Playstation Move vs Microsoft Kinect: The Future of Motion Control

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Posted October 15, 2010 - By Dana Leahy

Wave your hands frantically in the air if you’re excited for motion controls on HD consoles! In an effort to go toe-to-toe with Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft have decided to release their own version of immersive controls. For Sony, it’s the PlayStation Move: a decidedly Wii-esque controller and camera that tracks your movements one-to-one. Meanwhile on November 4th, Microsoft is set to unleash Kinect: a 3D camera that scans your body and follows your every move without the need for anything in your hands.

While we can’t say which one will reign supreme yet, we can use our virtual crystal ball (the Move works well as a substitute) to look into the future. Join us as we discuss some of the upcoming titles that make us excited for the possibilities that both systems have to offer. Bring your hands!

Playstation Move vs Microsoft Kinect: The Future of Motion Control

PlayStation Move

It may seem like the PlayStation Move, which effectively one-ups the Wii without bringing a tangible sense of next-gen innovation to the table, is uninspired. While that might be true, the Move is practical and technologically sound. That may not sound like a selling point, but in an industry swimming with tech that doesn’t always work like it’s supposed to, it’s actually saying a lot.

Move has been out in the wild since the middle of September, and we’ve had a chance to get our hands on it and test all of the launch titles. What we’ve seen so far from the Move has been a lot of sports games (Tiger Woods, Sports Champions), some casual titles (Tumble, Kung Fu Rider, Start the Party), and interesting integration (Heavy Rain).
While we were not bowled over by a lot of what we saw, the peripheral does have a lot of promise.

So what, exactly, is the Move capable of delivering? Hopefully, it’ll be a classic Sony gaming experience, one that will appeal to the hardcore crowd. Only time will tell, but here are some of the games we’re looking forward to playing along the way.

echochrome ii
Release Date: TBA Q4 2010

If you’ve ever wanted to play your way through an Escher sketch, echochrome ii is for you. This version of the 3D puzzle platformer has been built exclusively for use with the PlayStation Move and features brain-bending puzzles for you to solve. The focus of the game is shadow play and you use the Move controller as a flashlight. Solving the puzzles involves pointing the flashlight at the right angle in order to show your little man the correct path. It’s a fascinating concept and the game’s aesthetic will be instantly appealing to those who like a good, artsy test of problem solving skills.

Echochrome II Comic-Con 2010 Hands-On Preview

Heroes on the Move
Release Date: April 30, 2011

Heroes on the Move…get it?! Anyway, this title designed to work exclusively with Move brings together a who’s who of gaming adventure heroes including Ratchet, Clank, Jak, Daxter, Sly and Bentley. The gameplay uses different motion control friendly mechanics like smashing, hurling, and shooting as your battle your way through throngs of baddies. While it might skew a little young, the idea of Heroes on the Move appeals to the action game fan in all of us and after a particularly bad day, it might be fun to wail away on some evildoers.

E3 2010: Heroes on the Move »

SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy SEALs
Release Date: TBA Q1 2011

At this year’s E3, Sony showed off the hardcore future of the move with SOCOM 4. In it, you play a badass squad leader, leading the rest of the SEALs into battle in Southeast Asia. Sure, it’s your standard military shooter fare, but Move might add the immersive dimension we’ve all been waiting for. While you might not look hardcore using the wand with a glowing ball on the top, the motion controls are sure to up the ante on difficulty, which will either be a welcome challenge, or drive you straight back to your Sixaxis.

Hands On With SOCOM 4 and PlayStation Move »

Sorcery
Release Date: TBA Q2 2011

Finally, a game that lets you use the Move for something that makes perfect sense. Without trying to shove it in somewhere it doesn’t necessarily belong, Sorcery allows you to play as a wizard with a magic wand. This isn’t wimpy s@%t, though. You’ll use your wand to hurl magic missiles and do other awesome wizard stuff. Out of all the upcoming PlayStation Move titles, Sorcery excites us the most. It might seem a little on the head to use the Move as a wand, but why fight it? Being a wizard sounds good to us.

E3 2010 Sony Press Conference: Sorcery Demo »

Honorable Mentions: There are a lot of games coming out with the option to play with the Move, but we wanted to focus on those games that were built for the peripheral, or at least the emphasis was playing the game with the Move. That said, huge upcoming titles like Killzone 3, inFamous 2, LittleBigPlanet 2 and Tron: Evolution will have Move support. It’s still unclear, however, whether gamers will actually choose to try these titles with the Move or stick with the good ol’ Sixaxis to get their fix.

Playstation Move vs Microsoft Kinect: The Future of Motion Control

Kinect

A device capable of reading your body movements and translating them directly into the gameworld should conceivably feel like an industry-changing event, and yet only three weeks before launch, the most visible titles for the peripheral are Dance Central, Your Shape: Fitness Evolved and Kinectimals. The promise of physically participating in the visceral experience of a shooter or action title – something already displayed on the Move – seems months, if not years, away on the Kinect.

So who exactly is the target audience here? What’s the experience for casual gamers vs. hardcore? And why does the system still appeal to those of us who know to expect so little from it?

Almost immediately, the scant marketing for Kinect would have children and families believe that this is the perfect addition to the living room, pulling casual gamers into the console with a variety of basic sports titles. So, if your goal is to indulge in virtual dodge ball, tennis, football, soccer, bowling, dancing, and yoga, then certainly the Kinect has a number of titles ready to transform your living into the equivalent of your own back yard. Which is right there, by the way. You know, in the back of your house. Dancing too, is generally free; however, despite all of this, there’s no denying that there’s much fun to be had for casual gamers on the Kinect, and the system might very well pull families into the living room together in a way that simpler efforts have failed.

However, hardcore gamers are likely to have some trouble finding a decent entry point for Kinect. To date, there have been virtually no – zero, count ‘em, zip – titles announced that would likely appeal to the hardcore gamer. Dance Central is, perhaps, aiming to become the full-body equivalent of Rock Band and Fighters Uncaged is presenting a decent enough brawler simulation, but the promise of a Gears-like adventure lobbing grenades, running for cover, and shooting wildly at the oncoming hordes is really nowhere to be seen. At the moment, the dedicated gamer is likely to be more interested in the voice-commands, on-screen chatting, and hand-swipe menu navigation to manufacture their own Minority Report experience.

Yet, for all the absence of a fully featured, truly next-gen game, our interest is still piqued by the possibilities of the peripheral. Kinect may be a device with immediate and lasting appeal to the casual crowd, but with enough time, testing, and developer support, there’s no reason that hardcore gamers can’t become more fully immersed and physically involved with their games via the Kinect; however, for the moment, it’s difficult not to look at the system with a mixed cocktail of hesitation and hope.

With that in mind, here are a few of the titles heading for Kinect that are most likely worth your time during launch:

Kinect Adventures & Kinect Sports
Release Date: November 4, 2010

Perhaps the most casual of the titles releasing for the system, this assemblage of family style, Wii-type games is a safe, family friendly bet for moms and dads looking to join their kids in an active, fun and age-appropriate experience. Cartoonish characters and vivid environments set the stage of a handful of games that’ll likely attract new gamers and curious parents.

E3 2010 Microsoft Press Conference: Kinect Sports »

MotionSports: Play for Real
Release Date: November 4, 2010

For those looking for a slightly more grounded, less kidified athletic title, MotionSports offers a realistic variety of popular sports including football, boxing, skiing and soccer. We’ve seen this one in action and while the games have definitely been simplified for the Kinect – for example, you don’t play a full game of football so much as individual mini-games such as evading tackles and throwing passes – this’ll probably be the game that the adults reach for when the generic adventures skew a bit too young.

Playstation Move vs Microsoft Kinect: The Future of Motion Control

Fighters Uncaged
Release Date: November 4, 2010

If you’ve ever felt like joining a Fight Club but simply couldn’t find a violent, underground society in your area, Fighters Uncage let’s players punch and kick their way to victory against a virtual opponent or on-screen friend. The combat was fairly slow in the version we saw, and certain moves were made easier for the less agile among us. For instance, executing a roundhouse kick merely requires that you step back, placing one foot behind the other. So while the game doesn’t require you to become either a bad-ass or a ninja to succeed, it’s a fairly responsive, if simple, brawler for adults.

Fighters Uncaged "Combatants" Trailer »

Your Shape: Fitness Evolved
Release Date: November 4, 2010

Probably the best looking of the exercise titles, Your Shape should help all the paunchy Kinect fans of the world to drop a few pounds while working out their frustrations on digital, orange blocks. From what we’ve seen, the camera has proven incredibly capable of adjusting your work-out experience based upon your ongoing performance. Sure, you might not be slaying the Locust Horde, but consider it training for the future alien invasion.

E3 2010 Microsoft Press Conference: Your Shape »

Child of Eden
Release Date: TBA March 2011

Certainly the trippiest Kinect game we’ve seen to date, Child of Eden will also be available in regular console versions, as well. But if you like battling geometric shapes to raving techno music using only your fists, then this might just be a game for the hardest core among us.

Child of Eden All Access Preview »

Dance Central
Release Date: November 4, 2010

Finally, Dance Central is probably the one game people seem most excited about. Follow the moves on-screen and attempt to perform today's coolest dance moves on your journey to become the best dancer…in your home. WIth no awkward floor pad needed (like Dance Dance Revolution), Dance Central has no barrier to entry beyond owning Kinect, which makes it much more accessible and appealing to non-gamers. While men and women both are looking foward to busting a move, this is going to be the game that sells a 360 to your girlfriend, sister, and that chick you once talked to in line at the coffee shop. Mark it down in the book of prognostications: Dance Central is going to be a system seller whether you like it or not.

Dance Central for Kinect Hands-On Demo »

Honorable Mention: Post launch, however, there are a few titles currently in development that seem prepared to thrill the hardcore crowd. Rise of the Nightmare is being developed by Sega as a surreal horror experience for the Silent Hill crowd, although virtually nothing about the title has been revealed beyond the initial title treatment. Codename D is being developed by Suda 51 in which players must battle their way through an abandoned amusement park filled with bizarre, mutated creatures. Lastly, Project Draco is currently in the pipeline from the producer of Panzer Dragoon. The game sounds essentially like Panzer Dragoon 2 and allows gamers to nurture and train their dragon before taking it into battle against friends and enemies online.

Additional Reporting by Chris Monfette

Tags: Epictober, Kinect, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Move, Videogames, Xbox 360

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Lyr1c

I'm pretty sure child of Eden is multiplatform...And if I'm not mistaken, so it Dance Central....

Posted: October 17, 2010 12:29 AM
napkinshower

this post is a bad idea written all over it. Flame city! but anyways great job on the info. excellent.

Posted: October 17, 2010 12:04 AM
Symicide

PS3 !!!FTW!!!

Posted: October 16, 2010 9:43 PM
Kill Audio

I'm going to have to pass on both.

Sorry but the idea of motion controls to me gives me about as much excitement as the idea of 3D gaming. I own a Wii and I RARELY play the system now. The only reason I bought the Wii in the first place was because of the exclusive game titles (ex. Twilight Princess, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Animal Crossing, etc.) But once I beat those games I haven't really played them. Even when I do play SSB: Brawl, I plug in my gamecube controller and play with that.

I like my Zelda games with using a gamecube and/or N64 controller, I liked playing my Super Smash Bros. Games with normal controllers. I never once thought that it would be a great idea to try to use a motion controller as a main controller. If it's secondary, then fine, but it should definitely be a hell of a lot cheaper if it doesn't come with the system at purchase.

Motion controls to me just don't phase me as being innovative and/or a new direction that gamers really desired to take. What game companies need to do is just work on innovative GAMES rather than accessories for them. Besides, if these motion controllers are intended for casual gamers, do you really think that casual games are simply going to put down this type of money just to get a new 'experience' of gaming? I consider myself a hardcore gamer and I don't really want anything to do with these new 'improvements' to games. Leave my system the way it is, I like it just fine, keep dishing out the good games and I'll keep buying and enjoying each one I purchase.

Posted: October 16, 2010 9:22 PM
fubarfoote

My only problem with kinect is that at one point it becomes so physical that i'd rather just go outside. obviously for shooters and things like that i can see the appeal, but even then if I am getting to be physical in a more unreal setting, I'd rather just call up my friends and play football. video games for me is about entertainment with a certain privelage to lack of effort.

Posted: October 16, 2010 5:08 PM
STCook

I honestly don't care. Cool if you like it but I play for hours at a time and I also sit right in front of my TV so it doesn't really work out for me.

Posted: October 16, 2010 4:44 PM
JakeTheSnakeMan

I can't say whether or not Move is worth anything since I haven't played it, but I have played Kinect a lot and think that it is definitely worth the cost. It is extremely fun and super easy to get into. Casual players can get into it easier because there are no buttons to look at or controllers to familiarize themselves with.

Posted: October 16, 2010 9:28 AM
EdSabre

The Move seems much better in terms of functionality and types of games coming out for it. But I have to applaud Kinect for trying something a little different, whereas the Move is practically an HD carbon copy of the Wiimote.

Posted: October 16, 2010 9:14 AM
ruribe8

The Kinect is a great idea, definitely more innovative than the Move. HOWEVER, I don't see any practical applications for hardcore gamers. The Move definitely has way more potential in this category.

Posted: October 16, 2010 8:56 AM
Toady909

I'm guessing the move will be much better than Kinect. Hardcore gamers won't see anything from Kinect. Hardcore gamers will most likely see a few hardcore titles for move. The move works very well. I do not think the Kinect will be as accurate since it needs to track the whole body instead of just the magic orb. Kinect is a good idea and is much more creative than the move but I don't think the technology will be utilized very well. I'll stick with my move. The concept is not very creative but it works well and there will probably be some great games for it

Posted: October 16, 2010 8:34 AM
xtreeme

The kungfu fighter game for ps3 tracks body like the kinnect so it does the same just more. The zindex tracking uses the light. The only thing kinnect has the ps3 eye doesnt is z index tracking and I dont think its used yet.

So yes ps3 does what kinnect does it tracks body they did this years ago with ps2. It proved to sony you need more you need, are you ready, buttons.

Say what you will but sony has been there before years ago- they have it now just with a better camera now. Also read the specs the kinnect uses the xbox cpu they remove the chip in the kinnect so that means less power for game. This is a problem when games like gears use 100% of what the xbox has.

Now on the move you have a camera with 2x the res and buttons with good z index tracking for hardcore shooter games.

Wii ripoff? Hardly I own both and the wii does scripted movements not really tracking but sensing a motion and then running a script to show it move. Like sports games- on wii they are preanimated movements on the ps3 if you stop in middle of a swing it stops! If you twist the move the table tennis paddle twists, if you move close to the screen the paddle moves close to the table (z-index) that the wii doesnt have.

So all in all- I think move is will win for the hardcore gamers and the kids and casual gamers will get kinnect. Of course if you dont own a ps3 you will want kinnect but if you own both and like fps, sports and other more competitive games you wont want kinnect. The last prob is playing with others in the room and having the kinnect loose tracking, also I dont think it can do more then 2 players so your not saving money vs the move due to controller costs (kineect about same as two move controler and ps3 eye camera).

Posted: October 16, 2010 8:28 AM
jajamann

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v =ZM9B2PiG7Pg&feature=relat ed

if it dont work delete the spaces in the link that always kind of apear on this forum

Posted: October 16, 2010 8:12 AM
jajamann

I found out that in dance central only one player can be scored at once .An article on the web says"__
According to project director Kasson Crooker, Dance Central treats dancing "a lot like Karaoke," in that people can be "intimidated by the experience and want to do it for the first time with a group of friends." As such, Dance Central only scores one player at a time, whoever happens to be closest to the Kinect unit. While other players are recognized as infrared outlines -- something we witnessed during our own preview -- they aren't actually scored by the game (though the game will switch the player being scored if someone else moves closest to the camera).

Crooker says the decision to not score additional players was to simplify the process, removing "rigid game requirements" like profile management and "complicated joining screens" -- something that probably sounds familiar to anyone who's hosted a Rock Band party. "This allows our game to be very forgiving, while still indicating to the player who is being tracked and scored," says Crooker, "and allows us to encourage two-plus people to get up and dance together."

Crooker adds that while Kinect can track two players simultaneously, Harmonix chose to focus on a single player so as not to "degrade or diminish the quality of the choreography" and so that players won't run into one another or block the camera. "So it was really a creative decision for us," says Crooker, "and not a technical one."____
And here is the party game
http://www.youtube.com/watch ?v=ZM9B2PiG7Pg&feature=rel ated

Posted: October 16, 2010 7:48 AM
novasolid

im going with kinect. i just want to tell my xbox to turn on and have it light up. its the little things in life!!!!!

Posted: October 16, 2010 7:41 AM
Kidmafia

I cant really say anything on the move side due to my lack of a PS3 XD, but I can say somthing on the Kinect side. I personally am not really looking forward to it, do I think the device its self is cool? Yes, do I think the launch titles attempting to obtain your purchase are a little weak from my point of veiw? For sure. I guess my biggest problem is that they really dont have anything that says "ZOMG YOU HAVE TO BUY THIS DEVICE SO YOU CAN PLAY ME" I mean as of now I'm not seeing anything that just wants me to drop $150.00 plus the games cost when there are so many great games that are coming out before the holiday season. For now im just going to stick to my good old fashion controller and call it a day. I will pick up Kinect being the fanboy I am but most likely not going to be until the following year

Posted: October 16, 2010 7:21 AM
jajamann

First i think move is the type of controler that is an big advantage for fps games and realtime strategy games .
If u think of an pc shooter the mai advantage is the precision u get with the mouse.So on pc u use some butons for left right back ant forward movement and the mouse to aim.Now lets port thatto the ps3 console u have the navi controler with an analog stick to mowe in the world,And u have the move to chance ur point of view in the worlds so if u move it right u don't move right but ur view moves right and thats all an mouse dose on an pc. And strategy games are so much better with an move controler.If u don't agree with what i was saying watch the move demo on e3 2009 .

Posted: October 16, 2010 6:57 AM
Arm3g3don

If I were to buy Kinect, which I won't be, Dance Central looks like a really innovative use of Kinect's capabilities. DC, imo, looks to be a promising winner for the Kinect game catalog.

Posted: October 16, 2010 4:05 AM
EliteBAMF

Kinect will probably win. 90% of all good Move games can be played as good or BETTER using a regular controller whereas Kinect will be a unique experience. Also, the Kinect technology is a step towards the future technology. If Kinect could keep track of finger movements and they fixed latency it'd be unstoppable as a motion gaming device

Posted: October 16, 2010 2:33 AM
Tylerr

People seem to love the wii's tacky and unresponsive controls, so how could they hate the move which is essentially what people wanted to begin with, you know with the actual responsive control and so you don't just flick your wrist for something that should take full movement

Posted: October 16, 2010 1:37 AM
kujel

I'm getting Kinect as it has far more potential then move (let's face it move is just a wiimote for ps3). Despite what sony fans try and say Kinect is not just a camera like the pseye. Besides the huge potential Kinect has you wont throw it by accident like wiimotes were (how I'm not sure as I've never tossed my wiimote). Another great thing about Kinect is my mother (who's a technaphobe) can use it with next to no instruction and that is a big deal cause she not only doesn't know how to use a computer but cause she has ALS she is losing the fine control in her hands she would need to play any games and there are plenty of people like that. That was part of the success of the Wii and Kinect only takes it further. The Wii is a better priced option for wand gaming then the ps3 and is a lot easier to program for on top of that.

Posted: October 15, 2010 11:54 PM