It? <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<p>We are therefore dealing with a very real artistic movement\u2014but one whose name remains somewhat fluid. The term alternative controller first and foremost serves to bring together a diverse range of game-based devices under a single banner, to make them easier to discuss and more visible. \u201cWe\u2019d like this to become a genuine artistic movement. Its added value is its hybrid nature, which can find a place in different creative fields,\u201d says Henri Morawski of Random Bazar. Some prefer other terms: hardware games, or playful installation, as \u00c9milie Breslavetz does. \u201cI distinguish alternative controllers without a screen, which are closer to digital art installations,\u201d she explains. The artist, who has collaborated with the collective N\u00e9on Minuit on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.neonminuit.xyz\/miroir-arcade\/index.html\">Miroir Arcade<\/a>, a multiplayer installation controlled by a set of controllers (potentiometers, switches), adds: \u201cMiroir Arcade is not a game: there is no game design; in fact, there is an erasure of game design. It is an interactive and playful installation.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-vimeo wp-block-embed-vimeo wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"MIROIR ARCADE &amp; HETEROTOPIA\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/756321000?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<p>The concept of alternative controller, moreover, is not limited to the artistic sphere. The gaming industry itself has also experimented with forms of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.senscritique.com\/liste\/controleurs_atypiques\/3091419\">atypical controllers<\/a> for several decades. \u201cWe\u2019ve had some pretty surprising controllers: steering wheels, skis, devices where the game spills over into physical space, like dance games,\u201d recalls Olivier Mauco. \u201cThen came the era of the disappearing controller, with Kinect. Strictly speaking, the smartphone in Pok\u00e9mon Go could be considered an alternative controller in the history of game interfaces.\u201d <br\/><br\/>In the end, beyond labels\u2014whether art history chooses to retain them or not\u2014these alternative controllers seem to embody the profound influence of video games on contemporary creation. They extend its playful spirit, bear witness to an aesthetic of d\u00e9tournement that runs through part of today\u2019s digital arts, and signal the gradual arrival of gaming in cultural institutions. And if they help draw audiences into cultural venues, that is, ultimately, what matters most.   <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"is-style-signature\">Adrien Cornelissen<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While video games are still often associated with the home console, another indie scene is asserting itself on the margins. In it, artists and game designers create installation-based works that subvert traditional controllers. Gathered under the term \u201calternative controllers\u201d, these creations champion the hacking of everyday objects and the reclaiming of physical space\u2014often with a generous dose of humour. What exactly does this notion cover? Which artists make up this community? Can these installations still be considered video games? A dive into a creative movement that is now making its way beyond gaming circles.      <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5233,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[39,38,40],"class_list":["post-5234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-expert","tag-distribution-mediation","tag-hybrid-creation","tag-society","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5234","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5234"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5234\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5408,"href":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5234\/revisions\/5408"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5233"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hacnumedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}