Video Games Review

Sony PlayStation 3 Move controller

October 16th, 2010 - No Comments

The problem with the Move is that it does not quite make me move enough.

The Move is Sony PlayStation 3′s (PS3) new controller that adds motion-sensing capabilities, similar to what the Wii remote controller does.

It is great if you are playing games that require you to control a device without requiring other body parts – like your legs – to move too, like with golf and table tennis games.

However, because Sony’s system tracks controller movement and not your entire body (unlike Microsoft’s upcoming Kinect system), it just does not give me the complete experience and exercise I look for in motion-sensing games.

The Move looks like a tennis racket grip – without the rest of the racket. Attached to one end is a white rubbery ball which can change colours in response to the game.

A PS3 camera, called Eye, tracks the movement of the light emanating from the sphere so the game knows if you are moving backwards or forwards, or how much force you are using when wielding the Move.

I was very impressed with the tracking accuracy, which is much better than the Wii controller. While playing the Sports Champion game suite, I was able to consistently top spin ping pong balls, fire arrows at their targets and throw frisbees accurately.

Not so intuitive

However, it is still far from a being complete motion-sensing game experience. Take Gladiator, which is one of the games in Sports Champion. In the game, I wielded two Moves, representing a melee weapon and a shield, to battle another computer-controlled warrior. By swinging the Moves, I could slash at my opponents and block their blows.

But the Move was also used to control my body – and this was when gaming with the Move felt unnatural. To dodge left or right requires me to hit different buttons on the controller. It is just not intuitive, unlike the Kinect with which you actually dodge with your body to convey the action.

Nevertheless, the Move worked well in some games, like Tiger Woods’ PGA Tour 11, where you can swing and putt by swinging with the controller, instead of pushing thumbsticks on the gamepad.

The Move edition of Eye Pet, in which the Move controller can become a shower head, a hair dryer and other tools to interact with your virtual pet, was also fun.

Using Move in another game Ruse, a top-down strategy game where you have to move tanks around a map, was a disappointment. In this game, I would normally use the left thumbstick on the PS3 gamepad to move around the map and the right thumbstick to select where I wanted to move my units to.

The Move merely took over the function of the right thumbstick, and hence did nothing to improve interactivity.

I was disappointed that Sony did not change the PS3 dashboard to a simple point-and-click menu to take advantage of Move’s motion-sensing capabilities. To navigate within the dashboard, I have to press the trigger button on the Move, then move the controller around to navigate the convoluted sub-menus within the dashboard.

Adding up the cost

Some games worked better with two Move controllers instead of one, like Gladiator and Archery games in Sports Champion. Using one controller in Archery, you have to hold the trigger button and bring your hand to the nape of your neck to draw an arrow. You aim at the target by pointing the controller in the right direction. To fire, you release the trigger button.

This way of cueing up a shot felt more like the action involved in shooting a crossbow instead of a longbow. With two controllers, one acted as a bow and the other the string.

Cost can also add up with the Move system. For two-player games, you will need four Move controllers for the best experience. Together with the $49 Eye camera, you are looking at almost $330 just for the hardware – more than half the price of the PS3 console.

When you consider that the upcoming Microsoft Kinect sensor bar – which delivers a no-controller and full body motion-sensing paradigm – costs $229, my take is to wait for Kinect to arrive in November before deciding whether you should splash out on the Move.

Get the PlayStation Move Starter Bundle now.