The same company that brought us the NES Advantage has proven the Wii control scheme isn’t as bad as critics speculated. The beauty of adding the “waggle” technology is limiting your button count to a reasonable level without overwhelming gamers.
We’re seeing casual gaming on the rise both in the press and in the public. Yet, each “next generation” console brings new features and functionality to the consoles, games and accessories. Since NES birthed the SNES we’ve seen button count increase on controllers.
Nintendo has usually been conservative on buttons, trying to work “shape” over sheer volume of buttons, barring the C button count on the N64 controller. Nintendo controllers change shape with each generation and they’ve evolved, not innovated, their way around with the Wii control scheme. Each function of the controller exists, on its own, in other products but nobody has built a fully functional controller in such a way for a game console until now.
Sony took pieces of this concept in their PS3 controller and its ability to detect “tilt.” Xbox 360 stuck with the beefy controller with lots of buttons and analog sticks. Not just a D-Pad but two analog sticks and a ton of buttons to press, some pressure sensitive as well. What of our next-generation console? Maybe a few new buttons?
Or, maybe a few new motions? Wii evolved the control scheme and Sony validated their decision, what’s next? Are the controllers just too damn complicated in today’s world? Or, perhaps limiting the buttons brings in more gamers, like Grandma and Grandpa, to play your console as well.
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i dont think improving prisoners IQ’s is a smart idea the inmates might become so smart from playing brain train & prison break that they all break out. lolz
i dont think improving prisoners IQ’s is a smart idea the inmates might become so smart from playing brain train & prison break that they all break out. lolz
Well, you solo-ed as a couple, you managed to handle the podcast just by yourselves.
@Tiger’s Scandal: I could have bet they’d drop him. Ehh …
@Flash hackers and WoW:
Links should be seen as vampires: clicking on one is like inviting a person in the house. But! If that link is malicious (equivalent of the person being a vampire), they will be able to get in at any other time they want.
As for flash being an open door for hackers … I heared that the file formats themselves are prone to become hacking friendly.
@Onlive Gaming:
Dunno about it … You basically get two lags:
(1) from sending your input to the machine
(2) from getting the video response to you.
To be honest, the reason why they do not allow WiFi is because of this extra latencies. And WiFi, although it may have bandwidth, it also has higher latencies. Add that to the already existing two ones and people will hate the experience.
As for not being able to play shooters, well … they claimed it would make it possible to play Crysis on netbooks.
You mentioned playing casual games (Plants vs. Zombies): do you really need a rendering cloud for that?
So, ahem, FAIL! It is still cheaper to spend 100 USD on a reasonable/good graphics card. And you only pay that price once. It’s not another subscription.
@Scottish prisoners learning via the Nintendo DS:
Read ivan’s post.
Jennifer, you’re right. It somehow alters the idea of inprisonment being a punishment. I mean you get food, a shelter, TV and even video games. All you have to do is take stuff from stores …
@question of the week:
Yes, it’ll change their lives, in terms that they now get to play games while in prison.
But that’s it.
Loved the ending! It happens to me too, not being able to stop laughing.
Well, you solo-ed as a couple, you managed to handle the podcast just by yourselves.
@Tiger’s Scandal: I could have bet they’d drop him. Ehh …
@Flash hackers and WoW:
Links should be seen as vampires: clicking on one is like inviting a person in the house. But! If that link is malicious (equivalent of the person being a vampire), they will be able to get in at any other time they want.
As for flash being an open door for hackers … I heared that the file formats themselves are prone to become hacking friendly.
@Onlive Gaming:
Dunno about it … You basically get two lags:
(1) from sending your input to the machine
(2) from getting the video response to you.
To be honest, the reason why they do not allow WiFi is because of this extra latencies. And WiFi, although it may have bandwidth, it also has higher latencies. Add that to the already existing two ones and people will hate the experience.
As for not being able to play shooters, well … they claimed it would make it possible to play Crysis on netbooks.
You mentioned playing casual games (Plants vs. Zombies): do you really need a rendering cloud for that?
So, ahem, FAIL! It is still cheaper to spend 100 USD on a reasonable/good graphics card. And you only pay that price once. It’s not another subscription.
@Scottish prisoners learning via the Nintendo DS:
Read ivan’s post.
Jennifer, you’re right. It somehow alters the idea of inprisonment being a punishment. I mean you get food, a shelter, TV and even video games. All you have to do is take stuff from stores …
@question of the week:
Yes, it’ll change their lives, in terms that they now get to play games while in prison.
But that’s it.
Loved the ending! It happens to me too, not being able to stop laughing.
Okay, there was an error in my previous story about the Adobe exploit – it was 2 years ago that this exploit was going on. I did a search for “World of Warcraft” and keyloggers and got that tech thread – which was at the top of the forum. The keyloggers used some other exploit – I don’t know how, because my account wasn’t active when this happened. The hacker also used an Authenticator to lock me out (!).
I got everything restored, and my character was there with all his equipment, including the guild gems I’d socketed.
Blizzard is sending me an Authenticator, and my opinion is this: why not include an Authenticator in all boxed copies? Just charge $29.99 instead of $19.99 for the boxed copy and save everyone a world of pain. It’s easier if something is included rather than having to spent $7 + S/H for the device. Make it more mandatory than optional.
Okay, there was an error in my previous story about the Adobe exploit – it was 2 years ago that this exploit was going on. I did a search for “World of Warcraft” and keyloggers and got that tech thread – which was at the top of the forum. The keyloggers used some other exploit – I don’t know how, because my account wasn’t active when this happened. The hacker also used an Authenticator to lock me out (!).
I got everything restored, and my character was there with all his equipment, including the guild gems I’d socketed.
Blizzard is sending me an Authenticator, and my opinion is this: why not include an Authenticator in all boxed copies? Just charge $29.99 instead of $19.99 for the boxed copy and save everyone a world of pain. It’s easier if something is included rather than having to spent $7 + S/H for the device. Make it more mandatory than optional.
lol XD the end of the episode was very funny
lol XD the end of the episode was very funny
Well, if you want prisoners to be unruly and beligerent, just give them bread and water, and use thumbscrews and pillories to keep them in line – or did you ever hear of “Attica” before?
It won’t matter – ex-cons will never get a break, even when they get high school or college diplomas while doing time.
As for Diplomacy, I seldom say this, but you’re playing it WRONG. Diplomacy is about making deals. For example, you ask for help and promise future help – then screw them to the wall if you see a chance to win. Fail, and they’ll team up with people to screw you. That’s why the PC version didn’t do well – you can’t simulate that correctly online.
I ran a play by postal mail baseball league. I’m currently in a play by upload-download file baseball league now, in fact.
Well, if you want prisoners to be unruly and beligerent, just give them bread and water, and use thumbscrews and pillories to keep them in line – or did you ever hear of “Attica” before?
It won’t matter – ex-cons will never get a break, even when they get high school or college diplomas while doing time.
As for Diplomacy, I seldom say this, but you’re playing it WRONG. Diplomacy is about making deals. For example, you ask for help and promise future help – then screw them to the wall if you see a chance to win. Fail, and they’ll team up with people to screw you. That’s why the PC version didn’t do well – you can’t simulate that correctly online.
I ran a play by postal mail baseball league. I’m currently in a play by upload-download file baseball league now, in fact.
Yes, I did mean staving my face in. I expected to have a sudden desire to grab the nearest blunt object and bludgeon myself.
Moving on, the DS won’t help the inmates. How many people get Big Brain Academy or Dr Kawashima, and try to get addicted to it, only to leave the cart gathering dust.
I’m sure the prisons already have access to those things made of paper. I think they call them books! And I’m sure its only a matter of time before the occasional visitor isnt smuggling crack in, but Mario Kart.
Yes, I did mean staving my face in. I expected to have a sudden desire to grab the nearest blunt object and bludgeon myself.
Moving on, the DS won’t help the inmates. How many people get Big Brain Academy or Dr Kawashima, and try to get addicted to it, only to leave the cart gathering dust.
I’m sure the prisons already have access to those things made of paper. I think they call them books! And I’m sure its only a matter of time before the occasional visitor isnt smuggling crack in, but Mario Kart.