OK-Sony is Jumping on the WiiU Bandwagon

[Scowling Dragon]

Are you kidding me? (http://www.gamesradar.com/sources-say-ps4-will-abandon-dualshock-design/)

I mean, I love the idea and I think that the touchscreen is a great feature but this feels so tagalongish.

[Mando Knight]

Because Sony has been a leading console innovator since...?

[Scowling Dragon]

I donno. Anyway I hope this makes "HATORZ" shut up about WiiU design being a gimmick (It can be if used improperly).

Unless the next Microsoft and Sony systems have a magical superjump in tech, this will FORCE creators to spend more effort into good uses for the screen.

[Craft (Cheese)]

Are you kidding me? (http://www.gamesradar.com/sources-say-ps4-will-abandon-dualshock-design/)

I mean, I love the idea and I think that the touchscreen is a great feature but this feels so tagalongish.

"According to unnamed sources connected to Sony who spoke with Computer and Video Games, the familiar rumbling twin-stick layout will finally be laid to rest with PlayStation 4."

Yeah, call me skeptical. I'm waiting for an official announcement before I start bashing anyone for this.

[Hunter Noventa]

It would be nigh suicidal. The dualshcok is still one of the best controller designs ever.

if they did what the Wii U is doing and had the PS3 controllers still work, it would be fine though.

[Kjata]

Well, if this is true... :smallfrown:

I love the dualshock. So much. Hell, it's so good even the 360 uses it. It fits your hands so nicely...

[Trazoi]

That article only says they've been "experimenting with building LCD touch screens into its controllers", so that could mean anything. A small LCD touch screen for extra player-specific info and small menus, sort of like the Dreamcast controller (but with colour & touch), could be really neat.

[Sith_Happens]

My guess is they'll end up with something similar to PS Vita, but as a console controller.

[Anteros]

Who cares? Are we really going to pretend that every major company doesn't steal each other's innovations? As long as we get good games and other products we win as consumers.

[Trazoi]

Who cares? Are we really going to pretend that every major company doesn't steal each other's innovations? As long as we get good games and other products we win as consumers.
The functionality of the controller is a pretty big deal in determining the types of games that can be good.

I'm still fond of the winged handle gamepads and I don't particularly want to see all the consoles move to tablet-based controllers with a focus on touchscreens instead of analog sticks and buttons.

[Nadevoc]

I never really like the DualShock, so cool. Also, it does make sense for them to at least consider whether the technology available now would let them design a controller that would work better.

[KillianHawkeye]

I love the dualshock. So much. Hell, it's so good even the 360 uses it. It fits your hands so nicely...

Please don't compare Sony's 15-year-old controller design to the greatness of the XBox 360's controller. They are NOT the same. :smallannoyed::smallannoyed:

Okay, yes, the button layouts are nearly identical, but the 360 controller is 100x more ergonomic, and it has a MUCH better D-pad.

[Dumbledore lives]

Please don't compare Sony's 15-year-old controller design to the greatness of the XBox 360's controller. They are NOT the same. :smallannoyed::smallannoyed:

Okay, yes, the button layouts are nearly identical, but the 360 controller is 100x more ergonomic, and it has a MUCH better D-pad.

Buh? The 360 controller has a lot of good features but a good d-pad is not one of them. The PS1/2/3's d-pad isn't great but the 360's is nigh on nonfunctional. This is all because Nintendo copyrighted the good d-pad so others have to make do with a highly inferior make.

[Erloas]

Yeah... I don't see the "jumping on the WiiU bandwagon" here. They are looking at potential redesigns of the controller, that is all the article says. Some versions they have worked on have a LCD screen that may or may not have touch capability.
While it may end up emulating the WiiU pad, nothing in that article says that. I don't think Nintendo was even mentioned at all. And a touch screen is almost universal at this point in every other tech product on the market.

[Geno9999]

Buh? The 360 controller has a lot of good features but a good d-pad is not one of them. The PS1/2/3's d-pad isn't great but the 360's is nigh on nonfunctional. This is all because Nintendo copyrighted the good d-pad so others have to make do with a highly inferior make.

I've had the opposite experience, but the 360 controller I'm using right now is a Batman Arkham City promo controller (http://www.amazon.com/Batarang-Controller-Xbox-360-Wired/dp/B005761JFW), so it might have a slightly better pad.

[Mando Knight]

No, Nintendo definitely has the best D-pads in existence.

[Tiki Snakes]

The Xbox pad isn't a dualshock type. It's quite transparently almost entirely a dreamcast pad.

I remember quite liking the Dualshock back in the early days, but frankly it stayed still when others where moving on and compared to the alternatives, it ended up just feeling really awkwardly designed. That said, I've spent very little time using the playstation 3 generation pad.

[Geno9999]

No, Nintendo definitely has the best D-pads in existence.

I should have clarified, I meant PS controller vs. Xbox 360 controller.

Doesn't really change your statement either though.

[Acanous]

The Xbox pad isn't a dualshock type. It's quite transparently almost entirely a dreamcast pad.


This. Xbox stole a lot of things from the Dreamcast (If you'll remember, Microsoft/Sega battles over rights to the hardware is WHY Sega wasn't able to continue manufacture, and the Dreamcast died)
and in fact the Xbox could have been considered Dreamcast 2. So no, they didn't gank it from Sony, and Nintendo origionally pulled the diamond four-button layout.

Hell, Nintendo, being the oldest competitor, has a whole lot of "First!" when it comes to game hardware and peripherals.

[GenericMook]

Dualshock controllers work. There's easy access to all of the buttons on the controller, and it fits pretty comfortably. Granted, I wasn't a big fan of the weird thing with the PS3's L2/R2 buttons having space behind them, but I got used to it pretty easily.

No need to fix something that works, right?

[Psyren]

The 360's dpad is awful. Try to do precision inputs (like fatalities) on that vs. a PS3 controller and tell me which one is easier.

But their triggers are much better than "L2" and "R2," and the controller as a whole is more ergonomic (less angles.)

[Dumbledore lives]

I've had the opposite experience, but the 360 controller I'm using right now is a Batman Arkham City promo controller (http://www.amazon.com/Batarang-Controller-Xbox-360-Wired/dp/B005761JFW), so it might have a slightly better pad.

Well that does look like a better d-pad, but only because it is not the normal one which you could see below. Honestly it's okay for something like Gears of War where it is just weapon switching but anything more precision and it's a nightmare.

http://venturebeat.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/xbox-360-controller.jpg

[KillianHawkeye]

The 360's dpad is awful. Try to do precision inputs (like fatalities) on that vs. a PS3 controller and tell me which one is easier.

Well let's just say I disagree. I never have any problems with any aspects of the 360 controller, although I'll admit that I'm more of a Street Fighter guy than Mortal Kombat. Still, a few of the characters in Street Fighter 4 have some tricky ultra combos. I will say that I'm pretty decent at Marvel VS Capcom 3, but when I tried playing it on a PS3 I could barely accomplish anything and it was entirely because of the poorly designed D-pad.

D-pads aside, since that issue mainly comes down to personal preference, the DualShock is still pretty uncomparable.

[RagingKrikkit]

Are you kidding me? (http://www.gamesradar.com/sources-say-ps4-will-abandon-dualshock-design/)

I mean, I love the idea and I think that the touchscreen is a great feature but this feels so tagalongish.

It feels like deja vu. Nintendo has been the leadng cause of innovation in the gaming industry for the last twenty years, and all the other two have done is rip off Nintendo's ideas, slap shinier graphics on it, and proclaim that they have the best gaming device on the market.

[Scowling Dragon]

No, Nintendo definitely has the best D-pads in existence.

They literally invented them. And have copyright. Otherwise Sony and Microsoft would have pounced on them YEARS ago.

[Psyren]

I'm fine with Sony's D-Pad. And there was that one for the 360 where you're supposed to be able to twist it and the cardinals will raise above the diagonals; I haven't seen it anywhere but I would gladly pick it up if I did. But the default 360 d-pad is frustrating. Even in shooters it's annoying - I can't count how many times in ME multiplayer I've tried to save myself with a quick Ops back and ended up pulling out my rocket launcher instead. It doesn' happen often on the grand scheme of things but it happens enough to be noticeable, and annoying.

[Trazoi]

They literally invented them. And have copyright. Otherwise Sony and Microsoft would have pounced on them YEARS ago.
Nintendo had a patent on the D-pad (http://www.google.com/patents?vid=4687200), however that should have only protected the exact mechanism used by Nintendo in the 80s. Besides which it expired in 2005, so any next-gen consoles can go nuts with them.


I'm fine with Sony's D-Pad. And there was that one for the 360 where you're supposed to be able to twist it and the cardinals will raise above the diagonals; I haven't seen it anywhere but I would gladly pick it up if I did.
The Chrome series controllers have them. I'm almost tempted to get one just for the D-pad, except they're ridiculously shiny.

[Vaz]

It feels like deja vu. Nintendo has been the leadng cause of innovation in the gaming industry for the last twenty years, and all the other two have done is rip off Nintendo's ideas, slap shinier graphics on it, and proclaim that they have the best gaming device on the market.

looks at pokemkn and endless mario games... Yep.

[Scowling Dragon]

Nintendo had a patent on the D-pad (http://www.google.com/patents?vid=4687200), however that should have only protected the exact mechanism used by Nintendo in the 80s. Besides which it expired in 2005, so any next-gen consoles can go nuts with them.

Yup. I hope they do. Im not for the abuse of copyright. As much as I love nintendo.

Or maybe they try to pretend that they have "Super individuality" and they would rather have had worse control system but by golly we need to be unique.

And you take that back about Mario games! Those things rule!

[Androgeus]

looks at pokemkn and endless mario games... Yep.

They may not be innovative in software, but they do try to push some hardware/user interface boundaries.

[Trazoi]

Yup. I hope they do. Im not for the abuse of copyright. As much as I love nintendo.
Copyright can't apply to gamepad functionality, so no danger there.

There's a whole different bunch of types of intellectual property (copyright, patents, trademarks, trade secrets) and they've all got different rules about what applies where and how long they last. I'm no law expert but with an expired patent, the only IP that could possibly apply would be if there was an argument that the cross-shaped D-pad was a integral part of Nintendo's trade dress - like that type of D-pad makes a controller recognisably "Nintendo". Which is pretty ridiculous and I don't think will happen, and stuff like the raised cross on the Chrome series Xbox 360 controller are a good sign that companies aren't going to avoid it simply in fear of that kind of lawsuit.

[Scowling Dragon]

Ah. OK. I sure do love nintendo. I guess its this genuine feeling to them. Oh sure, there here to make money, but its got very passionate and good people at the head. And even though they are a brand, they don't FEEL like a brand. Like Pixar or such.

Like Compare the Names "Super Smash Brothers" to "Sony All Stars"

[Mando Knight]

looks at pokemkn and endless mario games... Yep.

The first Pokémon games were fairly innovative, and the newer ones are development and refinement of the originals. The same could be said of both 2D and 3D Mario games.

Then there's the counterpoint... Madden and Call of Duty are even guiltier of being more of the same, but few people call them out in comparison.

[Pie Guy]

Then there's the counterpoint... Madden and Call of Duty are even guiltier of being more of the same, but few people call them out in comparison.

You must not hang out in the same sites as me. When I think stagnation in gaming, I think of those two first.

[RagingKrikkit]

looks at pokemkn and endless mario games... Yep.

*rolls eyes* On a technological level, at least. The D-pad, as we have discussed, the analog stick, the handheld gaming device, touchscreens and motion controls, all of these were brought to us by Nintendo.

[Dumbledore lives]

*rolls eyes* On a technological level, at least. The D-pad, as we have discussed, the analog stick, the handheld gaming device, touchscreens and motion controls, all of these were brought to us by Nintendo.

So was 3-D gaming.
Tee Hee, the Virtual Boy

[Scowling Dragon]

Also: AAAAAh! Nintendo is reworking (http://www.gamesradar.com/next-zelda-will-get-back-basics/) the very core of Zelda! The World had gon topsy turvy!

Yay!

[Zevox]

Also: AAAAAh! Nintendo is reworking (http://www.gamesradar.com/next-zelda-will-get-back-basics/) the very core of Zelda! The World had gon topsy turvy!

Yay!
That... sounds quite bad to me. Trying to make games less linear never seems to result in things that I like, and the idea of changing it from single-player I can only see leading to another co-op game ala Four Swords, which I thought was pretty weak. Ugh.

[Vaz]

The first Pokémon games were fairly innovative, and the newer ones are development and refinement of the originals. The same could be said of both 2D and 3D Mario games.

Then there's the counterpoint... Madden and Call of Duty are even guiltier of being more of the same, but few people call them out in comparison.

Don't need to tell me about Call of Duty at least; I'm not American, so playing a game that looks like watching down-syndrome turtles attempting to mate is not one I find interesting.

Call of Duty though, it's sadly rehashed again and again; I completely agree. I was making a slightly sarcastic point regarding Nintendo's "revolutionary" attitude to gaming; that is not to say I don't like Pokemon or Mario (less so, with Mario as I wasn't much of a gamer in my youth, and didn't play it, my first game was Spyro the Dragon, go figure what happened to that when Insomniac dropped it).

I like Pokemon and Call of Duty, and Spyro 1 and 2, precisely because they're essentially the same games, with better graphics; but the same could be said of all chain sequels - The Elder Scrolls arguably has changed very little in its overall design; the changes are essentially cosmetic or slight twists which are capable of being changed.

I like the Arma series, Arma 2 is more well played when I had Project Reality on there and before my computer blew up, than I have played Skyrim, and I have 162 hours on Skyrim currently.

At the end of the day, I'm not stroking myself thinking I'm so good because my favourite console maker is at the leading edge of the technology market, and everyone else is copying and bowing down in their footsteps, I'm just happy I've had a Playstation, PS2 and now have a PS3, and will likely get a PS4; the controller has barely changed from when I got my first Dual Shock Controller for the original Playstation, and it's ergonomics I am used to after 17 years; I would be extremely happy to carry that on, but I would still go to PS4 eventually, typically due to friends with it, and the games I like on it.

[Scowling Dragon]

Touche. Excellent comeback.