#8 Microsoft, Sony Go in Motion
After the Wii Remote was officially unveiled by Nintendo in 2006, many thought it would be just a matter of time until Microsoft and Sony came up with dedicated motion controllers of their own. Sure enough, at E3 2009, we got the first glimpse at Project Natal and the PlayStation Gem... HandToy... whatever. While Sony mulls the proper name for their motion controller, the technology definitely seems solid; the combination of a controller plus the PlayStation eye means precise controls and creative graphical manipulations on screen. Natal has excellent potential to not just be a fun game peripheral but also to change the way we interact with game consoles forever. We can't wait to get our hands on both of them.
#7 Setting Sun for Japanese Gaming?
This generation has caused a bit of consternation for Japanese developers; the nation's prominence as perhaps the leading gaming development capital of the world has doubtlessly been toppled with the country's releases taking a smaller and smaller share of the worldwide pie. Additionally, the first half of 2009 saw another decline and the conventional game market appears to be shrinking. Keiji Inafune had a starker appraisal at Tokyo Game Show, saying 'Man, Japan is over. We're done. Our game industry is finished' and the show's lowest attendance in four years lent some weight to his claims. With interest in Japan diminishing, many developers seem to be looking to the West for an audience. We also hope that certain high quality Western titles find a home in Japan, as Square Enix and EA have tried to do; the exchange of ideas is vital to keeping the industry’s games fresh and it'd be nice to see the flow of innovation move in both directions across the Pacific.
4 Comments
December 21, 2009
Sorry about midway and especially about eidos going with square enix. They were big when I really somewhat cared about gaming during sega and ps1 times.
Pspstop, how clever.
Guess we should be grateful for #13.
slim & Okay i'd say. The big old 6 gig is a lot more attractive imo.
Anyway way very good list. Motion controls, price cuts and music games. #1 and 2 stand out but it's especially good to read 2.
December 23, 2009
Best story has to be #2. Really more like an epiphany for the industry though. Core-gamers are sustainable sources of revenue unlike the generally whimsical casual crowd.
December 23, 2009
I meant 60 gig. I think I need recharge my keyboard batteries lol.
January 4, 2010
Yep gamers, your commitment to your hobby of choice pays off. Congrats!