Posts Tagged ‘wand’
Sony: “We’re Not Copying The Wii”
At E3 both Sony and Microsoft unveiled their own offerings in the grand world of motion sensing controllers. Microsoft’s Project Natal goes a different route than the Wii, utilizing a camera to track players movements and translate them into control inputs while Sony uses a wand device similar to the Wiimote. It didn’t exactly catch on, but Sony in some ways was first to the hit the motion sensing gameplay market with their Eyetoy.
Since their newest motion control device bears a striking similarity to Nintendo’s, they’ve come out to insist that they’ve been working on a wand device sine the original EyeToy. They released a video on Youtube of a tech demo made with the original EyeToy where they showcase some of the features that are now integrated into their new wand.
Wiimote Alternative Now Available
It seems a little late in the game to be releasing a third-party Wii controller, but Nyko has gone ahead and done it anyways, calling it the Wand. After their lawsuit over the Kama they’ve made sure it’s quite distinguishable from Nintendo’s controller in terms of looks, but the overall shape and functionality is the same.
One of the more interesting features though is that the Wand allows for electronic emulation of existing buttons. With the Nintendo Wiimote if you want some sort of alternate control scheme i.e. a light gun style controller, it can only operate the buttons in an analog fashion. The Wand is set up so that a peripheral plugged into the port on the end can have its own buttons.
There are two packages available, the ‘core pack’ which comes with a Wand and vibration enabled wired Kama; then there’s the ‘Action Pack’ which includes a Wand and a light gun accessory. It’s obviously styled after the Nyko Perfect Shot but functions a little differently. Before slipping the controller into it, you remove the battery cover. It also includes the mandatory orange bit you stick on the ‘barrel’ to indicate it’s a toy, though why you’d take it outside the house is beyond me (well with the exception of maybe bringing it to a friend’s place to play, but then just stick it in a bag).
The Wand is now available in stores for $34.99, the Core and Action packs are available for $49.99