Will Anything Ever Replace Traditional Gaming Methods?
See Full ImageSo the NGP is here, both Sony and Microsoft have joined the motion-sensing movement, consoles are closer to PCs and full multimedia home entertainment machines than ever before, and the multiplayer boom has changed the face of the industry forever. But will the day ever come where the traditional setup - a console, a gamepad, and a TV - be replaced by something all new?
The PlayStation Move and Kinect are advanced versions of what the Wii offered several years ago, but despite cool accessories and neat-o unique ideas for motion-based interactivity, it doesn't seem possible that any such form of interaction will replace the controller. One could argue it was more about the keyboard and mouse early on, but the dawn of this industry began before there was any such thing as a mouse. And in truth, the groundbreaking Atari isn't much different than the PlayStation 3: a system, a controller, a TV. Sure, all of that has gotten much, much better over time, and we've even added 3D into the mix, but essentially, how we play the majority of our video games hasn't changed much.
So what's next? Virtual reality? Kinect or Move times a hundred? An entire world that takes place in the lenses of glasses we put on; no TVs required? Who knows? But it all seems a ways off, and for now, despite all the many ways we can virtually interact, the traditional gaming method seems to remain the widespread favorite: pressing buttons and watching something happen on a screen. And you know, you can call me old-fashioned or whatever, but I'm perfectly fine with that. I'm just wondering when we'll see the first full shift to something else; some new technology that changes the way the majority of gamers get their entertainment.
Maybe we won't have too long to wait...
Tags: video games, gaming industry, console gaming, portable gaming
1/30/2011 9:27:23 PM Ben Dutka
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Comments (70 posts)
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 9:41:53 PM
3 up, 12 down
PasteNuggs
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 9:49:19 PM
2 up, 0 down
TheAgingHipster
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 9:56:21 PM
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WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 10:17:26 PM
2 up, 0 down
Lemon_Saint
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 10:19:14 PM
1 up, 0 down
Beamboom
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 2:05:53 AM
1 up, 0 down
maxpontiac
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 7:51:36 AM
1 up, 2 down
Temjin001
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 9:48:51 PM
Reply
0 up, 0 down
SayWord
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 9:55:09 PM
0 up, 0 down
Temjin001
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 10:05:05 PM
Confused yet? I think I am lol
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SayWord
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 10:17:01 PM
2 up, 0 down
TheAgingHipster
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 9:49:21 PM
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DemonNeno
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 10:10:04 PM
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To consider what change may come is a tough question. Perhaps when something more wicked, yet compact becomes mainstream, that change will come. I can see controls built into visual devices becoming a possibility. Like thought tracking glasses..
I can't give in too much thought towards it because I'm getting a headache just thinking about it! Haha.. Ahh, I crack myself up!
1 up, 1 down
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 10:20:27 PM
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Besides, games didn't replace books or movies (though they might have for certain individuals) so maybe new gaming rigs will just be extensions of gaming. Hell I'd love a holodeck, but I couldn't keep up a real live game of Uncharted. I would fall every time.
2 up, 0 down
Qubex
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 6:47:22 AM
I just wish I had more time and more money, I guess I will have a huge library to explore in the next 5 years, and i am in no rush... considering within 6 months that some of the best titles fall by 50% in price... it really is best to wait a little and get good deals on older classics...
Q!
"play.experience.enjoy"
Last edited by Qubex on 1/31/2011 6:47:44 AM
1 up, 1 down
Mr Bubbles IGR
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 10:35:16 PM
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Last edited by Mr Bubbles IGR on 1/30/2011 10:35:34 PM
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matt99
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 10:30:28 AM
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jdt1981
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 10:41:38 PM
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1 up, 0 down
Bjorn77
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 1:55:28 AM
2 up, 0 down
Scarecrow
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 10:57:52 PM
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2 up, 4 down
crunchy_nut_kid
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 11:02:47 PM
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so its likely we will see large advancemnts in the near future. it would be cool to have virtual technology
1 up, 0 down
godsman
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 11:07:31 PM
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There's always a TV, otherwise it won't be a "video" game. It's not a board game without a board, or a card game without cards. When we finally come up with a technology that doesn't require a visual display, we'll have a different name for that game.
The input device and console will always exist, no matter if it's a physical controller or motion sensor. Even if Xbox's Kinect is built-in on the TV, an input device is still there, just not visible.
Until there is a new method in playing games, these are still necessary to video gaming.
3 up, 2 down
Scarecrow
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 11:17:29 PM
And there just really isn't anything that could replace the default set up.
There just really isn't... lol
1 up, 3 down
Highlander
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 11:22:48 PM
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In our games we can do all sorts of things that we can never do in reality. In reality, I'll never fight a troll king that's four stories tall in the middle of a plain populated by other odd monsters that need to be slain. But I can do that in a game.
Short of a direct cranial interface or star trek technology, the screen controller+system model or something like it is here to stay -IMHO.
6 up, 1 down
kraygen
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 2:11:07 AM
1 up, 1 down
NoSmokingBandit
Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 11:23:01 PM
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1 up, 0 down
Eld
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 12:26:21 AM
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Ps3 controller is probably the best one out there right now, but it has reached its limit. How much more can be added to it to expand functionality? It's an ancient device that is losing popularity, especially with newcomers to gaming world. Would you rather play a shooter with move or clunky controller? Just look at success of wii.
We may see rapid shift to other input as well as output devices as soon as new generation of consoles, which is right around the corner. This is yet another article that makes me wonder what ps4 will have to offer:)
1 up, 0 down
BikerSaint
Wednesday, February 02, 2011 @ 4:44:34 PM
Controller's are still evolving.
Case in point, just look at this new HKS Racing Controller for the PS3 that I just picked up.
It's the same size & shape as the dualshock, but it also incorporates a pressure sensitive thumb steering wheel & pressure sensitive brakes pedals
Here's the specs on it...
PRECISION CONTROL STEERING WHEEL
Pressurized racing wheel enables full rotational range for left and right turn control. automatic re-centering racing wheel utilizes center indicator, enabling full tactile control while preserving driver on-road focus.
ANALOG PRESSURE ACCELERATION AND BRAKE PEDALS
Full range pressure sensors allow real world control over gas and brake pedals. absolute control is necessary to execute the advanced heel-toe racing technique for drifting! apply full throttle for and exiting corner turns!
DIGITAL PRESSURE GAUGE
Light up numerical indicator displays your real-time pressure being applied to the accelerator and brake pedals. Dynamic digital readout incrementally displays pressure readout in every millisecond.
Now, this controller does have a bit of a learning curve and so far I've been crashing into qite a few walls because I haven't trained my mind to the completely new & different set-up way of playing with it.
But I can see that once I've got the HKS's working down pat, this will become my one and only "go-to" controller for racing, or at least until I can get a G27(or better) wheel set-up later on.
You can check out the HKS Racing Controller right here....
https://eagl3.com/product/view/hks_racing_controller
0 up, 0 down
Oyashiro
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 12:42:56 AM
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5 up, 0 down
Gordo
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 1:10:19 AM
Reply
1. Sorry I'm not interested.
2. Really, tell me more?
3. Yes, I will have that full body massage!
4. Exit...
3 up, 0 down
TheShadow
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 12:02:44 PM
with some fries on the side
Thank you
1 up, 0 down
Lawless SXE
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 1:10:35 AM
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Now, the controller, console, TV set-up that we have now is actually really good, and when you factor in the upcoming NGP it brings to light possibilities for the future in Augmented Reality. Imagine a pair of glasses capable of creating an entirely virtual landscape with which you could interact in real time. Better yet, imagine that with the ability to augment your physicality so that you could feel as though you were traversing hills and whatnot as Nate Drake does.
Or perhaps a mental stimulae device, which gets rid of the need of anything physical, planted directly into one's brain. Picture the Matrix. The current motion sensing devices are a step towards bringing us into our games in a real fashion, but imagine that, combined with the massive hamster spheres they were showing off years ago as a possible step in digital realism.
I don't think that the current set-up will ever be fully replaced, but time will come when things will change. I just hope that said change propels us in a good direction.
Peace.
Last edited by Lawless SXE on 1/31/2011 1:40:47 AM
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___________
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 1:30:36 AM
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if that means how we play our games than no, but if that means how we get our games then of course.
not for a while, but i wont be surprised to see games go digital only eventually......... then watch them cost exactly the same as they do, if not more than what they do now!
why digital versions of games are the same price or more expensive than retail versions is beyond me.
your getting no disk, no manual, no case, no cover art, but your still paying more?
i thought you were suppose to pay less for less, not more for less!
i guess even how we play our games will change.
TVs are forever evolving, controls are forever evolving.
now we use TVs tomorrow we might be using floating screens, or even holograms, or maybe VR glasses.
that would be pretty cool, removing the need for a TV and only using glasses for your tv!
only thing that really needs to change though, the only thing i really want changed is cars!
we need flying cars....... like NOW!
sydney traffic is starting to drive me freaking insane!!!!!!!
use to take me 20 minutes to drive into the city, yesterday and the day before it took me over a hour!
flying cars would make things so much quicker and easier, or even better just give us those tubes from futurama!
now thats my way of traveling!!!!!
2 up, 1 down
RadioHeader
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 6:16:22 AM
I like you really :)
4 up, 1 down
Sol
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 1:55:50 AM
Reply
Last edited by Sol on 1/31/2011 1:57:40 AM
0 up, 1 down
kraygen
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 2:14:38 AM
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Altho with controllers I'll still be able to play even if I have a broken leg, so, looks like the controller wins.
1 up, 0 down
Ignitus
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 2:29:08 AM
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Yeah, Kinect and Move can evolve times a hundred but so will game consoles. IMHO.
0 up, 1 down
Fane1024
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 2:53:21 AM
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The abstractness of using a controller to provide input actually makes it seem more real, in the same way that cartoony characters can seem more real than nearly perfect recreations due to the "uncanny valley" effect. The responsiveness and precision don't hurt either.
The holodeck produces solid terrain and objects to touch and manipulate. Unless VR can at least trick a person into believing it is touching and holding things, the experience will be less satisfying than a less direct interface (like console, screen, and controller).
Last edited by Fane1024 on 1/31/2011 2:55:16 AM
2 up, 0 down
Highlander
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 9:44:36 AM
But you know, I think I will always prefer my games to be games and not real enough to be mistaken for reality. With the exception of flight simulation or racing simulation, games do not need to so closely simulate reality.
2 up, 1 down
A2K78
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 3:15:04 AM
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"So what's next? Virtual reality?"
VR gaming "already exist"[in the arcades], but in a very limited form thanks in part to the overall cost .
Ever heard the arcade game Kido Senshi Gundam: Senjo no Kizuna? In your case probably not, but the same adopts the very VR technology used in simulators and pushed it another level. Overall shame due to the cost of the machines games like this aren't widely proliferated.
"I'm just wondering when we'll see the first full shift to something else; some new technology that changes the way the majority of gamers get their entertainment."
When? Obviously never due to the fact video game industry have become too obsessed with game budgets that rival a motion picture and playing it safe with sequels. With all that in mind, its until the video game industry go back to its to roots and focus to on gameplay(and stop trying to duplicate everything hollywood does) will we eventually replace the traditional gaming methods. Until then the video game industy as it stands is creatively bankrupt.
0 up, 1 down
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 7:32:56 PM
0 up, 0 down
CHAOS THEORY X
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 4:35:12 AM
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WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 7:42:35 AM
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3 up, 0 down
Highlander
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 10:53:35 AM
1 up, 0 down
Highlander
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 11:50:10 AM
This problem seems to have been resolved, you don't need to disable googleapis any more.
1 up, 0 down
slugga_status
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 8:15:35 AM
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0 up, 1 down
Gone
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 9:14:44 AM
Reply
3 up, 0 down
Highlander
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 9:40:46 AM
When you encounter an aggressive alien firing at the ship, you call your senior staff to your ready room, while you're under enemy fire! Kirk raised the shields and ordered the phasers and photon torpedoes to be fired, and then checked with Spock, and ordered Uhura to open hailing frequencies to ask WTH was going on.
;)
2 up, 2 down
Gone
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 9:50:02 AM
3 up, 0 down
Highlander
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 10:51:59 AM
I'm just playing, I hope you realize that. The only captain I couldn't take seriously was Scott Bakula on Enterprise. I could even take Janeway seriously, but Enterprise was a trek too far in my mind.
Last edited by Highlander on 1/31/2011 10:52:17 AM
3 up, 0 down
WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 1:07:45 PM
2 up, 0 down
Highlander
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 1:12:50 PM
1 up, 1 down
Underdog15
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 3:18:29 PM
Even if you didn't like his character, you gotta admit... he's the best and most accomplished actor that series has ever seen. (I saw him on stage once... OMG he's amazing.)
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Gone
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 4:07:42 PM
Yes, I know you are kidding. Trekkie humor.
Kirk was a playboy.
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matt99
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 10:36:15 AM
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systemdown
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 12:22:28 PM
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I don't know about anybody else, but I've been getting bored with FPSs these days. Playstation's Move has really breathed new life into the genre for me - makes a meh title like MAG into a must-play game. I'm excited to see how else stuff like the Move will be used to change up the gaming landscape.
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Highlander
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 1:12:15 PM
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That doesn't mean that other forms of control will have no place or never be significant. I think voice control has a big place in games as a shortcut way to do things. People are probably familiar with voice control in some of the FPS games where you can direct your squad with voice command. However imaging playing an RPG like White Knight Chronicles where you can select what attack or spell or command you want to do next without using the controller to flip through the menu and select, or you can call on the aid of the rest of the party with a voice command.
So I can definitely see an expanded roll for voice command as an enhancement to traditional controls, just as the sixaxis sensors are an enhancement, not a replacement. Augmenting the traditional controller seems to me to be the way to go, instead of replacing that controller.
1 up, 0 down
Fane1024
Wednesday, February 02, 2011 @ 4:45:22 AM
I agree that it could really improve menu-heavy games.
Last edited by Fane1024 on 2/2/2011 4:47:32 AM
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PAKINIPS
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 1:41:02 PM
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Much smoooother
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StangMan80
Monday, January 31, 2011 @ 9:45:19 PM
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PharaohJR
Tuesday, February 01, 2011 @ 3:37:15 AM
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i like it cause imagine how free everything would be with the interaction but i dont like it cause i like using a controller to initiate virtual actions i dont want to be the controller. thats why im not to into kinect. its like i know hands free cars will come eventually & as kool as it sounds to others it just doesnt fascinate me.
mankind i tell ya we always wanna improve on somebody else creations.
great post though ben.
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BikerSaint
Wednesday, February 02, 2011 @ 5:07:41 PM
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I want.......
My future console in a "palm of my hand" size,
Bio-linked retinal scanning,
My console's electronic spores tapping into my adrenal gland,
Holographic movie surround vision,
Telepathically induced personal music
AND "I want that PS9 in my collection NOW, damn it", WAY BEFORE THE YEAR 2078 arrives, because by that time I'll probably have already been resting below ground for a quite spell, as worm food.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbStPjz8Hq0
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PasteNuggs
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Sunday, January 30, 2011 @ 9:40:50 PM
Reading this article made me think of the movie Demolition Man when Stallone and Sandra Bullock put nodes on there temples too...well "satisfy each other".