Last night we got an invite up to Dublin to test out the new Sony motion controller the Playstation Move and to meet two of the people behind some of the games. Kieron Gaynor from XDev studios (The Fight) and Jon Torrens designer of TV superstars where on hand to chat with us and to take us through the games.
Before entering the event we where met by 2 large TV screens pumping out promotional videos showing footage from Little big planet 2, Socom, Killzone 3 and Heavy Rain to get the excitement levels up. Upon entering the main room we where greeted by a huge set up. Nine PS3 stations all set up with a move controller and PR agent each on hand to explain all about the Move game on display.
Eight games in total where on show. This allowed us to get a good feel for a wide range of different applications. The games on display included. Kung Fu Rider, Move Party, Sports Champions, The Shoot, TV Superstars, The Fight, Heavy Rain and Eye Pet.
We will go into the games a bit more in this other article. First thing to look at is the controllers themselves. They feel very natural in your hand on the top face you have five main buttons. A new Move button is right in the middle for your thumb and is surrounded by the normal four face buttons from the dual shock controller. You also have a PS button to access the XMB. On the underside there is a pressure sensitive trigger. The round light on top is squishy which came as a surprise and it will change colour depending on the colour of your clothes so its easier for the camera to recognise , it also changes colour it can turn red when your in trouble or green when you do something correctly etc.
The second sub controller is called the Navigation controller this is slightly smaller and has an analogue stick and D-pad so you can move your character around on screen. It also has a X and O and PS button on the face and on the top of the controller it has a L1 and L2 button. Both controllers are very easy to pick up and start playing with. The odd check to make sure you where pressing the right button at the start but before long I had the hang of it.
The controllers all work with the PS Eye camera and between them all they can judge distance, movement and sound to interact with you and the game. They are very precise you can move your target by sheer millimetres if your hand is steady enough. Different games require a different set up The Fight for example uses two of the main move controllers Heavy Rain uses one of each and The Shoot only uses one of the main controllers as its an on rails shooter.