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Kurt Collins Associate Software Engineer |
The Revolution is Here
Sit down all you Nintendo fanboys. Sit down. I have many a problem with Nintendo in recent memory, but I'm forced to give them credit where credit is due. Gaming needs an overhaul of biblical proportions.
Over the years, games have gotten more sophisticated, while the interfaces we use have languished in the realm of mediocrity. On the PC side, we're still using joysticks, keyboards, and mice (with the occasional wheel for those of you with the dough to spend on them). For strategy games, role-playing games, and any other games that don't require the use of your well-refined gamer's-twitch muscle, then everything is fine. However, once you get in to the realm of playing Battlefield 2, Half-Life, and Counter-Strike, you're left with nothing but carpal tunnel syndrome.
Meanwhile, on the console side, we're using a slightly modified version of the NES controller. Sure, there are a few more buttons to deal with, along with the addition of analog sticks, but on the whole, we're still using the same interface. For everyone claiming the Dual Shock is the greatest thing to happen to controller design, I agree with you; it is definitely a beautiful controller, only improved upon by Logitech's wireless controller. However, the fact that something is good doesn't make it ideal.
It's ridiculous to think that while games have changed drastically over the years, we've somehow managed to get rid of intuitive interfaces in favor of more-complicated setups involving multiple keyboard configurations and seven-button mice. When I'm playing a first-person shooter, which, almost by definition, is some sort of simulation of me shooting a gun, I don't want to have to determine where and when to fire by pressing W-A-S-D on my keyboard in conjunction with one of seven buttons on my mouse. Does anyone remember Duck Hunt? Of course you do. If I want to shoot ducks, I can do it very simply with a controller that can properly simulate shooting ducks: a gun.
So why did we give up the simple for the more complicated? Contrary to popular belief, it's not because gamers are stupid. In my opinion, it's because gamers want more options. They want the ability to change to any of 50 different weapons on the fly while strafing to the left and looking above them. How else would one be able to achieve the right altitude while rocket jumping?
However, in gaining more control, have we lost some of the fun? Things have become a lot more intense in the gaming world than they've ever been. In the online world, competition is strong, and gameplay requires concentration and focus. The intensity of the game seems to turn things more into a life experience rather than a mere round of shooting a few ducks with a friend laughing nearby. The amount of control given to us by the interfaces we use to interact with the video games seems to have been both a blessing and a curse. We now have the capability to control almost every aspect of our gaming experience. There are 104-plus different keys on a given keyboard that allow for any number of key combinations and multiple control mechanisms.
Unfortunately for me, the more control I get, the less enjoyment I receive from video games. The days of Duck Hunt are gone. The DDR dancepad is left as one of the last remaining vestiges of a long-forgotten past filled with ideas of new, funky, and intuitive controllers. The Virtual Boy was an attempt at changing the way things work, as was/is the EyeToy. Neither the VB nor the EyeToy took off as it should have. The fact that nonstandard peripherals that don't ship with consoles traditionally do not sell well adds to the dearth of intuitive controller interfaces.
The next generation of consoles brings about the opportunity for some interesting control methods. Voice control is no longer a technology of tomorrow, but it's an instrument of today. While it's not even remotely close to perfect, we are finally starting to see voice better integrated in video games in simple ways, such as the use of voice over IP in Battlefield 2.
During Sony's PS3 press conference, while every gamer was slack-jawed over the Killzone trailer, I was more intrigued by the Eyedentify trailer. The idea of my image and voice interacting with the game to control the outcome is something that is more interesting to me than any improvement in graphics could ever be. Can they pull it off? Who knows. Sony has overpromised and underdelivered in the past. Nintendo is keeping their mouth shut about their new controller, leaving us all breathless and angry with hyped-up anticipation.
At the end of the day, though, if their demonstrations and talk are any indication, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo seem to agree on one thing: The next generation isn't only about more power. It's also about a new interface. As long as that new interface extends to include different control schemes, then I can't wait.
The Death of GameSpotting
Welcome to the apocalyptic edition of GameSpotting, in which our editors spill their guts about games and everything...one final time.
