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Wii Remote +...? [roundtable]
 
Can you guys figure out the point of this device, exactly? Or why Nintendo is apparently pushing MotionPlus hardware so hard (with this and the MP unit that has recently been included in every retail Wiimote), since there aren't many games that support it, and most of the ones that necessitate it are bundled with a unit, anyway? In fact, the only viable four-player MotionPlus experience that I can think of is Grand Slam Tennis (I know, canoeing), and no one even knows that game exists.

Don't get me wrong. The Wiimote+ is cool, and I kind of want one (and I wanted FlingSmash, anyway), but what's the point of this aggressive MotionPlus push? Is Nintendo planning something? Is the Wii 2 farther out than we think it is? (PLEASE, NO.)

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10/16/10, 18:20  
 
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I always thought that the XBox and Playstation pushed powerhouse technology first, and are now trying to catch up with motion controls, and that Nintendo decided to do motion controls first, and beefy technology later.

What I'm saying is that I fully expect the Wii Remote + (Or any unit with Motion + attached) to be the controller for Nintendo's next system.
10/16/10, 18:37   
I do, too, but why now??
10/16/10, 18:44   
Because of Move and Kinect. Maybe no one is going to use Wii Motion+, but they still need to make it look like they're going toe to toe with their competitors until they have something new to announce.
10/16/10, 19:20   
I'm wondering what the point of this device is too. Nintendo pushed MotionPlus when it launched, then it fizzled...like A LOT OF THEIR OTHER ACCESSORIES/ADD-ONS. Nintendo does a good job of creating an accessory that everyone should want to use, then they don't champion it. Wii Speak is the best example. It launched with Animal Crossing: City Folk in 2008. Almost two full years later, there are eight games that use it, and Nintendo has only developed two of them. Other devs don't want to use it if Nintendo themselves won't, you know?

I doubt this is the design for the Wii2's controller. Nintendo always has new controller designs for their new consoles. I think this is just what we've all been clamoring for since the Wii's launch.
10/16/10, 19:29   
I think it's because it's a simpler configuration than what was offered before. The M+ may be 'pushed' more aggressively, but many of the consumers are still confused by the device because it has to be attatched (and suggested to be removed) depending on the software. For Nintendo, Wii Remote + is probably just their way of saying, "you know what? Forget it, let's just give them a better wiimote without them having to do anything differently". And of course, bringing in extra money.

Now that isn't to say that the Nintendo doesn't have a host of other MotionPlus games planned for the future (this is something that I won't be discussing), but even considering that case, a Wii Remote + wouldn't be necessary to push M+. It's just a simpler configuration.
10/16/10, 19:45   
It's indeed puzzling. There need to be more WM+ compatible games, simple as that. The penetration rate (heh) of the device is surely quite high, but 3rd parties are scratching their nuts, and Nintendo is equally to blame. I mean, the least they could do is bring over Zangeki no Reginleiv. Is the Wiimote Plus simply a reaction to Sony's Playstation Move?
In the end, I can't be excited for this, since I already own four wiimotes with motion plus attachments. A little bit too late, Nintendo. I'm hoping that FlingSmash will have a standalone SKU.


Simbabbad said:
grantimusprime said:
What I'm saying is that I fully expect the Wii Remote + (Or any unit with Motion + attached) to be the controller for Nintendo's next system.
Oh dear, I hope not. Nintendo really needs to release a new controller for next gen.
I want them to stick with the wiimote/nunchuck style. Make it wireless, give it a better Dpad, and a bit more comfortable design, with the latest motion tech included within, and we have a winner.
10/16/10, 20:45   
In a way, that's even MORE confusing, though, because it's hard to physically tell the difference between a Wiimote and a Wiimote+ (unless they're all going to be red, I guess). Joe America will pick up a Wiimote, try to play the hottest game of the season, FlingSmash, and be, like, "This goldurn controllamajig is broken!"

People don't even know what MotionPlus is. I was trying to help some clueless dad shop at Toys R Us, and I told him that he needed an extra MotionPlus to play Wii Sports Resort with two people simultaneously. He probably asked me literally five times, "Oh, we already got the remote. All this does is vibrate, right?"

I didn't have to intervene too much, though, since the game department guy was a fellow savvy Nintendo fan. He steered them towards Galaxy 2. I've said this before, but the games that parents get for their kids at Toys R Us truly sadden me.

Anyway, the Wiimote+ seems irrational to me, unless Nintendo truly is planning to release a heretofore unannounced slate of (multiplayer?) MotionPlus software (instead of the Wii 2).

@ludist210
I don't think this is IT for their new controller, but I do think that it's part of it. Nintendo will probably stress backwards compatibility, due to the success of the Wii brand. I think the controller will just be a mass of as many features as they can fit in. Microphone, motion, rumble, pointing capability, whatever. Maybe even a touch-pad. Sort pf like the DS. Just throw everything in as a standard, and let the devs sort it out.

@Zero
That doesn't really sound like Nintendo to me.
10/16/10, 20:48   
With the way Nintendo has been dealing with their announcements lately, I wouldn't be surprised if they had some big, multiplayer-centric game waiting in the wings for 2011. And the game (whatever it is) requires WiiMotionPlus. They'll announce it like, six months before the game comes out. And by then, everyone will have had the opportunity to get the peripheral.

Or not. Eh. Who knows? It's Nintendo. NIN. TEN. DO.
10/16/10, 22:36   
@anandxxx

I don't see how it could cause more confusion seeing that...

1. Wii Remote Plus is supposedly replacing the classic Wii Remote.

2. Wii Remote Plus says, "Wii MotionPlus INSIDE" right on the front of the of the controller in print that is in contrast to the color of the controller. This is going to be very noticeable in person especially compared to the normal wiimotes, and being right underneath the LEDs.

3. All games that require M+ will not work if no M+ is attatched, and will notify the consumer that they need to attatch a MotionPlus accessory.

So if a consumer buys a game that requires MotionPlus, they are going to know that they can't just use a regular wiimote.

Having a controller that tells them that the required accessory is already inside the controller is absolutely the best configuration that Nintendo can offer to the consumers right now. The consumer no longer has to worry about when to attatch an accessory, just use the controller.
10/17/10, 01:35   
WM+ is roughly equivalent to N64 expansion pack.

Turok 2 = Red Steel 2

Skyward = MM

Perfect Dark = WSR (ok, funky comparison, but they're both big in one sense or another)


It's real future is in the next system. I don't think the next controller will be anymore different than gamecube's controller was to N64's, because I can't think of anything new. Before the wii controller unveiled I did think of dual motion controls (but not the IR pointer).
10/17/10, 04:43   
@Renjaku

What's the Wii's equivalent to Donkey Kong 64?
10/17/10, 04:53   
I hope the next gen controller does everything that the Wiimote does and then some... the IR functionality is just too good. I don't ever want to go back to analog aiming. I would also really like for backwards compatibility to be possible.

As for the Wiimote+... I might get one for Zelda. Maybe.
10/17/10, 05:05   
If it weren't bundled with FlingSmash, I doubt I'd buy one. If Nintendo isn't going to release a new console until 2012, I REALLY hope they're developing a ton of WM+ games. I have two WM+ attachments that aren't getting much use.
10/17/10, 05:40   
Edited: 10/17/10, 05:41
Are they pushing it that much? I didn't realize. I can tell you that the point of it is to make it do what it was supposed to do in the first place. The WM+ is bundled to save people a few bucks, all the while making Nintendo money when they sell a certain amount of units. I don't know if they still make separate Wii Remotes, I doubt it, however.
10/17/10, 19:32   
It's just a weird thing to include so much of, considering most of the single-player games that really use it get bundled with it, anyway.

@Hinph@Simbabbad
Zelda HAS to be a bundle, man. If FlingSmash is a bundle, then Zelda is a bundle.
10/18/10, 01:00   
Why not release this? It's a great move by Nintendo and we all saw how well Wii Play sold.

Common sense says a regular Wii mote sells for $39.99. This is $10 more and not only do you get the Wii motion plus built in, but you get a game that shows what the Wii Motion plus can do.

Most people given the option will opt for the better deal, again look at Wii Play.

Luckily for me I need another Wii mote anyway so this is a nice release.

Plus I'm not very found of attaching the motion plus on and off all the time.
10/18/10, 02:17   
No, I don't mean the FlingSmash bundle. That makes sense, and it may be the only thing that saves the game from obscurity (although that didn't work for Excitebots).

I just mean the device itself, for the reasons I've listed in this thread.

@Simbabbad
I would bet Zero's life that Zelda will be bundled with some form of MotionPlus (maybe just the base unit). Nintendo doesn't fuck around with Zelda. They're not going to risk little Timmy getting the game for his birthday and not being able to play. Plus, there is some precedent, with Majora's Mask. Even DK64 had a forced bundle.

I don't need any more Motion+, either. Oh, well.
10/18/10, 02:54   
I don't even think they'll chance it by giving people the option. We'll see, though...
10/18/10, 04:11   
I don't think they will force you to get a bundle, as there are plenty of MotionPlus units in the wild already.

There will definitely be an option, though... perhaps a special bundle with a gold Wiimote+ ?
10/18/10, 04:49   
@Hinph

Heck, I'd buy that bundle.
10/18/10, 04:51   
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