The Transistor, Transistor
One of our most electronically ambitious projects, the Transistor was created for Supergiant Games as a photobooth accessory similar to the Cael Hammer project from Bastion. Attendees at PAX could pose with the blade and get photos emailed from the event, which was a huge opportunity for various cosplayers to act out all sorts of shenanigans. A repeat of this project was built in 2018 as a promotional giveaway for the release of Transistor on the Nintendo Switch.
Vacuum formed parts created a hollow translucent shell around over 150 RGB LEDs. The Transistor has several electronic “modes” – it can pulse slowly in green or red as shown in the game, and it can also play voice lines spoken by the sword via a remote control while LEDs pulse to audio levels. Two internal speakers allow audio files to play directly from the sword, and an external audio jack placed at the base of the blade lets the sword act as an audio source to an external receiver. This was useful in setting up audio at the Supergiant Games booth to be heard over the rest of the convention. A second audio jack allows custom audio input, allowing people to talk “through” the blade. Lastly, the sword can operate either on an internal LiPo battery pack or be plugged into 120VAC power for continuous operation. For more information about the electronics and set-up, check out this video.
Four replicas have been created: The Supergiant Games replica debuted at PAX Prime 2015, and a second for Supergiant was sent to one lucky fan in October 2018. A personal copy was built and showcased alongside a Red cosplay at DragonCon, while the fourth is in the hands of a private collector!
