This generation of consoles might just be most clearly defined as the generation of multitudinous peripherals. We’re expected to keep so much colourful, wondrously shaped plastic packed in and around our consoles these days – from the extra controllers, media remotes, headsets and keypads to the mini guitars, drum sets, microphones and fight sticks. That’s before we even get started on all that superfluous clip-on crap to attach to a Wii Remote.
Sony wanted us to add to this pile by buying into their Move motion control system. We added the wands with the glowing orbs. We even added the wonderfully ergonomic Navigation Controller to the top of our peripheral heap. And then we waited. Sure, there were a few solid titles at launch for Move, Sports Champions, Flight Control and Tumble all stood out. The Move implementation that has been patched in to MAG, Resident Evil 5 and Move – among others – was welcome. But there hasn’t been one big flagship game to use the Move controllers with since then. Killzone 3 might just be that title.
Now, Sony Computer Entertainment and Guerilla Games aren’t silly. They know that the vast majority of people who have an interest in their sci fi shooter will be expecting to play it with a standard DS3. Many of the people lining up to buy Killzone 3 might not even have access to Move at all. So the game is a standard (well, very good) FPS, played with a controller in the traditional way. But there’s Move support and it’s a game-changer.
We tried the game briefly with the Move wand and Navigation Controller before reverting back to the Dual Shock 3 and the familiarity it brought with it. It isn’t easy to get used to the way the look controls work with Move. It’s almost too precise so you might often find that your character is swinging around in circles when you only wanted to have a look. Add the new Sharp Shooter to the equation, though, and it all becomes so much easier.
The simulated sub-machine gun housing for Move and the NavCon really makes a genuine difference to how the game controls. It takes a while to get used to and, for those of us with long arms and broad shoulders, it’s a little uncomfortable when used over long periods of time. It’s made to fit the average arm so that’s understandable. After an hour of learning the new control system we found the Sharp Shooter to have a hugely beneficial effect on our abilities.
As an extremely unscientific test we played the same map and game type in the BotZone with the Sharp Shooter and then with the DS3 (when we would arguably have been more familiar with the map). This was our first two games on this map (Corinth Highway) with Bot Difficulty set to Rookie. With the traditional controller we got 14 kills, 6 deaths and 2 Assists. With the Move controller, NavCon and Sharp Shooter, we got 24 kills, 4 deaths and 5 Assists.
So, is the solidly constructed chunk of red plastic worth your hard earned cash? Only you can decide that and without anything to adequately compare it to we’re certainly not going to put forward any sort of hardware review. No, this little article is simply about how we think that Move, particularly when combined with the Sharp Shooter, has the potential to change the way you play shooters for the better.
Not only is it more immersive and steeped in realism, it seems to yield positive results in the kill/death ratios and, when you’re serious about your shooters, results will be important to some. We recommend that anyone who is able to gives it a try. Let yourself relax into using it for an hour or two and then compare your stats. We’d be really interested to hear what results others have gotten from the different control methods too.
HDNdk
bang bang :P
gideon1451
Sheesh, I didn’t expect the results to be that much better [concerning kills/deaths]!
3shirts
I tried the demo with the little ray gun type attachment but the difficulty in accessing the move button and having the nav controller in the other hand makes it fairly tricky to get on with.
Not sure I want to buy yet another peripheral though
affa
The shooter remaps all the buttons to more ergonomic positions. It’s the only current attachment that does this, and it’s what make it so awesome.
zb100
I’ve been playing through the single player with it & it really is excellent. I’ve still been using the DS3 for the multiplayer though, I guess I just need to get that perfect sweet spot sorted!
jonny_bolton
I’ve already given my opinion on the matter in forums and it hasn’t changed since then. It’s too difficult to get it calibrated properly. It seems to decide that the size of my TV is a few inches wider than it actually is, and after spending half an hour trying to calibrate to a perfect accuracy (which is what I should be aiming for everytime) I gave up. My opinion is is that it’s a waste of £40. I mean even if you do get it calibrated why would you want to do that every single time you boot up the game?
Question: What were your DeadZone, Sensitivity settings for it?
Jambo
My calibration consisted of, aim at centre of the screen, aim at top left, aim at bottom right, go shoot things!
colossalblue
30% all around, I think.
I had calibration woes too. It wouldn’t stay tracked to the Move controller so my aim was drifting (on the post calibration screen). I spent about fifteen minutes tearing my hair out and then quit and did the motion controller calibration from the XMB before rebooting the game. Since then it has only taken a quick three-aim calibration after I move my TV (it swivels around for Kinect and Move games) and it’s worked perfectly every time.
It’s really frustrating to hear of different experiences with Kinect and Move though, it means I’m always unsure that my easy experience is going to be the norm so I always have that little doubt when I’m writing things up. Too much ambiguity with lighting and positioning/space requirements to make certain statements about how good it is :(
MaD dOctoR 79
I’ve said it before, anyone confused about calibration should watch these videos.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWF0yZCmpNo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=levDGb1FY6E
plus when the game asks you to “aim at the camera”, it means “AIM AT THE CAMERA” if you aim at the screen your calibration will always be off, even if it doesn’t seem like it at first, and never use the move like the old infrared guns, as the sights will never line up with what you are seeing.
cc_star
Yes, iWaggle should be everyone’s go to destination for all things like that
jonny_bolton
Thanks for the condescending reply. Surprisingly I have tried plenty of methods, looked all over the internet on numerous forums but nothing is working. But hey, pointing at the camera…maybe I’ll give that a go.
dirtyhabit
‘The simulated sub-machine gun housing for Move and the NavCon really makes a genuine difference to how the game controls’. Agreed…. its shite.
@mad doctor79 Heres another video link for you…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbn0Y1cQogE
Although it doen’t look too bad in the video in reality after 3+ mins of play I can end up aiming 6 inches right of the TV just to get the crosshair centered.
I am 7ft from the TV the Eye is at exactly 90′ to the to the Move/TV and I calibrate from the position I intend to play in.
The calibration starts off fine, then drifts off as you can see in the video. You can clearly see me ‘CORRECTLY’ (as you so kindly put it) calibrating the game. Please explain in what way I am confused by the setup. IT DOES NOT WORK PROPERLY.
I’ve spent enough time calibrating, recalibrating and researching this issue to be told I’m doing it wrong. Yes I’ve recalibrated though the XMB too, so don’t give me that one either.
Disappointed to say the least.
JesseDeya
@dirtyhabit
When I see stuff like your video, I have to wonder if there isn’t a physical fault with your Move. Do you have another one to try?
The Move has both linear accelerometers, as well as a three axis angular rate sensor pretty much exactly like your vestibular system uses to give you balance. If you’ve ever been drunk, or had a bad cold with a blocked ear (which affects the viscosity of the liquid in your vestibular system) you will know how having one or many of those sensors affects your performance. Suffice to say you tend to drift off to one side too!
The other reason that sometimes affects drift with the Move is the magnometer, however I’ve read it is NOT enabled in KZ3 so we can rule that out. Honestly, I would try another Move first, and look at getting your potentially faulty one replaced if that is indeed the problem.
dirtyhabit
@Jesse. Yeah I’ve got 2 moves, and I’ve tried both. :-| sadly it makes no difference. I’ve had a thought about masking around the ‘sides’ of the orb, so the eye can only see the ‘front’ . It’s a long shot. But it may work? Gonna try it later. If it’s not using the accelerometers then may be although it’s tracking the ball it’s struggling to tell the orientation of the move in relation to the position of the camera….
dirtyhabit
Sorry, magnetometer. Not accelerometer :-p
dirtyhabit
Last reply I promise. One the plus side, when it’s working, it’s bloody brilliant….:-)
affa
many of the reviews on amazon basically say: it’ll take you 30 minutes to figure out the correct calibration for your system, but once you do, it’s amazing. low deadzones (10, even) seem to often work well, though different folks have different solutions.
Ben
I wouldn’t want to try to play a FPS using move without this wondrous red plastic thing.
TwoJay
Well you’re missing out then. I don’t have this sharpshooter and I certainly didn’t have it during the Open Beta. I simply used a DS3 in my left hand and a Move Controller in my right. Long story short, I was unstoppable :)
Foxhound_Solid
Bet its a joy to play KZ3 with that set up. I have the Moves and Nav so will give it a shot!
Ha Ha – see what I did there?
Ill get my coat….
Kovacs
I’ve confiscated your coat.
No coat for you.
shields_t
As long as you’re not here all week ;-)
BigCheese
I have to admit, I literally only have a PS3, games and two controllers; I don’t own a headset, keyboard, Move or anything extra. So I wouldn’t really want the additional plastic gun. But I wouldn’t mind trying it out with friends once :P
BryOnRye
I had a weird calibration error, did what it asked and afterwards my movements were inverted. Recalibrated it and it was fine I just really struggled to get used to it, always ended up looking straight up.
DR-DAVROS
I posted my thoughts on this in the TSA general chat forum. At this precise moment in time I find the move by itself easier than the Sharp shooter. The comparison used in against bots on recruit I can understand as you can take most out from long range and basically camp its when in the heat of battle in MP that the sharp shooter let me down and I reverted back to MOVE. However I will not give up on it yet.
DR-DAVROS