Sony last night fired its opening shot in the battle to oust Nintendo's Wii from the world's living rooms with the announcement of a new motion control system for its high-definition games console, the PlayStation 3.
The new system, called the PlayStation Move, was unveiled by Shuhei Yoshida, the President of Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios, on the eve of the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco.
The Move consists of a wireless baton equipped with a series of buttons. The movement of the baton is tracked through a camera connected to a PlayStation 3.
Mr Yoshida claimed that the system offers unprecedented accuracy of
movement. "The
games we can create with this system are very diverse," he said.
"Tracking
your body movements one to one, nothing has ever been this precise,
responsive or ultra-sensory."
Though it relies on technology that predates both the Sony PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Xbox 360, it has sold more than both of them combined, with global sales now hovering around the 70 million mark.
Key to the success of the Wii was its appeal to families. Previously, games consoles had been the near-exclusive preserve of young males. The Wii brought the console into the living room for the first time.
"Nintendo has done a great job in removing the barriers between people and games," Sony's Senior Vice President of Marketing, Peter Dille, told the audience at GDC. Now, clearly, Sony is keen to move in.
But it will not be alone. Microsoft has its own motion-control system, Project Natal, in development for the Xbox 360 console, with an expected release date of November.
Natal does away with controllers altogether, tracking the movements of a player's entire body and replicating them on screen.
Sony, however, will be first to market, and with a price tag, of just under $100 (£66), that Microsoft will be hard pushed to match since its Natal system requires an additional control box. Pricing for Natal has not yet been announced.
"The price point for us is crucial if we want to reach both serious
gamers and casual players," Mr Yoshida told The Times today. "The
goal from the outset was to sell it for under $100. The advance in
sensor
technologies has made it possible for us to get the price and superior
technology. This is a 2010 system, not a 2006 system."
Source: Timesonline.co.uk
Plenty to go at in the latest PlayStation Network Store update, including a cartoony take on the Madden NFL franchise and a downloadable shooter to rival the best of Xbox LIVE Arcade.
There’s lots more besides, with extra tracks for Guitar Hero and Rock Band and a killer chunk of downloadable content for the brilliant Borderlands. The highlight for us is definitely Gravity Crash, though. This dual-stick space blaster sees players fighting the forces of gravity as they pilot their way through the jagged canyons and caverns of 30 hostile alien worlds. Fans of retro classics such as Asteroids, Lunar Lander and Jetpack will be right at home. It’s modestly priced at £6.29 too.
Alas the same cannot be said for Madden NFL Arcade, which is a trifle steep at £9.99. In the game’s defence it’s a bigger package all-round, with 5-on-5 matches for 1 to 4 players, a host of online options and the ten best players drawn from all 32 of the NFL teams to choose from – and all of them looking a lot less serious than their regular Madden 10 counterparts. Controls are a lot less complicated too.
As we said earlier, though, there’s plenty more in store. Stuff your hessian bags-for-life with this little lot...
Downloadable Games
• Madden NFL Arcade (£9.99/€12.99)
• Gravity Crash (£6.29/€12.99)
PSone (emulated for PS3 and PSP)
• Lilo and Stitch: Trouble in Paradise (£3.99/€4.99)
Demo (free)
• Comet Crash
• Mushroom Wars Demo Rating: PEGI 7+
Add-On Game Content
• Fallout 3:
Broken Steel (€7.99)
Operation Anchorage (€7.99)
The Pitt (€7.99)
Point Lookout (€7.99)
Mothership Zeta (€7.99)
• Borderlands – Zombie Island (£6.29/€7.99)
• Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 – Character and Mission Pack (£7.99/€9.99)
• Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 – Costume Pack (£3.19/€3.99)
• Dragon Ball Raging Blast – Warriors on Earth Pack (free)
• EyePet – Lucky Dip Styling Pack 6 (free)
• LittleBigPlanet – Limited Edition LBP for PSP T-Shirt (£3.99/€4.99)
• Rock Band:
Beautiful Thieves by AFI (£0.99/€1.49)
End Transmission by AFI (£0.99/€1.49)
Love Like Winter by AFI (£0.99/€1.49)
Medicated by AFI (£0.99/€1.49)
The Leaving Song. Pt 2 by AFI (£0.99/€1.49)
Walk Like An Egyptian by The Bangles (£0.99/€1.49)
• Guitar Hero 5 – Neversoft Thanks the Fans Pack (free)
Videos
• Uncharted 2 Eye of Indra Part 1 (Motion Comic) (free)
• Uncharted 2 Eye of Indra Part 2 (Motion Comic) (£0.79/€0.99)
• The Last Guardian Trailer
• Battlefield Bad Company 2 Beta Anouncement
• Assassin’s Creed II Gameplay Vignette 1
• Assassin’s Creed II Gameplay Vignette 2
• Assassin’s Creed II Gamescom Trailer
• Assassin’s Creed II TGS Trailer
• Gravity Crash Crash Creator’s Tutorial
• Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time Replay Trailer
• DC Universe San Diego Comic-Con 2009 Vlog
• Polar Panic Story Trailer
PSP minis
• Blast Off (£2.49/€2.99)
• Dracula – Undead Awakening (£3.99/€4.99)
Source: Yahoo games.
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