PlayStation Move Went Into E3 The Underdog, But Has Come Out Favourably.

Now I'm comparing it to the launch line-up of PlayStation Move titles. That's an impressive list by the way — 31 games in the first year? There's actual variety to the list too; casual games, shooters, sports games, party games, strategy games. If Move is as easy to implement as Sony are touting, I wouldn't be surprised if that list grew to double its size before the year ends. I'm actually praying for Metal Gear Solid: Rising motion control, amongst others. But no, tangent aside, I'm looking at my games library and comparing it to the list of Move supported games. I'm realising that even if I just bought a PlayStation Move Starter Kit, I'd already own five games to use my Move with out of the box. That's brilliant.

It's the ease of integration that appears to be Move's greatest strength. Not only does the motion control platform have the most potential, it's also proving that it can be integrated into almost anything. Some execution will probably fall flat, that's undeniable, but with the product capable of doing so much, the sky really feels like the limit.

I guess to me though, the sky always was the limit, but I just didn't think it was going to get the support it deserved. 31 games says I'm wrong. That's a whole lot of games, and some of those games bring motion controls to completely new experiences. Heavy Rain's an old game, but it's getting PlayStation Move support. It'll completely do away with any kind of control barrier more "casual" gamers might have found playing on the DualShock, and yet, it's not a sports collection or minigame compilation. It's an actual game. But it still has that casual appeal. I can still imagine older people, soccer mums and parents playing it. It's motion control, and it's accessible to the mainstream - but it's not Wii Sports. That in itself is a game-changer.

Of course, PlayStation Move does have its own Wii Sports in Sports Champions. And yes, it also has its party game in Start The Party. But Move also has the advantage of variety. The Sly Collection, SOCOM 4, LittleBigPlanet 2, SingStar: Dance, Tiger Woods, Resident Evil 5, Time Crisis, Killzone 3. A small cross-section of titles that will utilise PlayStation Move, and they span numerous genres.

In fact, PlayStation Move even has the advantage of choice. I really like some of the shooters on the Nintendo Wii, so I'll probably play SOCOM 4 with the PlayStation Move. However, people who really don't want motion controls will not be forced into using them. There's still a choice, and SOCOM 4 can still be played with a traditional DualShock. No problemo.

It's the combination of these things. The ease-of-implementation and its ability to change an experience. The variety of content suited to the control. Even the price, as far as I'm concerned, is perfectly reasonable. A Wii Remote with Motion Plus will set you back roughly the same as a Move controller, and yet, this is a device with plenty more precision.

They may just manage to release a device that has games everyone wants to play. While the Wii has made some admirable attempts at the "core gamer" crowd, it's lack of precision has caused it to lose share in this area. Likewise, Microsoft's Kinect seems like it's not going anywhere near this market. It strikes me, that PlayStation Move will cater to both audiences, and perhaps somewhere in the middle. Sorcery, for example, seemed like a game rooted in core gamer design, but something that would also appeal to "casual" types. Heavy Rain is another game I feel would appeal to both audiences.

Microsoft were expecting to come out of E3 with buzz favourably on their side, but it hasn't happened. And as people warm to the PlayStation Move, they're cooling on Kinect. Nintendo will, of course, continue to dominate this space. I don't think anyone can deny that. But Move feels like it could etch out a sub-market all of its own. It's not like you're going to be playing something akin to Heavy Rain on the Wii is it?

“Twiggy” is an anonymous PushSquare columnist who has been spotted in three major cities across the globe. It’s rumoured he’s on the run from the British monarchy who accused him of treason.