Chinese robotics firm Dexta Robotics got VR fans excited in 2014 when it launched a Kickstarter PBC project for Dexmo, an exoskeleton VR control glove, but those hopes were later dashed when the company cancelled the campaign after raising only $55,165 of its $200,000 goal. Failed Kickstarters are nothing new, but it seems that Dexta has remained hard at work on its glove, and the company has recently revealed an all new version of Dexmo that could soon become an entirely new way to interact with VR programs.

Virtual reality has the potential to be an incredibly immersive experience, but as long as users are forced to interact with virtual objects using joysticks and buttons, as is the case with HTC Vive’s motion controller and the upcoming Oculus Touch, that immersion will always be limited. Dexta designed Dexmo to change this by allowing users to grasp and manipulate objects with their fingers just as they would in real life. The glove essentially functions as a motion capture device, translating user movements into digital signals that are replicated in the virtual world.

While Dexmo’s finger-based controls are certainly impressive, one feature that really sets the glove apart from similar prototype devices is its use of force feedback, which simulates the tactile sensation of actually touching virtual objects. According to Dexta, Dexmo’s force feedback can allow users to sense the size, shape, and stiffness of a virtual object.

This feature can help create immersion in games and other forms of VR entertainment, but it can also be an incredibly powerful tool for educational or training VR programs. For example, Dexta suggests that the glove’s force feedback system could make it useful for robot-assisted surgery, giving doctors more accurate control during delicate procedures.

Unfortunately, there is still no word yet on when Dexmo will be commercially available or even how much the device will cost once it is eventually released, and Dexta CEO Aler Gu says that only a small batch of Dexmo’s have been produced so far, and he believes that they may not be an easy sell at first.

“Selling Dexmo is different than selling consumer electronics because you can’t use Dexmo right out of the box,” Gu told Engadget. “It will take some really amazing content for people to realize how gaming-changing this innovation actually is.”

You can watch a video of the Dexmo glove in action below:

Images courtesy of Dexta Robotics