The annual Electronic Entertainment Expo, recently held in Los Angeles, blew away all doubts: Games are here to stay. Companies like Sony, Nintendo, Sega, Microsoft, and a crapload of third-party developers rocked the convention center with virtual worlds much more compelling than the big grey one we all live in.

If you want to be a renegade cop, a robot, a Navy SEAL, a stuntman, a ninja or a Roman warrior, there's a game for you. If you want to drive a tank, motorcycle, snowmobile, helicopter, fighter jet, or race car, those worlds now come on a CD for you. If the new products on display are to be believed, even the most hardcore gamer can spend hour after hour camped out in front of the monitor, with a Playstation 2 or an X-Box as your only companion.

Which raises the question: As people spend more and more time in virtual worlds, where real physical objects have no meaning, where does the industrial designer fit in?

Sure, there are instances of real-world designers being asked to design virtual products--the groundbreaking anime "Ghost in the Shell," for instance, hired an actual weapons designer to ideate the guns that would be drawn on-screen--but what about the rest of us? What will the rest of us design?

The interfaces, of course.

No matter how good the virtual world gets, we still need a physical connection to enter that space. The doorknob, if you will.

The game consoles themselves are uninspired boxes, no more revolutionary in design than the carton that Raisin Bran comes in.

Game controllers, on the other hand, combine hi-tech style with an almost military zeal for ergonomic combat efficiency. They fit the maximum number of buttons at your fingertips, and ensure you can activate any of them at a moment's notice, for hours upon end. Ever watch someone play "Metal Gear Solid" for the first time? Hands frozen on the controller, gripping it with the focus and intensity of the Boston Strangler doing in a victim.

Check 'em out yourself. Carefully. If you're into games, you may end up in contact with one of these things more frequently than your cell phone, computer keyboard or food.

Input Devices

Idizm's Space Devilfish is a one-handed ergonomic keyboard, with vibrating feedback, for PC games.

Belkin's Nostromo line of mouse and thumbpad controllers, also designed for PC games, has vibrating feedback as well.

Saitek's Actionpad is meant to be used in conjunction with a mouse for, you guessed it, PC games.

Nokia's Media Center remote is ready for Web TV with a QWERTY-style keyboard hidden inside.

Maui's Cymouse is a head-mounted pointed device intended to replace the mouse. It operates by means of an optical device and is guaranteed to make you look like a frickin' dork.

Feedback Devices

Neckphone Company LTD's ingeniously named Neckphone is a vibrating feedback device with integrated speakers. For PC gaming or anytime you want to feel "special."

Olympus's Eyetrek glasses can be hooked up to watch DVDs or replace your computer monitor.

Game Consoles

Microsoft's Xbox, Nintendo's Gamecube, Sony's Playstation 1 and Playstation 2, and Sega's soon-to-be-defunct Dreamcast are all just boxes, in high contrast to the super-designed controllers that connect to them.

MyIcco's portable version of the Playstation 1 is the laptop for unemployed people. You can use it to play old Playstation games on-the-go, making you simultaneously futuristic and retro.