Wednesday 23 January 2013

Motion Controllers: The bane of video games?

Well let me say this outright I don't think motion controllers and motion sensors for gaming are a bad thing at all, though I personally don't enjoy playing them. I reckon the main reason is that they don't really provide any physical feedback. What I mean by this is that for example when you press a button you know instantly how far and how hard you've pressed it, if you've moved an analogue stick you know how far you've flicked it and you where you've moved it to e.g. half way to the top right. I don't really know if I'm explaining this well but basically what I'm saying is that with a peripheral that has buttons and/or analogue sticks you can be more precise with little limitations whereas motion controllers it's more difficult to match your input actions to what's happening on the screen which may make you less likely be engrossed with the game. Just because you're replicating an action that's happening on screen doesn't make it feel more realistic.

Playstation Move
Xbox 360 Kinect

Razer Hydra












Nintendo Wii















The question I want to know is not "is motion sensing bad for gaming" but "is the industry focusing too much on motion sensing and motion controllers". It's kind of difficult for me to answer because I'm having trouble separating my subjective personal side from my more objective side. To tell you what I mean I guess I need to tell you what started my grudge against motion sensing and I reckon it started at Sony's 2012 E3 conference.


Wonderbook

Wonderbook, it looks pretty cool I haven't given it a try and I whilst I don't intend on buying it I wouldn't mind given it a go in a shop. If you don't know what it is, it's a book shaped object which you hold in front of the playstation eye and objects appear on top which you can interact with. The first game to come out, and shown at Sony's E3 conference, was Book of Spells set in the Harry Potter universe and it uses playstation move as well. Now demonstrating this technology at a conference is fine, it's great, but spending something like 10 minutes on a pretty poor live tech demo is just...no Sony. Most people watching E3 wouldn't be interested in it for themselves it's more for the kids, just a quick couple of minutes highlights demonstration would've been enough and might have left more of an impact. Wonderbook deserved better than this:



Well now that I've got that out of my system let me say I reckon that the Wonderbook demonstration represented what I reckon is wrong with the industry at moment: It's focus on spectacle. Not all games have to made with absolute artistic intent, in fact I think it's important to have games that are solely there for the spectacle. But I also feel it's important to not let these games drag the rest of the industry down, make sure that looking at technical shit doesn't make us lose track of our creative artistic shit. If we don't lose track then motion controllers will help the industry rise up even further rather than sink it to the bottom of the ocean where giant enemy crabs roam.

 There is one major problem with what I'm saying though and that's what I've said is just subjective speculation, I have no proof, no evidence. I could be completely wrong I've tried to look into it but gave up so really what I'm saying isn't fact, just personal opinion. I will carry on trying to look into it further and actually attempt to back what I'm saying but until then what I've written doesn't mean too much. I'd love to hear other people's opinions though. 

There's something else as well and it's about Journey, more specifically the one annoyance I have with it. I guess it's a really small thing that probably only I have a problem with but hey it's relevant. The damn sixaxis motion sensing in the dualshock 3 can't be switched off so I have to worry about keeping the controller still so that I don't accidentally move the camera. What the hell is up with that, I want to sit back and relax when playing, not keep my hands in the same position for 2 god-damn hours. So I guess what I'm saying is I want more choice in regards to motion controllers. Don't force us to use motion sensing for the PS4, have it as an option, but don't force us...please Sony.

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