Playstation Move (Hardware)
Playstation Move
Score: 6.5/10
When the seventh generation systems were released in 2005- 2006 (Nov 2005 for Xbox 360, Nov 2006 for Playstation 3 and Nintendo Wii), only one could be called "revolutionary". While Sony and Microsoft treaded common ground, Nintendo adventured into the world of motion controls. It brought a whole world of new gamers, and a whole world of new sales, so both Sony and Microsoft are getting green in their eyes and jumping into motion controls themselves four years later.
Let's get something very clear: this is a horrible idea for Sony and Microsoft as I see it (and I think I've been around gaming enough to able to justify. I've seen some dreadful ideas, such as Virtual Boy and Atari Jaguar). For one, they're jumping into a portion of gaming unknown to them and owned by the biggest of the three competitors. Nintendo has four years experience with the technology on display, and a strong library of games to show (we all know Sony and Microsoft are strong technological competition, but not so much in motion controls). Two, neither the Playstation nor the Xbox were ever "casual" systems; they always appealed more to gamers and players than newcomers, while Nintendo focused more on casual players and newcomers. This is why the synergy of motion controls worked well with Nintendo, but that isn't there for Sony or Xbox. If they go into casual gaming technology, their mainstream audience is doomed to disappointment. Finally, the novelty is gone. A lot of sales on Nintendo Wii’s were born on the novelty of the idea, which is gone (at least two years so). I hoped to be proven wrong about the poor expectations on the Playstation Move.
The very first blatantly obvious thing is the controller. One, how it completely and shamelessly rips-off the Nintendo Wii controller design, right down to size and important button placement. I know it's probably hard to think of a better controller design for the job, but this goes back to the argument where Nintendo already owns this portion of gaming, and there's no need for Sony to butt in. Secondly, calling the glowing orb at the tip of the controller "silly looking" is an incredible understatement. Having a black controller with a bright, neon pink, squishy orb on the top is just weird, and makes me feel like I'm holding some foreign object that should shoot lasers or something. Otherwise, the design is very comfy and functional.
The package can be purchased with everything: Playstation Eye (needed), The Playstation Move controller, and a copy of Sports Champion. You can buy the Move separate if you own the Eye, but you're better off buying the bundle since the controller plus Sports Champion is about the same as the bundle (Move = $50, which is nuts compared to the Wii MotionPlus, priced at $40, both prices being from the same store). Considering Sports Champion is the main game associated with the Move (and the only good game for the thing right now), let's give a quick review of that.
You have six sports: Archery, Beach Volleyball, Table Tennis, Disc Golf, Gladiator, and Bocce. The technology is almost perfect in Disc Golf, feeling very authentic, while the other five are iffy at best. Gladiators is particularly guilty, and only because it's a sport requiring precise aiming and any flaw in the aiming becomes completely obvious in that sport. Every time I raise my shield in front of my face and it registers it around my left rib, I die a little inside. For a gaming company that practically should just call their product the Sony Wii, they do little to outdo competition as far as "advance technology" goes (kind of like that "blast processing", am I right? Old school Sega Genesis joke, look it up).
Most of these games have the option of adding the "Sony Playstation Navigator" for added precision and enjoyment. However, the day a gamer needs to pay $100 for both controllers, $50 for the game, $40 for the Eye (not counting tax on any of it), and in return can only play single player on a system that is doing the same thing it's competition is doing for less and with more experience will be the day pigs grow some wings. Additionally, it's worth mentioning what Sony is trying to beat with this "camera + advanced motion controller" combo: A simple motion controller that in itself reads angle while a motion sensor that basically just shot light at the controller to track movement. A very simple process, and it works better for cheaper than the whole set up of the Move. I also laugh at the fact the Eye claims you can have it under your TV and it'll work, but then the technology laughs at you while it looks at your feet when you try to calibrate. Even the Wii was able to be under my TV (since all it does it shoots light. Literally, replace it with a flashlight and the Wii is none the wiser).
This sounds like a major bash-fest, and with good reason, but it's worth remembering that there's strong potential on display along with very fine technology - only thing is the four-years-too-late business. Some sports are very impressive control-wise, others are not so fortunate. Stock music and characters, but honestly that's not Sports Champion's purpose on this earth; it's purpose is to showcase the Move the same way Wii Sports did for the Wii, and for that it works. Poor fans awaiting another original Move game with strong controls and maybe more impressive gameplay overall must wait, since launch line-up on the Move is slim pickings. Only time will tell if the Kinect will be a similar ordeal, but it's clear now that Nintendo is still holding the crown of motion controls, and it seems they will for a while yet.