Ben-DutkaWhile there's little doubt that the Wii's motion controller was indeed designed for casual widespread appeal (you never saw so many non-gamers flocking to a store's game section), Sony continually wants to separate themselves from that aim.
Sony typically takes whatever chance they can get to differentiate their PlayStation Move controller from what Nintendo is currently offering. And beyond the obvious increase in technology and precision, and beyond the fact that Sony intends to produce many Move-compatible titles for mature audiences, is the actual design of the controller. In speaking to OPM, Sony R&D manager Dr. Richard Marks spoke about the marketing goals for the company's nifty new peripheral:
"We worked really hard to have a compromise of simplicity and effectiveness. You want to pick it up and know exactly what to do. There's a big, simple button under your thumb and nice analogue buttons. So those are for the casual players, but then we had the original PlayStation symbols for the core experiences," Marks continues. "It was really important that the design appeal to both. We don't want it to be a casual controller, that wasn't the goal."
By targeting major titles in the existing and future PlayStation 3 lineup, Sony really is making a push for Move to be recognized by those always-valuable "core gamers. This is why the likes of SOCOM 4 , Killzone 3 , and the Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition will feature Move compatibility. So in other words, Sony says Move is both accessible to a large number of people but is also something the hardcore followers would enjoy. Well, we don't have much longer to wait to find out…