What's Your Opinion On Motion Control?

Hayden

It seems to be becoming the new trend - motion control - with the Nintendo Wii, Playstation's new Move, the EyeToy from several years ago, and now the new Kinect technology for the Xbox 360, and the various other short-lived/to be short-lived gimmicky motion-control crap that's being introduced into the gaming market.

I, quite frankly, am not fond of motion control; from what I've experienced of it, I've found it irritating, flawed, and have found it to actually detract from the gaming experience. I agree mostly with Yahtzee Croshaw's general opinion of "more movement ruins/lessens the immersion". I think that motion control is quite unnecessary, as we've gotten by fine (well, more than fine) with regular button-controllers.

Besides, people usually play games to relax and unwind, and actual movement doesn't generally allow the player to do so. And relaxation and lack of movement are usually linked to immersion; if you want to get lost in the game, and get lost within the world in which it takes, then flailing you limbs or wiggling your hands isn't exactly going to help. Of course, one may argue that motion control helps to enhance sport games, as motion control 'gives a better portrayal/representation' of what it's actually like to play that particular sport than you get from pushing buttons. However, motion control is rarely even a partially accurate portrayal of what it's like to play sport, since the players actions are never perfectly and directly recreated by your avatar on the screen (from my experience); it not accurate at all, and half the time the person who actually plays that sport well in real life will fail miserably upon their first few tries.

So, in its current state, motion control can't deliver the same experience as actually playing a real sport, and even if it succeeds in doing so, then why is it any better than playing the sport in real life anyway? So, overall, motion control ruins immersion, it's often frustrating, playing sport can't even partially be recreated realistically through motion control, and even if technology were developed to the point where it was able to do so, it would be pointless when you can just as easily play that sport in real life... So what the hell is motion control good for? Parties, and that's about it. It's a party toy; it's unfit for proper (or hardcore, if you want to use that word) gaming, it's not revolutionary, and it's not the future of gaming (despite it being marketed as that).

But anyway, that's just my opinion, but I'd like to hear yours. What your opinion of motion control? Is it a revolution or a step forward in gaming, or is it just another pointless gimmick? Should it be abandoned, or should the technology be developed further? Can further improvement actually lead to motion control being not-sucky, or will it always fall short of classic button-based control? Discuss below.

GuruGuru214

I enjoy it when it's used properly, and it bothers me when it's not. Metroid Prime 3 demonstrates both types of example. Most of the game is amazing. The Metroid Prime series and the Wii Remote's pointer were made for each other. The combat system is so intuitive and I absolutely love it.

But then you have the goddamn gimmicks. Door locks that require you to draw the remote back, twist it, and push it forward and that kind of bullshit. That is when it goes wrong.

As such, I enjoy playing the original Metroid Prime via Metroid Prime Trilogy much more than I enjoy Metroid Prime 3, as great of a game as that is. The original game was so good anyway, and it was designed without the gimmicks in mind, and the gimmicks weren't added in when it was ported, so it gained all the benefits of the pointer aiming system with none of the motion control gimimck drawbacks.

So as far as what I've experienced, my feeling is that it's wonderful when used properly, but very bad when not used properly. And the same applies to most all aspects of entertainment.

That said, I don't know how to feel about the Kinect and Move. i see Kinect getting very tiring very quickly, and I mostly just don't see the appeal of that. It's a gimmick, plain and simple, and it's a very expensive one at that.

The Move is in more of a gray area for me. It's much more akin to the Wiimote, but also different. I haven't actually seen one in person and have seen only a few demonstrations, but from what I gather, it's a lot like the Kinect but with only one point of camera recognition, a tilt sensor, and buttons. From what I've seen, it looks like developers are making the same mistakes made in the early days of the Wii (and fairly often now, even), making games that require so much movement, you can't remain sitting while you play them.

And that's the worst part. So many games that feature motion control seem to pander to the lowest common denominator: the casual gamer. It's why the Wii has a much higher ratio of shovelware (some of it first-party, even) to quality games compared to older systems. I feel the same applies to the DS and its touch controls, which are a similar situation to motion controls: brilliant when well-executed, but a bad thing otherwise.

Gman5852

Yeah if you look at my wii library you will see games like smash bros, twilight princess, and Goldeneye.
What do those games have in common.
They barely have any motion control.
There are games I actually want to use motion control on. For instance Skyward Swords motion controls looks great.
As for PS move, what changes gameplay wise to the Wii remote? Nothing but a pink bell.

Then there is a kinect where the only game Ive found that it truly works on is Kinect Sports which is a lot of fun, but I can only play a couple games and then have to stop for a breather which is not something needed for a video game.

And now the 3ds actually has motion controls. That Ill see if is good when I actually get that game.

jeeno0142

I'm not really that fond of motion control, but I do have a wii. Just like Gman, pretty much all of my games don't really require much in the way of me moving though. The only thing I really use the motion for is the wii fit and wii sports to help me keep in shape. Otherwise, when I game I just want to have fun. Not wear myself out.

I can't really say much about the kinect or move as I don't have them. I did get the chance to try the Kinect in a store though, some sort of football game. I didn't exactly walk away wanting one so I reckon that's just a gimmick that'll die out. It either didn't pick up what I was doing all that well, or take my slightest movement and use it in game. Probably doesn't help that I didn't know what the controls were though.

Jennifer

I love the way Telltale's games work on the Wii. In fact, I prefer the remote and nunchuck combination used in Tales of Monkey Island over the mouse and keyboard controls on the computer. It's just a perfect fit for adventure games.

Irishmile

Its a fun option and yes sometimes its done very well. I thought it was great in heavy rain...

Some other games I still think work best with a gamepad.

Silverwolfpet

I will read the entire thread later. A quick opinion: it's too expensive.

Also, who wants to play by themselves? Why didn't they give you a cheaper double starter pack?!

I'm curious to see what games would make me really buy this thing someday. So far...not impressed by my choices.

DAISHI

I definitely see it as the future of gaming especially as the move towards the masses increases. A remote detracts from as near a gaming experience as possible. With motion, especially Kinect, you're approaching a near 1-to-1 experience. When they start integrating hologram technology is when things are going to start really heating up.

Scnew

I like them. Sort of. Games where you're standing up doing something, like WiiSports or Dance Central are great. In most any other game, though, I really hate them. I'd rather just have a normal controller then have to worry about pointing at the screen or whatever. I think the XBox and the PS3 have the right idea, in that they have motion sensors but also controllers, whereas the Wii pretty much forces you to be pointing at stuff on the screen for just about any game that isn't Super Smash Bros. I have a 360 and a Wii, and I almost never bother to plug in my Wii. Just about the only thing I play on it are old school games on the Virtual Console.

doodo!

I like it.

Irishmile

Yeah its funny that it gets you moving but gamewise it really limits what you can do.. It opens some doors for gameplay but slams shut alot of others. In its current state its nothing more than a fun peripheral. But I think its something that they will refine over time.. The Xbox controller was not built in a day... You have to acknowledge everything learned from all the game systems before it. Its actually already evolving the move is slightly more sophisticated than the Wii controllers.

swedish_jedi

I think motion controls can be great when done properly. Like Jennifer said earlier, the pointing mechanics of the Wii are great for adventure gaming and perfect for rail- and first person-shooters. I don't think motion controls hurt the immersion when done right, games like No More Heroes are great examples of how a small shake of the control can in fact enhance the experience.

What I do hate is gesture controls. Take for example the game Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings; it could have been a great game if it weren’t for the horrible controls. But somehow the developers thought that waving your arms like a spastic orangutan when fighting would be great immersive gameplay. It’s not.

So in short: When it comes to motion controls, less is more! When done right, it can be awesome. But use it lightly.

VeronicanPlay

Wii sports is fun I absolutely love to bowl on the Wii, and the slicing stuff faster than the other is also fun as I have not lost a single time on that yet.
But that is the only games I do enjoy where you have to be active, but the point of games according to me is to sit and sink into it. Jumping around waving your arms tends to distract me from the game and then it's not really interesting to me.

And I don't really find it to be family entertainment either, as I focus a lot on how idiotic I look when I do it.