One thing that was announced at E3 that we may not have discussed enough is the new Nintendo Attachment, Wii Motion Plus. If you haven't already heard it's an piece that will plug into the bottom of the Wii Remote and will provide a "true" 1:1 response in motion controls. Sure, that all sounds great, but really what does that mean for us?First off, what games are going to use this feature? We already know of the "killer app" called Wii Sports Resort. I've also heard of talk that Red Steel 2 would also take advantage of the new motion controls. But really what else is there? We've all been talking about the possibility of motion controls since the Wii was announced, besides a little waggle here and jiggle there, what have we really gotten from our investment? I could see possible a real tennis game that would be deep enough to mimic real tennis with wrist movements, but I don't think there enough people who would understand the concept to make a big enough market to warrant development. I'm sure there eventually will be a new Star Wars Lightsaber game and all those Force Junkies will go crazy, but besides combat what else is there?
Secondly, how will this impact Nintendo and game development for the Wii? We've already seen a segmentation between casual games and core games on the Wii. We've been flooded with half-assed motion games that have been spoon fed to new game players who honestly just don't know any better. Do you think these developers are just going to start making games that utilize 1:1 controls? There's not a need to. These players are already fascinated by shaking the remote to chop onions, you think they're going to care or understand about the subtleness of something like swordplay? So who then will Motion Plus be targeted at. You can't tell me that all core games are going to support Motion Plus and that will be the deciding factor between casual and core games. Unless it's a required attachment for the future, I don't see this taking off. So will there be casual games, core games, and then hardcore games that support Motion Plus? I almost think it would have been better just to release a whole new Remote. That way they could have upgraded the camera in the Wii as well.
Which brings me to the next point....How will it actually play? I think we were all expecting this when the Wii first launched, but how will it actually be now. I have doubts that 1:1 is even possible, especially wirelessly. I've bought wireless headphones before but always returned them just because it's still not the same quality as normal headphones. Now we'll have this clunky piece making our Remote longer and possibly more awkward. Also, do you remember when you were young and you and a friend got two plastic swords/lightsabers and decided to have a "duel?" Remember how that turned out, not exactly the most graceful right? We're not skilled sword fighters and we're not choreographed, so my guess is that spastic flailing will eventually win out over any attempt at civilized combat.
Lastly, what will this add on mean for future games? I'd love for this to be the standard. But I have a feeling support on this will be scarce. The Zapper came out and besides the 5 or 6 games that actually use it, what else is there? The Wii Balance Board is out and I have no idea what Nintendo is going to do with now. With the Wii my fears lie with the fact that companies have a high return on accessories. With the Wii it's been all about add on sales. Nintendo has made butt-loads on Remotes sales because there's no other alternative. They've made tons on the little plastic wheels for Mario Kart and doodads that most people honestly don't need. I'd hate to see this go in the same direction where it's just about selling the extra add on hardware.
In the end, don't be surprised if we get two or three games that are interesting or inventive that really utilize the new sensitivity. They worth a look but won't exactly go down as the greatest game of all time. I'm really getting tired of these half-baked Nintendo ideas that never even get clearance to go on the runway. I'll get stuck with a drawer full of stuff like the Donkey Kong Bongo, which I own five of by the way, and that'll be the end of it. I guess maybe the real question is why do I keep supporting this stuff if I know it's all going to end up as crap?
Somebody help me,
David
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