New PlayStation Camera, Hasbro Agreement for Sony
April 26, 2007
Sony has announced the PlayStation Eye camera for the PS3, which should debut this summer with bundled EyeCreate software.
As key features of the upgraded Eye camera peripheral, Sony lists a more sophisticated microphone (4 channel audio, 48kHz) with the ability to reduce background noise and focus on spoken word for smoother, more accurate speech recognition, and a re-engineered lens with higher resolution input (640 x 480 at 60fps) to better perform in low-light conditions, a faster frame rate, a two-position zoom lens for close-up and full body options, and free EyeCreate editing software, which allows users to save, edit, and add visual effects to photos, video and audio clips.
EyeCreate also enables user to capture videos and audio clips directly to the PS3’s hard disk drive and access a range of different capturing modes, including slow motion and time-lapse. Pricing for the peripheral has not yet been revealed.
Announced simultaneously was that Hasbro’s Wizards of the Coast will provide content for one of the debut titles to use the PlayStation Eye, the camera-based CCG The Eye of Judgment. WoTC already produces major CCG Magic: The Gathering, and under the agreement, Hasbro will create, manufacture and distribute the trading cards associated with The Eye of Judgment video game.
In the game itself, through use of a 3 x 3 board and trading cards, each encrypted with CyberCode, players conquer the field by selecting a card and placing the coded card in front of the PlayStation Eye for their respective creatures to come to life and battle. Each creature has various skills which will determine the outcome of the battle. Players take turns placing cards as they jostle for control of the board; the winner is the first player to conquer five of the nine fields. The game is slated for release in fall 2007.
Piranha Releases Wii Gun
April 25, 2007
Third-party games peripheral manufacturer Piranha Accessories has launched the first gun accessory for Wii.
The first gun expansion controller shown for Wii was Nintendo’s own (pictured below) which looked more like a shotgun, and Nintendo has said nothing about it since. Piranha Accessories, however, isn’t holding back for Nintendo and released its own gun expansion. The W14 Gun works in a similar way to Nintendo’s zapper; just clip the Wii Remote into the front of it so that the Remote’s sensor is aimed at the screen.
As of right now, there are no price or availability details on Piranha’s site, but the gun is said to be available now for $19.99 (around £14) - if you manage to get your hands on one. The W14 Wii gun from Piranha is already being talked about as a cool new option for Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles.
The W14 Wii gun (pioctured below) features a rubber coating for a better grip, a realistic design, a real trigger, a Wii Nunchuck and Remote in one, safe and strong hold for the Remote, and Plug & Play accessibility.
A Wii Microphone???
March 13, 2007
An anonymously written blog claims that “several insider sources” have confirmed that 1) Nintendo will release a microphone attachment for the Wii, 2) several microphone-enabled games are being developed, and 3) a new Wii Channel will utilize the microphone peripheral.
The anonymous site indicates that Disney’s karaoke sim, High School Musical, is one game that will use the microphone. Disney has commented that “an announcement will be made within the next few weeks” regarding these rumors. Nintendo UK insiders, however, have deemed the news “pure rumor and speculation.”
It has also been rumored that the next Harry Potter game on Wii will come with a microphone attachment.
Although the microphone itself hasn’t been officially confirmed, Disney’s has sent out official information regarding High School Musical: “With two all-new karaoke games on Wii and Sony PlayStation2, fans of all ages will extend their High School Musical experience as they never have before. They’ll sing their way through the original hit movie - solo or as a duet - plus perform all of the songs from High School Musical 2 and other bonus tracks from popular Disney Channel artists.” So if you’ll be singing, surely you’ll need a microphone, right?
For what it’s worth, this is not the first time that rumors have swirled around the notion of a Wii microphone; Nintendo itself once said that the microphone was one of many considerations for the Wii Remote, with the internal speaker being the company’s final decision.
Stay tuned for when Video Game Buttons officially confirms the Wii microphone!
Sony Europe Reveals PS3 Launch Specifics
January 25, 2007
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe has officially unveiled its PS3 launch date and prices for the UK, revealing a 60GB-only March 23 lkick-off at £425 ($842). The continental European price for the console is 599 Euros ($778), and the Australian price is set at $999 Australian ($791 U.S.).
As previously rumored, the UK launch will only include the 60GB model (1 million units of which are being made available the first day), rather than the choice between the 20GB and 60GB models launched in Japan and the USA.
SCEE says the single model launch is in response to ‘retail and consumer demand.’ The 20GB model, says SCEE, will be offered later in the year.
SCEE has also said that the European PlayStation Network will offer a full selection of downloadable titles, including Gran Turismo HD Concept and a localized version of Tekken: Dark Resurrection, previously only available to Japan and Hong Kong. Go! Sudoku, Go!, Puzzle, Blast Factor, and flOw are also promised for day-one availability.
The full game list supplied by SCEE, including both network and Blu-ray-based games, is as follows (alphabetically!):
Blast Factor
Blazing Angels Squadrons of WWII
Call of Duty 3
Def Jam: Icon
Enchanted Arms
F.E.A.R.
Fight Night Round 3
flOw
Formula One Championship Edition
Full Auto 2: Battle Lines
Genji: Days of the Blade
Go! Sudoku, Go!
Gripshift
Gundam – Target in Sight
Lemmings
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
MotorStorm
NBA 2K7
NBA Street 4 Homecourt 2007
Need for Speed Carbon
NHL 2K7
Puzzle
Resistance: Fall of Man
Ridge Racer 7
Sonic the Hedgehog
Super Rub’a’Dub
Tekken: Dark Resurrection
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
The Godfather: The Don’s Edition
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2007
Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Double Agent
Tony Hawk’s Project 8
Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom
Virtua Fighter 5
Virtua Tennis 3
World Snooker Championship 2007
SCEE has also made available pricing information for peripherals and accessories, as follows:
SIXAXIS Wireless Controller - £34.99 ($69)
Blu-ray Disc Remote Control - £17.99 ($36)
HDMI Cable - £17.99 ($36)
AV cable - £17.99 ($36)
Component AV cable - £17.99 ($36)
S Video cable - £12.99 ($26)
Nintendo Wii Straps Draw Lawsuit
December 20, 2006
To no one’s surprise, Nintendo now finds itself on the receiving end of a nationwide class action lawsuit relating to issues with the wrist strap for the Wii remote.
The class action suit has been filed by attorneys Green Welling LLP in the U.S. District Court of the Western District of Washington. According to a statement on the company’s website, the lawsuit arose “as result of the defective nature of the Nintendo Wii.” Specifically, it is claimed that the wrist straps have been prone to breaking causing the remote “to leave the user’s hand.”
The statement does not describe why the strap breaking would cause the remote to be dropped. It maintains that “Nintendo’s failure to include a remote that is free from defects is in breach of Nintendo’s own product warranty.”
The class action lawsuit seeks to enjoin Nintendo from continuing “its unfair or deceptive business practices as it relates to the Nintendo Wii.” Unfair, deceptive? I don’t know about that…
The lawsuit also seeks an injunction that requires Nintendo to correct the supposed defect in the Wii remote and to provide a refund to the purchaser “or to replace the defective Wii remote with a Wii remote that functions as it is warranted and intended.”
As previously reported, Nintendo has already offered Wii strap replacements, providing instead a new stronger version, which has begun to replace the original versions packaged with the system. According to a previous statement from the company, “Nintendo is not recalling any of the Wii wrist straps for its motion sensitive Wii Remote. There is no problem with the existing wrist strap as long as the Wii Remote is used sensibly and properly in accordance with the guidelines provided by Nintendo.”
Referring specifically to the lawsuit, Nintendo has issued a statement indicating that the lawsuit is “completely without merit.”
Nintendo Replaced Wii Strap Replacements, Recalls DS
December 15, 2006
After continued reports of them snapping during play, Nintendo Wii straps are being replaced by Ninetendo on a voluntary basis, with the company denying that any active recall is in place.
Nintendo executives responded quickly to the reports of breaking straps, with legendary developer Shigeru Miyamoto advising fans to “calm down.” Nintendo president Satoru Iwata commented, “Of course before the launch of the Wii hardware Nintendo had a number of tests on the durability of everything, including the strap, but our understanding right now is that even beyond our expectations people are becoming more and more excited playing with the Wii.”
In North American, the company is already offering to send a newly strengthened strap to any customer who applies online; the newer versions of the console shipped from the beginning of December already contain the new straps.
Nintendo of Japan has announced a recall for 200,000 AC/DC power adapters for the Nintendo DS and Nintendo DS Lite consoles. The recall involves adapters supplied by Nagano Japan Radio (JRC) between January and October this year, which could generate excessive heat and potentially cause burn injuries while charging.
Nintendo has reported nine incidents of overheating, including one where a hole was burned into the console itself. No injuries have been reported, though, and the defective adapters have not been sold outside of Japan.
LiveMove: A New AI Product for Wii
October 12, 2006
Nintendo and tools company AiLive have teamed up to produce LiveMove, a “groundbreaking Artificial Intelligence product” available to Nintendo Wii developers that enables the Wii remote to learn. The companies explain: “Instead of complicated programming, developers need only take a few minutes to train the Wii Remote by examples. LiveMove lets developers focus directly on creative work without the burden of onerous coding requirements, helping them quickly unleash the potential of Wii.”
The tool also lets designers create a LiveMove move relevant to their game “in minutes,” just by performing motions that can then easily be integrated into games. The tool can recognize up to 40 different motions on 8 Wii remotes or nunchuks simultaneously using less than 5% of the Wii CPU. Total memory usage is typically below 700K, and creators can use LiveMove to recognize any motion for their Wii title, including complicated curves and nuances.
Genyo Takeda, Senior Managing Director/General Manager of Integrated Research & Development Division, Nintendo Co., Ltd, commented, “This revolutionary tool liberates the imaginations of game creators. We are more than happy to share this collaborative LiveMove tool with independent Wii software developers all over the world. From a cowboy’s lasso to a samurai’s sword or a chef’s cooking utensils, we just can’t wait to play the developers’ new, ‘unexpected’ applications.”
According to the AiLive website, LiveMove also recognizes tennis strokes, lasso movements, sword thrusts, the writing of letters and numbers, and more. LiveMode’s “capacity” refers to the measure of how may ways of performing a movement the machine can recognize. LiveMode capacity can be set high, and a higher capacity means that more contexts can be created to learn all the details of the training set.
LiveMove also features a “slack” controller setting. A high slack setting will more easily classify fuzzy or inaccurate movements as vaild ones. A very high slack setting can yield “false positives,” which, as the site explains, can be good and bad. In a boxing game, for example, any punch is better than nothing and can be effective. In a stealth action game, however, false positives can be dangerous since a “wrong” move may set off an alarm or something of that nature.
Finally, LiveMode tuning allows a players “to further genralize and enhance a recognizer by providing their own examples of the moves when they’re playing the game.” The players’ examples, however, must match the essential form of the moves and are then used in creating additional contexts. As a result, you wind up with a fast recognizer from the developer that the player customizes at run time to yield incredibly accurate, personalized recognition.
ChillStream Technology for PS3
October 6, 2006
Logitech officials have revealed the company’s upcoming PlayStation 3 ChillStream controller, which makes use of Logitech’s patented ChillStream technology currently featured in its line of PC game controllers. ChillStream technology is designed to keep a player’s hands cool by way of a fan built into the controller fan. The fan will circulate up to 3.41 cubic feet of air every minute and will generate very little noise, Logitech promises. Three vents on each side of the controller push air out 
onto the player’s hands in a high or low setting (or turned off altogether). The Logitech PS3 controller will be available in metallic silver or glossy black and will retail for a suggested $39.99 in the U.S. It will also be available in Japan and Asia when the PlayStation 3 ships in November. “The PlayStation 3 is sure to be a powerful gaming platform and we are pleased to offer a range of peripherals available at launch,” said Ruben Mookerjee, Logitech’s director of product marketing for gaming. “And by extending our ChillStream technology to a controller designed for PlayStation 3, we are able ensure that gamers will have the best experience and play with one of the most advanced technologies on the market.” Logitech has also confirmed that several of its products already on the market, including the Logitech Driving Force Pro wheel, will be fully compatible with Sony’s upcoming PS3 console.
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