Advertising wars in the video game industry always amuse me. Perhaps it’s my overwhelming sense of nostalgia from the heated 16-bit war between Nintendo and Sega. Or perhaps I just like seeing blood on the floor.
Either way, Sony is coming out with both arms swinging (no, really, watch the video) in its new commercial for the PlayStation Move controller apparently launching in November. The video takes a few jabs at the competition (*cough* Wii, Natal *cough*) by mocking waggle and catching red balls that fall from the sky. The commercial claims to come from the distant future of “December 2010″ wherein Move is a success, and Sony would like to thank you for making it so successful. A bit of a bold claim, eh?
The video doesn’t really try to market to new users, instead falling back on amusing existing PS3 owners and touting allegedly superior hardware specs. But it is an interesting watch nonetheless, and we’ll all have to check back in December to see if Sony’s marketing prediction was really as insightful as it claims.
In the mean time, you can probably bet on Microsoft launching its own marketing counter-attack soon. That should be even more entertaining.
Today’s gamer question is a tough one, one that can be debated until the end of time and even then a clear answer may not be attained.
Which is more lame?
Above you see the recently introduced Sony Motion Controller. It looks like something your girlfriend or wife would use to stimulate their nether-regions; facts are facts. It is also known that the simple act of holding this horribly designed controller will reduce your testosterone and drain you of any remaining machismo.
The above video includes what has to be one of the worst ideas in sound design for a video game EVER. Whoever thought this was a good idea should go work at Infinity Ward, get fired, and be escorted out of the building under armed guard. I mean really, the warning siren in Bad Company 2 is so loud, so overbearing that it requires a volume adjustment every time it starts. Hell, it’s so bad there is a petition up on the EA boards to have it removed, a petition that now stretches 75 pages. Now, one could argue that if you don’t want to hear it then you shouldn’t lose. Valid argument. What say you?
Which is more lame? Submit your answers in the comments below!
This year’s GDC (Game Developer’s Conference) is fully underway, and Sony has finally announced an official name for their upcoming PS3 Motion Controller, previously rumored to be codenamed “Arc.”
The official name is now “PlayStation Move,” and Sony managed to show off some software during its presentation such as a sports pack tentatively titled “Sports Champions,” which included table tennis and archery among other activities. Another game pack, entitled “Move Party,” was shown off and evidently superimposes images such as swords and shields into the game based upon the movement of the PS Move controller. The software sounds very similar to some Virtual Reality technology I experienced back during E3 2009, which superimposed a sword and shield onto my hands with VR goggles.
Sony showed off two different motion controllers during the GDC presentation: the previously disclosed Move with the orb at the end, and an orb-less “sub-controller” which evidently can act like the Wii’s Nunchuck accessory. Some demonstrations included players using two orb-topped Moves – one in each hand.
The release date is still scheduled for sometime in the fall, but a price point was announced: $100 for a starter kit that includes a Move controller, the PlayStation Eye and a game. There will also be three separate bundles: the controller itself, a controller and a PlayStation Eye, and a PS3 system bundle.
Several games have been announced for Move support including Socom 4.
More details were not announced, and Sony did not unveil a specific release date.
That’s not exactly the successor to the Dreamcast that you’re looking at above. It’s the Sega Zone, the newest addition in the long lineup of proprietary consoles – or plug-n’-play systems – that come bundled with a limited number of games (such as the Atari Flashback).
Sega’s Zone contains a Wii-like controller (as well as upright console design), 20 classic Sega games and 30 additional games, 16 of which are motion controlled. The system contains two of these Wiimote knockoffs which can be used with familiar sports games such as golf and table tennis:
The Sega Zone is reported to be releasing this summer in Europe for a price of £50.
What’s up with Microsoft’s motion-controller Project Natal? When will it be released? What kind of games can we expect? Will it suck the life out of video games forever? I don’t have all the answers for these questions, though I do have a few. According to MCV citing unnamed sources, Project Natal is slated to release in November of 2010.
Microsoft is planning to manufacture 5m units for day one release, with a mix of console and camera plus solus SKUs expected.
The device should cost under £50 when sold solo. One publishing source says Microsoft is “trying to get as close as possible to ‘impulse buy’”. Another even says the camera could even retail for just £30.
14 games are being readied for launch.
Activision, Bethesda, Capcom, Disney, EA, Konami, MTV, Namco Bandai, Sega, Square Enix, THQ and Ubisoft all committed to make games for the device in an announcement made at last month’s Tokyo Game Show.
It’s expected a large chunk of launch games will be first-party offerings from studios such as Rare with third-party games to follow. It is not known if Lionhead’s widely-discussed Milo, which uses advanced AI to create realistic characters, will be in the mix.
Natal will arrive almost five years to the day after the Xbox 360 and is perceived by many, Microsoft included, as a way to lengthen the lifespan of the hardware without resorting to a new console launch. The first Xbox was sold in the UK for only three years before 360 hit.
Loading ...
Loading ...
