Nintendo's E3 conference is still a day away, but it looks like they wanted to make a preemptive strike against the rumored motion control announcements from their console competitors. Today, Nintendo announced Wii MotionPlus, an add-on for the "revolutionary" Wii remote that promises more accurate motion controls. How accurate? "Every slight movement players make with their wrist or arm is rendered identically in real time on the screen, providing a true 1:1 response in their game play."
Well, that's nice, but isn't that what we were all expecting from the original Wii remote two years ago?
Since this was only just announced, there isn't much info available on the Wii MotionPlus just yet (I expect we'll hear all about it at Nintendo's press conference tomorrow), but already the reactions are strong from gamers. While the Wii is still the least expensive console of the current generation, its accessories can put a real strain on your wallet, and nobody wants to buy another one that they don't really need. How will this new add-on be made available? Will Nintendo send it out for free to registered Wii owners just like they did for the replacement remote wrist straps and the condom-like remote jackets? Will there be new jackets to fit around the remote AND the MotionPlus, as there appears to be in the above image? Will other add-on controllers still fit into it? It looks like the MotionPlus still has an accessory port for the Nunchuck and Classic Controller (only this time it seems to have a door over the socket, a wise decision), but will this fit into the Wii Zapper, Wii Wheel or Guitar Hero guitar? It doesn't look like it will, so let's hope none of the games that use those need "an unmatched level of precision and immersion."
Also, I'm going to speak for all the Nintendo fanboys and say that the MotionPlus should not come packaged seperately or even with new Wii Remotes, but rather should be built-in to all Wii Remotes sold from this point on. Come to think of it, it sure would be nice if, rather than release yet another accessory that will disrupt the form function of the remote, Nintendo would offer some sort of exchange policy so that we could return our old and obsolete Wii Remotes for ones with the newer, better motion control and the same size and shape without throwing away our old tech. I know this would be difficult for them, and probably most consumers, but I, at least, frequent the Nintendo World Store in New York City, and they should be able to do this.
Finally, this all comes down to whether or not the accessory is even worthwhile. Sure, there are lots of games on the Wii where the motion control isn't as precise as you'd like. Will this accessory fix those old games, or will we have to wait months and see if Call of Duty 5 or The Conduit make the MotionPlus truly worthwhile? The whole gaming world will be watching you tomorrow, Nintendo. Go up on stage and show Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Cooking Mama: Cook Off or even Red Steel with noticably improved motion controls thanks to this little dongle. Prove to us that this is a good idea.
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