Lunar Arcade raises $40M and debuts NovaPad — a haptic controller for competitive gamers

Gaming · 4 min read

Lunar Arcade announced a $40 million Series A led by PlayFund and launched NovaPad, a next-generation haptic controller offering per-finger force feedback and low-latency telemetry for competitive gaming. NovaPad’s design focuses on providing tactile cues and microforce sensations that can enhance situational awareness in genres like racing, fighting, and simulation. The hardware is paired with a developer SDK for Unity and Unreal Engine.

The company claims NovaPad reduces input ambiguity by delivering directional and magnitude cues through localized actuators and adaptive stiffness surfaces. For tournaments and esports, Lunar Arcade is offering a certified mode that standardizes haptic feedback so events can be fair and reproducible across players and venues.

Proceeds from the round will expand Lunar Arcade’s manufacturing and support a developer outreach program to integrate haptics into AAA titles and competitive titles. Early partnerships include a racing sim studio and a major esports tournament organizer piloting NovaPad in boutique events.