Nintendo and Sony announced nothing at their respective E3 gala presentations yesterday as omigod-if-this-works-I-think-I-may-have-just-glimpsed-the-future impressive as Microsoft's Spielberg-endorsed Project Natal. (Seriously, as a friend pointed out to me, the thing is like watching the earliest version of the holodeck from Star Trek: The Next Generation, except actually frickin' real.) But that didn't stop Microsoft's competitors from trying super hard to top Natal.
Along with announcing games including Super Mario Galaxy 2, Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini's March Again, and New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Nintendo trotted out what they're calling Wii Motion Plus, a small cube that plugs into the bottom of your Wiimote, allowing the controller extra sensitivity. Nintendo showed off the add-on doohickey by demo-ing a sequel-of-sorts to their insanely popular Wii Sports, called Wii Sports Resort, which lets players take on games requiring subtle, complex movement, like hitting some ping pong, slicing a sword and shooting an arrow. At the very least, the game (out July 26) looked enticing enough to get those who still only use their Wii's to play tennis and go bowling to actually shell out for another game. But the company's claims that the Wii Motion Plus will revolutionize videogaming would be slightly less dubious if they hadn't announced Wii Sports Resort and Wii Motion Plus at last year's E3. Weirder still, the Nintendo folks pretended like those announcements last year had never even happened.
And it's Sony's games that really, truly impressed. From the supple renaissance-era details of Assassin's Creed II to the haunting storybook scope of The Last Guardian to the epic brutality of God of War III, it's becoming more and more clear just why videogames make so much more money than even the most successful Hollywood blockbusters. Nintendo's games looked like they were super fun to play, but it was dry as toast watching other people play them. Not so Sony's games; shot and paced like top-of-the-line movies, I could happily watch someone else playing these (quite intimidatingly complex) games for hours. To wit, embedded below is the (slightly NSFW) demo for the PS3's Uncharted 2: Among Thieves — tell me by the end you aren't thinking it's more fun than Terminator Salvation and X-Men Origins: Wolverine combined. (For comparison, after the jump I've embedded the demo for Nintendo's new Super Mario Bros. Wii — tell me how long you lasted before clicking "stop.")
Natal is cool yet gimmicky. How can this truly move into the games we really play and love. I may not speak for everyone, but who wants Street Fighter for a half an hour when you have to do all the work. I have a gym membership for that. I play games to unwind not to workout.
I felt just the opposite watching these clips. The PS3 game felt exactly like watching Terminator Salvation or Wolverine, but with EVEN LESS story. Boring. But I’m sure it’s awesome to play. With all the busy, weirdo crap going on in super Mario Bros., I can imagine having fun even just watching. I watched the hole SMB video without ever looking at the clock. Not so, the PS3 game.
No mention of Golden Sun DS? For me, that was the most squeal worthy announcement so far (it’s been 6 years now since the last installment). Seriously, between that, FF XIV being a PS3 exclusive (though I believe it’s also being released on PC), and the announcement that a new Zelda for the Wii would be released in 2010 I was giddy as a school girl. As for Natal…eh. Sure it looks cool but the same can be said for Sony’s new motion sensor and if this is like any other Microsoft product, it will be rushed to market half-assed.
You forgot Metroid! And the new Zelda that Miyamoto announced at his roundtable!
They also left out WiiFit Plus which looks like it may sell just as well as WiiFit.
Yeah, the MS press conference seems to have trumped the others. The PSP Go is a fail, but I might consider getting a Wii when new SMB and Metroid come out.
Yeah, the MS press conference seems to have trumped the others. The PSP Go is a fail, but I might consider getting a Wii when new SMB and Metroid come out.
Wow, this article definitely tells me your just not a big fan of Nintendo in general.
And you and some 15-35 year old males might find these epic movie games more enticing to watch others play, but for the majority of us, not so much.
Not trying to be considerably biased here, but New Super Mario Bros. Wii looks considerably more fun to play than Uncharted 2 to a lot more (i.e. Females) people.
Wow, this article definitely tells me your just not a big fan of Nintendo in general.
And you and some 15-35 year old males might find these epic movie games more enticing to watch others play, but for the majority of us, not so much.
Not trying to be considerably biased here, but New Super Mario Bros. Wii looks considerably more fun to play than Uncharted 2 to a lot more (i.e. Females) people.
Agreed with Mister F. Videogames are more meant to be played than watched. It’s a common yet sad and misguided judgment call whenever “cinematic” is said to trump “non-cinematic”. Every real gamer knows that cinematics are merely secondary to the actual gameplay, and unfortunately at times get in the way of said gameplay.
What a crap article tbh. Could you be more Sony biased ??? I bet you didnt grow up in the 80′s where we learned that GAMEPLAY is what make good games and not fancy graphics. The sad part about this, is that most 12-15 year olds share your vision.
This can’t be serious. This is one of the most idiotic things any commentator has ever see.
Yes children, let us judge our interactive entertainment by how fun it is to watch, not to interact with!
On the other hand, this does show that the strategy 40-million-dollar-a-game publishers take does work: people who have no idea at all what they’re doing in the videogame aisle will be enticed by something that looks just like a movie: something they’re familiar with and understand.
That said, there’s nothing /wrong/ per say with a game being fun to play and fun to watch. But it’s the fun to play part that actually matters. Whether or not a game is fun for the audience is utterly irrelevant at the end of the day.
Wow Uncharted vs New Super Mario Bros
Talk about comapring Apples to Oranges. Why not compare it to Metroid? Also I find it much more fun to watch people playing games when they’re involved in a competitive multiplayer experience (Super Mario Bros) than when they’re meandering through a single player adventure. (Uncharted) So while the flashy hollywood inspired Uncharted trailer may be fun to watch, My friend playing the actual game would rate slightly above the level of watching paint dry. Although I’d rather watch someone play Uncharted than be forced to watch Wolverine or Terminator Salvation.
BTW I finished the entire Mario video. It looks like a fun game you should try it.