Rumored WiiMote imitation for Xbox 360 might spoil Wii’s party
An MTV article quotes an anonymous source as saying that a Xbox 360 version of the WiiMote has been under development since last summer and will be launched by the end of 2008.
The source went as far as providing MTV with a sketch of the last prototype of the new motion-sensing controller for the Xbox 360 that it claims to have seen. The controller’s design bears a striking resemblance to the WiiMote.
The anonymous source also revealed that the project commenced last August (2007) and Microsoft has entrusted the development and design of the new controller to Rare Studios, the developer behind Perfect Dark Zero and Banjo-Kazooie.
The development process is not going smoothly and Rare is struggling with deadlines, according to the source. “They want the usual assortment of ‘Halo’/ ‘Gears’/ ‘Forza’/ whatever, just in waggle form,” the source told MTV. To boot, he talked about how Microsoft plans to heavily plug the motion-sensing controller. There has been no denial or confirmation of this rumor from Microsoft’s end.
Many people believe that the motion-sensing Xbox 360 controller, if it really exists, is too late to be a success. On the contrary, I believe the time is ideal for such a controller as the Xbox 360 is beginning to steadily loose momentum in the console race. It now needs something new, if not completely innovative, to regain lost ground.
One way Microsoft can attract gamers is by drastically reducing Xbox 360’s price, but a price-cut will be a short-term solution. However, a motion-sensing 360 controller will hurt the Wii in the long run as the Xbox 360 will then have a lot more to offer: a gratifying casual game experience that rivals the Wii, Xbox Live, undoubtedly the best game library among the 7th gen consoles, and better graphics than the Wii.
Currently gamers are ready to overlook Wii’s graphical shortcomings due to its unique gaming experience. And, let’s face it, the Wii gaming experience revolves around only one thing, the WiiMote. So, if Xbox 360 has a motion-sensing remote, the Wii gaming experience will no longer remain unique and gamers will not overlook the Wii’s shortcomings all that easily.
Read [MTV] Via [Game Daily]
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Not gonna work. Wii comes with a Wiimote, 360 doesn’t. A game changing peripheral either has to come with a system (Wii) OR it has to come with a big headline game (Guitar Hero / Rock Band) otherwise it won’t make an impact.
on April 9, 2008 at 08:19 PM - LINK@MacHarborGuy: I know where you are coming from. But the rumored Wii-mote type controller is not going to be game specific, This will eat some of Wii’s market because, if you see the larger picture, the Wii shortage seems endless. Many people will tell themselves,“Why wait for the Wii when I can have a similar gaming experience on the Xbox 360 and much more?“ It will also come down to the way Microsoft can market it. But yours is a fair point to the extent that the pricing and marketing better be right. It should come bundled with the console.
on April 10, 2008 at 06:37 AM - LINK