Author: Pulpo
Subject: It's the Hardware, Stupid!
Posted: Tue Dec 06, 2005 8:07 pm (GMT -3)

Considering the new gaming paradigm that Nintendo wants to impose with the Revolution console, and the increasing need of eroding the boundaries between man and machine in videogames: I've began thinking about the importance of hardware in games. In the past consoles gave developers a standard on which to model their games, but the new trends of Eye-Toy and intersting ideas like the VirtuSphere, and the GameRunner; are probably telling us that the joystick era will come to an end, or at least: will evolve into a new form.

I have the game AntiGrav at home which is basically a skateboarding-racing-futuristic game that is played with the Eye-Toy. It's an excellent and very immersive experience that pushes you to use your whole body in order to win. Also Nintendogs proves the huge potential behind the concept of "Touch" that Nintendo wanted to show with their DS. And the microphone interface of the game can make anyone truly believe for an instant that his dog is something real once he sits after we tell him to do so.

Is there a real transition between the current way we interact with virtual worlds? Shall game designers start considering the development of hardware peripherals for their titles?
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Santi "Pulpo" Siri