Sony revealed more information about the Move, their new peripheral, at this year’s GDC. Is their foray into motion control games revolutionary? Or is it merely a “me too” tech, aping the Wii and the Natal?
With the incredible popularity of the Wii and Microsoft’s announcement for their own motion control technology, Sony’s Move is no surprise. It utilizes a controller and a “sub-controller,” much like (exactly like) the Wii’s nunchuk. It also utilizes the Playstation Eye, a mountable tracking camera like the Natal.
On the surface, the Move seems to be the clock-radio of gaming peripherals. Using both these systems creates some very interesting possibilities, some of which were demonstrated at the GDC. Like the Wii, you can hold objects in your hand in a virtual world, but the Move boasts a 1-to-1 tracking ratio. Like the Natal, it can sense the depth of objects in a virtual world.
The possibilities are exciting. It’s a much more sensitive Wii, backed up by much more powerful hardware. Back all THAT up with a company that isn’t afraid to make adult-oriented games, and you get something that might finally make motion control worthwhile from a hardcore gamer’s point of view.
Imagine an HD sword-fighting game that can really sense where you are, and isn’t afraid to show the effects of a slash or thrust in all it’s pleasantly gory detail? Or, using the Move’s precise drawing mechanism, a playable RTS on a console? Or how about any number of physics-based games that require steady hands—not Nintendo’s version, but real steady hands—to play well?
The possibilities are endless—but at this point, it’s up to Sony to show them to us. We didn’t see much new at the GDC from a software standpoint. We saw sports games, party games and the like, but nothing that really seemed to capitalize on the power of the device. The ball is really in Sony’s court to move past the hardware and show us the games.
All in all, it doesn’t look as if Sony hasn’t made anything revolutionary here. But they may have greatly improved on existing devices. New gameplay? No. Better gameplay? Possibly. And there’s certainly nothing wrong with that.
Again, it’s up to Sony to show us the games. But keep this in mind: Clock-radios are really, really popular.
2 comments: on "“Move” over, Wii?"
Is it too late though for the ps3? The Wii certainly has a pretty big lead at this point.
This last ditch effort by sony might be too little too late. Especially if we are going to be seeing new hardware in a year.
Kenny, I think it's a way for them to expand their current platform. I'm sure it will work with new hardware but predictions from the gaming industry suggest that many companies are moving away from hardware and focusing on micro games or casual gamers.
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