Sony Controllers Catch Up To Nintendo Wii Gear - Circa 2006

(MoneyWatch)  Sony has unleashed Move, the PlayStation 3 motion sensor sticks coming out this fall.

The gamer blog Kotaku:

Yesterday, Sony took the wraps off the PlayStation Move, which some people will call Sony's next big thing in video gaming, and others will call a shameless Wii Remote rip-off.

It's so the latter, it's not even funny. Too little, too late.

To recap, the Nintendo Wii launched with its motion sensor sticks - the Wii-motes - in fall 2006. It broke sales numbers. It changed the recognized gamer demographic. It was innovation. The Microsoft XBox 360 became a favorite of average gamers, based on its healthy online community and plethora of games.

The Sony PlayStation 3 became an also-ran for several reasons:

• Sony waited for Blu-Ray technology, delaying it for more than a year
• The Blu-Ray technology still makes it the most expensive console
• Though powerful, the high-end technology was more difficult to develop for than the XBox 360

The Move technology is a necessary evil, as the Nintendo Wii as well as peripheral heavy games like Rock Band are making the joystick seem passé. Sony needed some type of retaliation. The issue is that Move is incremental rather than revolutionary.

Here are the attributes:

• Uses lithium ion battery instead of disposable batteries: OK.
• Can be used in conjunction with Sony EyeToy webcam: OK.
• Requires recalibration when starting a new game: Bad, as the Wii doesn't require it.
• 36 video game companies are supporting Move: Good, but still a fraction of the hundreds of Sony developers.
• High-level motion sensing: Excellent, better than the Wii.
• Sold separately: Bad, as there's no announcement of packaging it with future PlayStation 3s - something that makes Sony's commitment seem more dubious.

Meanwhile, rival Microsoft will be releasing a game control method -- that doesn't require a controller at all. Even Nintendo Wii sales numbers have been dropping over the past year, showing that motion sensor sticks are at their tipping point. Great upgrade, Sony, but about four years too late.

Photo courtesy of lordferguson / CC BY-SA 2.0

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