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Why High Voltage dropped MotionPlus from The Conduit
We've all been under the impression that The Conduit would feature MotionPlus, but it turns out that High Voltage has tried it, and decided to take it out of the game. Why, you ask? Well, High Voltage's VP and chief creative officer Eric Nofsinger tells 1UP that Nintendo provided them "with early hardware and good developer support," but when they put it into The Conduit, it "didn't really add anything for our primarily ranged combat." Nofsinger also got a bit more technical, adding that High Voltage hoped MotionPlus "would allow for better off screen IR tracking." Instead, Nofsinger says the device "seems to lend itself more naturally for hand to hand combat" and that it "doesn't feel like an optimal fit for how we had designed our moment to moment gameplay." Well, that explains it. Sure, we want as many features as we can get our hands on in a game, but if it doesn't improve on the experience and just feels tacked on for the sake of being a bullet point on the back of a box, it's not worth it. It looks like High Voltage agrees.%Gallery-25003%
Spore Hero: details on the Wii's Spore spinoff
EA is finally bringing Spore to the Wii, sort of: Spore Hero is coming this fall, but, of course, it won't be exactly the same as the PC game. Spore Hero, as revealed to MTV Multiplayer today, is a heavily motion control-dependent adventure based on the "creature" stage of Spore. The same creature editor from the original is present in Hero, allowing players to create new life with the Wiimote's pointer.Players will now directly control the creature in "a series of quests and adventures in a kind of open world that you can take at your own pace." New parts can be added that will translate to new motion-controlled moves. Some moves, like jumping, will open up new areas to explore. EA is currently "taking a look" at MotionPlus for Spore Hero, for improved sensitivity for the motion-based gameplay.This sounds a lot like the DS's Spore Creatures -- whose sequel, Spore Hero Arena, is still scheduled for a fall release on DS.
Nintendo's MotionPlus due out prior to Grand Slam Tennis, or June 18th
Stay with us here, okay? For the longest while, we've wondered when exactly Nintendo was planning on releasing its long-since announced MotionPlus Wiimote add-on. At long last, pieces are beginning to come together. According to EA Sports' official Grand Slam Tennis page, said title will be available for the Wii on June 18th. Hop over to a recent Nintendo Power article about said game, and you'll find producer Thomas Singleton asserting that the MotionPlus accessory is "due out prior to Grand Slam's release." So, putting one and one together, we've come to the conclusion that Nintendo should ship its MotionPlus add-on prior to June 18th, or at least prior to whatever day Grand Slam Tennis gets delayed to. Logical?[Via GoNintendo]Read - Nintendo Power articleRead - Grand Slam Tennis website
MotionMinus: Dead Space Extraction won't use MotionPlus after all [update]
A few days back, we posted a story based on a quote from EA's John Pleasants that seemed to confirm the use of the MotionPlus peripheral for the upcoming Dead Space: Extraction on the Wii. We mentioned how weird we thought it was to use advanced motion-sensing in a title that will presumably be controlled mostly with the Wiimote's pointer. EA seems to agree that it would be a weird choice, which is why it isn't actually doing that. It turns out that the quote was mistakenly taken out of context: at the Goldman Sachs conference, Pleasants talked about EA's planned MotionPlus sports games and Dead Space at around the same time, and somehow in the trip onto the Internet, the two subjects became conflated.Update: Sean from GameCyte has helped us clarify the source of all the confusion: not a misquote, but rather a mistaken statement from Pleasants himself. He did say that Dead Space would use the MotionPlus peripheral, which has since been confirmed not to be the case.
EA not waiting on Nintendo, will release MotionPlus-compat games on time
EA is determined to release its new crop of sports game, whether or not Nintendo has released the Wii MotionPlus peripheral or not. As you may recall, EA revealed the next Tiger Woods game would feature MotionPlus support, as well as a new tennis game the company is developing, and both will ship to retail on June 16, 2009. EA Sports' PR chief, David Tinson, said that both games "will be compatible, but not dependent, on WMP. They will ship with the functionality, regardless of when WMP comes to market."The peripheral is a tie-in with Wii Sports Resort, a game that was woefully absent from Nintendo's big release list yesterday. Will MotionPlus and Wii Sports Resort be on store shelves by June 16? Nintendo has yet to comment on an exact release for the Wii Sports successor, but we'll be sure to update you as soon as we hear.
Wii-A Sports: Tiger Woods 10, Grand Slam Tennis releasing first on Wii
EA Sports announced today that both Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 and Grand Slam Tennis will release for Wii on June 16, with versions for all other platforms following at later dates. That commitment EA's made to producing as many Wii games as it does for PS3 and 360 combined? Looks like we can also bet on some cross-platform titles hitting the Big N's machine first.As previously reported, the two games will support Wii MotionPlus for near 1:1 motion control. In the announcement, EA Sports referred to the titles as being developed specifically for Wii; we'll find out more on what that entails when we play them March 12.
Dead Space: Extraction to support MotionPlus
Despite Nintendo's total, mystifying silence about the MotionPlus peripheral in its big news release today, EA is still working on games designed to support the new gyroscope add-on. In addition to Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 and EA Sports Grand Slam Tennis, both of which EA reconfirmed as MotionPlus titles today, Dead Space: Extraction will feature MotionPlus capabilities.EA's COO John Pleasants revealed the use of the device at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference today, saying that Extraction would be "taking advantage of the MotionPlus controller." John Riccitiello previously alluded to this in a somewhat less specific manner during the original announcement of the game.Dead Space seems like an odd choice for MotionPlus -- as an on-rails title, we would expect its controls mostly to involve using the pointer for aiming. But EA knows what it is doing: including MotionPlus support for anything is going to get the Wii fanbase on its side.
Nintendo increases order with MotionPlus component maker
While the rest of the world is in the middle of a recession, Nintendo's got more money coming in than ever, and it appears that they don't see that changing any time soon. According to Digitimes, Nintendo has increased the quantity of an order with a company called Invensense, who makes the rate gyroscope used in the upcoming MotionPlus peripheral.This suggests that Nintendo is increasing their estimate of MotionPlus demand -- and probably increasing their expectations for the sales of Wii Sports Resort. Either that or they are ramping up production of MotionPlus according to an existing plan. Something (let's call it "history") tells us that even their augmented production won't keep up with demand for 2009's big-big-big Nintendo product.%Gallery-27709%[Via Kotaku]
FlingPC 3D controller for gamers that don't know any better
If it's Tuesday, it must be time for yet another "revolutionary" motion sensitive game controller. Of course, 3DiJoy's FlingPC is no TrueMotion 3D or Wiimote -- at best, it seems to be the next wireless mouse. Consisting of an accelerometer-equipped Bluetooth remote and a USB dongle, and bundled with ten custom 3D games, this looks like the sort of off-brand toy that hapless parents inflict upon their long-suffering children. Interested? We bet you are. Shipping in December, packages start at $99 for both Windows and Linux versions. Of course, you can't play Mario Kart with the thing -- but don't worry, they do have a generic bowling game for you.
TrueMotion 3D enables true motion control
While the Wiimote opened the door to motion-sensitive gaming, it's obvious limitations even have Nintendo pushing the tech forward with add-ons like the MotionPlus -- but a company called Sixense might have leapfrogged the field with a system called TrueMotion 3D. Rather than relying solely on an accelerometer, this controller uses a magnetic field to track both your hands' positions in 3D space. With a refresh rate of ten milliseconds and accuracy up to a millimeter, and interest from developers including Activision and EA, this guy could someday relegate your Sixaxis to the back of your junk drawer -- right next to your old Atari's paddle controller. Not convinced? Scope the tell-all demo after the break.READ - video at Engineering TVREAD - Sixense website
Mgestyk Fusion: the Force is 6-degrees strong with this one
Everyone and their grandma loves the Wii. But even Nintendo's new dual-axis MotionPlus struggles in 3D space due to limitations presented by the sensor bar. Mgestyk thinks it can do better by marrying its interesting gesture processing technology to the sensor data received from devices like the Wiimote. Mgestyk Fusion replaces the sensor bar with a 3D camera and image processing to translate yaw, pitch, roll, forward/back, right/left, and up/down motions from the Wiimote connected to a PC over Bluetooth. Sure, it seemed to work reasonably well at slaying clones in the video, but we're more interested to see how it holds up to the live scrutiny of a public demo when it makes an appearance at the Montreal International Games Summit next week. Until then, you'll have to feed your awkward, down-in-the-basement, lightsabering fantasies with the clip posted after the break.
Cursed Mountain devs considering MotionPlus
According to N-Europe, who found this in an NGamer magazine (we'd call something this abstracted a rumor if it weren't already hypothetical), Deep Silver may seek to augment the controls for their unique survival horror game Cursed Mountain with MotionPlus.The article describes the motion-based controls in the "prayer gestures" used in the nonviolent combat in a bit more detail. Apparently, "prayer scrolls" will be used along with motion-controlled ritual simulations to banish ghosts from the earth. In addition, players will use motions to climb walls with an icepick, suggesting more context-sensitive motion controls that would probably benefit from MotionPlus.With any luck, then, our controllers will register with near-perfect accuracy the shaking of our fists as we curse a mountain.%Gallery-35618%
Suda considering MotionPlus, online play for No More Heroes: Desperate Struggle
"Give us MotionPlus!" That seemed to be the most popular response when we asked you what changes you'd make to No More Heroes: Desperate Struggle. Luckily for us, Goichi Suda seems to agree (does he read Wii Fanboy reader comments? If so, hai, Suda!). Speaking to IGN (hit the break for the full video interview), the maverick developer discussed how he'd like to utilise Wii MotionPlus in the No More Heroes follow-up, despite not having touched the add-on yet. 1:1 beam katana action? Um, yes please. He's also "very interested" in online play, though sounded slightly less committed to the idea when he discussed it with CVG, describing it as "still up in [the] air." We'd probably take MotionPlus over some online mode, though if Suda feels like adding both to Travis' next outing, we suppose we can accept that as well. %Gallery-34131%
Reggie talks MotionPlus timing, avoids Wii HD
Thanks to the journalizing of one Dean Takahashi, we may finally have an answer to one of our favorite questions: Why wasn't the Wii MotionPlus, the thing that makes the Wiimote work the way you thought it would before you bought it, included when the system launched? According to Reggie Fils-Amie (and this should come as no surprise) Nintendo was aware of the tech when it was putting the Wii together, but deemed the price "too high" at the time. Now that it's cheaper, it's bringing it to the masses.What Reggie won't discuss is when the next Wii will go public, calling rumors of a 2011 release "pure rumor and speculation." Meaning: The release of Nintendo's new console is completely dependent on Shigeru Miyamoto lowering his crystalline hovercastle from Planet Flowerkiss and dropping it off ... and it's not like he ever calls first.
de Blob dev not down with MotionPlus
Nick Hager, producer on de Blob, isn't too jazzed at the idea of MotionPlus. It's not that he doesn't like the tech, he just has a problem seeing the majority of people that enjoy Wii on a regular basis want to play with the new peripheral."While it's definitely intellectually stimulating from a development perspective to play with those ideas - and I think it does appeal to a set of gamers out there - I think the majority of people that play on the Wii want something very simple that they can just immediately get their heads around," Hagger said. Does he mean the casual crowd that bought Wii Fit and played it once? Is he talking about the people that nabbed the system only for Wii Sports?Is 1:1 movement really that much of a leap for the casual crowd that are looking for a simple experience? We'd think not, because it's basically the same deal: moving the Wiimote to afftect things in-game. That's what got most into the console in the first place, so if the tech works a bit better, how is it deterring the extremely casual crowd away from the system?%Gallery-17709%[Via Joystiq]
The Conduit gets MotionPlussed
Wii Sports Resort might not be the only title to showcase the Wii MotionPlus when the dinky add-on launches next spring. GameSpot went hands-on with The Conduit at PAX 2008, and revealed that the shooter will feature MotionPlus support. The Conduit is currently set for a March launch, so has this new information also inadvertently dated Wii Sports Resort and the MotionPlus?Whether it has or not, MotionPlus for The Conduit is Pretty Big News -- so much so, that we're afraid it may overshadow some of the other eye-catching details in GameSpot's report. These include: In the final game, High Voltage hopes to have a completely customizable head-up display, in which any HUD element can be dragged and dropped to different parts of the screen. There will be nine missions in total, with the singleplayer campaign lasting "about ten hours." Cut scenes won't be used; rather, the story will be developed through news or radio broadcasts, much like the Half Life series. Some projectiles can be guided using the cursor, which sounds a lot like the Nikita launcher in Metal Gear Solid, automatically making it ZOMGAWESOME. %Gallery-25003%[Via Go Nintendo]
Point/Counterpoint: Does Clone Wars need MotionPlus to succeed?
In this edition of Point/Counterpoint, we're tackling the issue of MotionPlus and Lucasarts' upcoming Star Wars game, The Clone Wars: Lightsaber Duels. Sure, there's a rumor of another game in the works that will utilize the tech, but nothing is confirmed yet. Does a Star Wars game need MotionPlus? Read on for the debate, then cast your vote in our poll. NEXT >> #ninbutton { border-style: solid; border-color: #000; border-width: 2px; background-color: #BBB; color: #000; text-decoration: none; width: 100px; text-align: center; padding: 2px 2px 2px 2px; margin: 2px 2px 2px 2px; } .buttontext { color: #000; text-decoration: none; font: bold 14pt Helvetica; } #ninbutton:hover { text-decoration: none; color: #BBB; background-color: #000; } %Gallery-27972%
Rumor: LucasArts planning Wii MotionPlus lightsaber game
The Force which compels LucasArts to concoct more ways to utilize the Wiimote for lightsaber gameplay will be with it ... always. According to the latest EGM rumor section, "Quartermann" brings unconfirmed word that the Star Wars factory is looking to follow up its Wii version of The Force Unleashed and The Clone Wars: Lightsaber Duels with yet another lightsaber-centric game, this one utilizing Nintendo's Wii MotionPlus accessory.You may recall that LucasArts was one of, well, pretty much every Wii third-party left feeling a bit ... seventieth-party by Nintendo's choice to unveil MotionPlus to them on the same day as the public. According to the Q-man, now that the company has access to the tech for development purposes, it wants to make the bestest lightsaber game ever. Might we suggest it be called: Star Wars: Lightsaber Duels – This Time It's Not All Spazzy, Really![Via NWF]
Rumor: A third Wii lightsaber game, with MotionPlus this time
We were a little puzzled when LucasArts introduced Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Lightsaber Duels before the release of The Force Unleashed on Wii, whose major selling point was ... an exclusive lightsaber duel mode. It seemed as if we were being told to disregard that first game that wasn't out yet, because the real thing was on the way. Well, if this rumor is true, get ready to disregard the second game as well.According to EGM's "Quartermann" gossip column, a grumbling LucasArts is returning to the drawing board for another Wii lightsaber game, this time designed for MotionPlus. This potential game is rumored to be out sometime next year. If this is real, LucasArts would be smart not to talk about it until they've sold at least one copy of the two existing lightsaber games.%Gallery-27972%
Wii Warm Up: Active gaming
After taking a second, head-shaking look at the Wii Sqweeze prototype, and also thinking about Wii MotionPlus, we had to take a moment to stop and ask a serious question: just how much motion do we want? Lately, we've been down in the mouth about all the games that aren't going to include Nintendo's new motion-plus peripheral, but how much 1:1 control do we need? Swordfighting will be awesome, yeah, and sports games have amazing potential, but at what point do we just put down the controller and go participate in the actual activity? Or is a move closer to a virtual reality game better, no matter what?
