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The PlayStation Move Arrives — a Hands-On Report
itwbennett writes "The PlayStation Move hit retail stores on Friday and blogger Peter Smith spent the weekend putting it (and his shoulder) through its paces. So how does this motion controller compare to the Wii? Smith says it 'felt a lot more precise' but that 'there were instances where the depth perception of the camera got lost for a moment.' The bottom line: 'If you have a Wii and the Wii Motion Plus accessory, there isn't a whole lot here right now to justify $100-$170 worth of gear for most gamers.'"
CNET is similarly critical, complaining of the continual calibration requirements and the dearth of good launch titles. The Guardian's games blog agrees that quality games are currently lacking, but says the accuracy and responsiveness are a step up from the Wii, giving the Move a lot of potential. iFixit did a teardown, providing an interesting look at the hardware inside the device.
We'll have to calibrate our polls to find out.
Ya, how dare they actually use the device for any meaningful length of time in their own homes/offices. Actually using the product, figuring out the good versus the bad and writing up a quality article just isn't warranted these days, apparently.
I keep thinking Sony has delivered an answer to a question nobody is asking. You can buy a Wii brand new for $150 at any store you like, or you can spend $400 on a PS3 with the Move hardware. Sure, the Sony can play Blu-Ray, but people don't buy the Wii to play DVDs so why would they care about Blu-Ray? And even if the hardware is superior, it doesn't have the library of games available that the Wii already has.
The other end of the potential market would be people who already have a PS3 but really want Wii-like controls, but how many people does that segment represent? How many people who play Final Fantasy 28 on their PS3 finish playing that for 912 hours straight and then say "gee, I wish I could do Wii bowling on this console"?
The slightly cynical side of me wonders if this is just Sony trying to find a way to stick it to Nintendo (again) after the way that the SNES CD (later PS One) deal went down.
Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
I picked up the Move and EyePet on Friday. While Sports Champions is nothing more than Wii HD, EyePet proves the real power of the Move setup. This game will not be for everyone (but if you have kids, it is 100% amazing) but what it does is amazing. With augmented reality and seeing yourself on the screen the tracking has to be perfect or it will simply look wrong. At no point when my four year old has been using it has it missed a beat. On top of that, EyePet uses a lot of video feedback from the camera for things as well. The best example is when your pet falls asleep and it starts "dreaming" about things it has done with you. It stores recorded of things you did with the pet and plays them back in a dream bubble over the pets head.
If Sony can get more titles out like this that show how it isn't Wii HD, they will have something.
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That and it looks like you're swinging around a vibrator.
Which, given the 4 years since the Wii was released, is pretty poor.
By all accounts, the Move should blow the basic Wii controller out of the water and be at least par with the Motion Plus.
Scene: a couple of years from now:
Sony: We've decide that we are limiting your Move to only work within a 2 meter range of your TV.
Gamers: But what if my TV is bigger, and I need or want to be more than 2 meters from my TV?
Sony: Tough. We've decided that it makes sense for us to limit this. You WILL apply the update. You WILL be limited.
Gamers: But WHY?
Sony: The reason we are giving is that some players are abusing the ability to be more than 2 meters from the TV to cheat at games, or something.
Scene: Today.
Me: Sorry Sony, but you've screwed me once on my PS3. From here on out, I am NOT buying hardware from you. I will avoid buying new games. In fact, the only real money you are getting is what you get from my Blu-Ray purchases, which isn't much. You want me to buy this? Then stop taking features away from me that I bought and paid for, that you advertised, and that were a part of why I bought from you - indeed, give me those features BACK. Until then, I am not interested.
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I agree; that was a good call on Sony's part. Clever of them to find an easier way to do something than the competition.
Yeah, it's going to be hard to squeeze that kind of processing onto a console... Microsoft and their devs have their work cut out for them.
Totally! Choosing the cheap way actually allowed Sony to approach Nintendo's price point for once, and making it easy for the camera to track allows for excellent accuracy.
I think we have a lot in common. We should be friends.
Just another proletarian malcontent.
The Move has 4 sensors:
1) Eye camera sensing the glowing ball.
2) accelerometer
3) gyroscope
4) magnetometer (3D compass)
It is the combination of all 4 of these that allows accurate tracking. There is no single sensor answer that gives a decent solution to the general tracking problem.
Actually the hardware works extremely well and is getting high praise. The launch lineup runs the gamut from excellent to tacked on. As with any launch lineup, you pick and choose the best titles (Tumble, Sports Champions) or wait for the next wave.