How Motion Control has the Industry Standing Still

It ‘s 2010, and we’re mimicking motions that we can already feasibly do in everyday life? 

Come on.

I have yet to fully watch Microsoft’s E3 Press Conference about the Kinect, but I don’t need to. I already know that the games shown were updated shovelware. From playing the Wii (and living life, playing sports, exercising, dancing, etc.), I can guarantee that I know most of the movements said games will require. You could run in place playing Track and Field II for the NES in 1988.

 As I posted in my Peripheral Upkeep article, the concept of using the human body to elicit responses from a machine is not new. Not having a wand to hold is nice, but not having the gameplay to justify this technological advancement kind of nullifies this product’s release entirely.

Microsoft isn’t only to blame – Nintendo has become the number one offender in this respect. As is very obvious, the Big N has been going in a Big Circle for decades. Not only does their software get recycled, but their hardware hit a proverbial wall as well. Given that Microsoft and Sony have jumped on the gimmicky gummy ship, this industry has become really constricted within itself.

Right now, Wii all look ridiculous

I refuse to believe that the company who revived home console gaming has exhausted their resources and creative juices on the Wii. The fact that they first created the solid idea of motion control shows that they aren’t afraid to venture to new heights; I just wish that this philosophy would transfer over to their software.

The fact that an industry based on innovation is stuck on repeat is ridiculously frustrating; so much so that I have considered giving up gaming more than once.

The wonders of television have introduced many technologies that we could only enjoy as a static audience.  Video games have given us the gift of being able to interact with the latest technologies (provided we can keep up). With such power, developers have the responsibility to take gaming to the next level. We need games that let us explore a world that we, as humans of the flesh, can never tangibly reach.

 

How to turn a gimmick into a given

Long ago, games themselves were once a gimmick. Because of its internal revolutions and innovation, this common gimmick has become the greatest form of entertainment ever. People who weren’t afraid to push created games that set the standard for what we expect today. Unfortunately, the only thing gamers can expect from companies now is at least a three-peat of a popular series or the fumbling embarrassments that grace gaming’s modern technologies.

Perhaps we should have producers from other entertainment hubs – say, Jerry Bruckheimer and James Cameron – come aboard and breathe some fresh life into this industry. Cameron would make a great fit with the 3DS.

+ = ???

With the Kinect, interactive menus/HUDS (a la CSI) could be used to command a fleet of fighters in battle. I’m thinking maybe RTS/Final Fantasy games. Hell, even the Sims could be controlled this way.

Although Nintendo does get a lot of flak for its poor software choices, I strongly believe that if they put their minds to it, they could create remarkable games that could not include a past IP or the word Wii tagged on. Think Johnny Chung Lee (although he works for Microsoft now, I believe).

 

 

Head Tracking for Desktop Virtual Reality Displays using the Wii Remote

Not that I will it to be, but maybe the industry will implode again. The death of the arcade helped to pave the way for console gaming, which was a true revolution.

(Disclaimer: I  do realize that most of these ideas aren’t good; this is just some quick thinking.)

 

Why Now?

Someone once told me that stupidity is performing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Some questions I do have:

Why are Microsoft and Sony jumping on the motion train now? Do they think that their developers can create better games for them alone?

Why haven’t developers worked with the Wii, which has been out since 2006?

I am aware that Nintendo isn’t known for being hunkey-dorey with their third-party developers, but surely someone would have created a motion controlled blockbuster/AAA title/etc. by now. Are developers holding out on Wii because they believe that their defined “hardcore” markets only own a 360 or a PS3?

Are there other politics going on within that haven’t allowed these developments to happen?

I don’t want any technological excuses, either; I realize that there is a difference, but in the end, no matter what you are (or are not) holding, they all produce the same results.

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There are no cheat codes or strategy guides to help move the industry along. I realize that there are indie developers and stand-alone coders and dev. studios that create great content, but it hasn’t been for this technology (that I am aware of). Ironically enough, the way to finding the next best thing is a game in itself. I’m hoping that someone, be it one or many, can help solve this puzzle.