N-Philes

The majority of videogames out there have us users manipulating a character, or set of characters, to perform tasks, accomplish goals, and ultimately complete whatever scenario the developer throws our way. Other games will have you positioning blocks, driving vehicles, and hitting buttons in specific sequences to advance. All games, however, have at least one thing in common: control. Nintendo has innovated the control aspect of videogames since day one with its directional pad, shoulder buttons, analog stick, rumble pak, and touch screen. As others are looking for more intuitive control layouts, Nintendo is onto something different.


Hey You, Jump!

The Xbox has a microphone. Its main use is for players to communicate with each other in an online game environment. The Playstation has a microphone. Some games like SOCOM use it for in-game vocal commands, while the unique title Lifeline uses the microphone exclusively for gameplay. The GameCube has a microphone. To date, only Mario Party 6 uses this peripheral.

One of the earliest applications for a microphone in videogames was not with Karaoke Revolution, not Hey You, Pikachu!, but dates back to the Famicom days, though, probably because of technological barriers, very few games used it.

Finally, with titles like Electroplankton and Nintendogs, we're seeing how the microphone on the DS, and games in general, can be used beyond simple minigames requiring blowing as a means of sound input and communication with other players playing the game.

It was always my personal belief that the GameCube should have had a standard microphone from day one, with voice recognition resources for developers. Why? The more ways players can interact with a game, the more they, and developers, can get out of that experience. So, where does the Revolution fit in?

Nintendo of late are all about fresh gaming experiences, and pulling more non-gamers into the universe of interactive entertainment. The DS and its ‘non-games' is one approach they've taken to fulfill that objective, and the Revolution is another. Nintendo has stated that a microphone will not be a defining feature of the Revolution. Fortunately, that doesn't mean that it will not be a component.


Jerk the Controller to Avoid an Attack

Kirby's Tilt n' Tumble for Game Boy Color is a really unique game experience. It requires players to tilt the Game Boy in order to move Kirby alone the obstacle-filled tracks. This is made possible through various tilt sensor technologies. Nintendo has also used a similar control style for the GBA's Wario Ware: Twisted and Yoshi's Universal Gravitation. These games require players to rotate and tilt the Game Boy in order to complete objectives. One Title, Roll-O-Rama for GameCube, was supposed to use the GBA, with a tilt sensor-equipped game pak, as a paddle for a Tilt n' Tumble-inspired game. Of course, if the controller were equipped with this feature, one needn't worry about GCN-GBA connectivity.

How amazing would it be if this technology were adapted to Super Monkey Ball? How intuitive would it be to jerk the controller towards yourself to avoid enemy attacks in Super Smash Bros.? How simple would it be to tilt the controller to peek around a corner in any first-person shooter? The Revolution may answer these questions.

Gyration Technologies, according to their website, has developed a gyroscopic sensor that "which can accurately sense the motion of your hand or body. This gives you a new freedom from your desktop, which is enhanced by a robust, long range Radio Frequency design for cordless operation." The company developed, and currently sells a product called the MicroGyro 100, a low cost gyroscope "optimized for easy integration into input devices, computer mice or remote controls."

In 2001, Gyration announced a partnership with none other than Nintendo. According to the press release, "Nintendo will become an active investment partner by purchasing an undisclosed amount of Gyration stock. In exchange, Nintendo will gain access to Gyration research and development in the areas of motion-sensing and wireless RF technologies." Was this simply for gyro-enhanced Game Boy games, or could the Revolution be the true benefactor of this partnership?


Personal Screens, Game Boy Not Required

2004 saw two titles to really push GCN-GBA connectivity: Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles and Zelda: Four Swords. Throw in Pac Man Vs. and you have the three titles that actually tried to use it well. The problem with these three games is that the game doesn't use the Game Boy for anything other than its screen. Other games like Animal Crossing, Harvest Moon, and Sonic merely rewarded you for owning both systems.

There are many games out there that could actually benefit from each player having their own screen. With games like Pokemon and Madden, it is quite clear how hiding your strategies can be useful. Multiplayer RPG games could use a second screen for seemless and uncluttered item management. Any adventure game could use a detailed map without having to pause stop gameplay to glance at it. If you throw touch screen technology into the mix, it opens up a whole new, simplified world to menus, customization, and even gameplay itself.

There has been some rumor about the Revolution controller being a touch screen paddle, completely developer-customizable, but the issue here is that there is more learning involved here: the player needs to learn a whole new controller, essentially, before being able to play a game.

Alternatively, if Nintendo were to push for it, could include a screen attached to each controller so that developers have a dual-screened console as well as a portable counterpart. If it were to be a touch screen, it would have input functionality as well as display functionality. While it would increase cost, it would also open up a whole new dynamic, while simultaneously making it easier for developers to create a DS version of a console game.


Outlook

Voice, gyro, and touch screen technologies are the obvious next steps that the home console market could pick up on to allow developers to explore new control possibilities. Nintendo has expressed that is wishes to expand the market to include those who currently do not play video games. So the real question is, would all these additions make it easier for the ‘non-gamer' or would it complicate things and further suppress them?

The answer to this lies in a statement Nintendo made at the Game Developer's Conference: franchises drive software sales, and software drives hardware sales. Existing franchises are for the gamers, and will always be there. New types of games, new software, can be created using these new methods of control that can inspire not only the gamer to try something new, but for the non-gamer to experience interactive entertainment at a level they are comfortable with. Just maybe, with new hardware in their living rooms, the non-gamer will explore the games that gamers play, and enjoy them as much as the gamer does.