PS3 Extras : Are devs using them?

[Shifty Geezer]

Now the cats are out of the bag, can any devs comment on if/how they're using HDD and tilt control? How long have you known about these features (if you can say)? Will the HDD just be for file caching to speed up access, or will it likely find better use as mass writeable storage?

 

[Bad_Boy]

Interesting question, I too would like to know how devs are using the HDD since it is indeed confirmed standard. I know phil harrison mentioned that every game that comes out of Sony would use the HDD, but he didnt go any deeper than that, unfortunately.

 

[Farid]

HDD as standard is know since quite a few months by the First Parties (before the Playstation Event announcement by Kutaragi).
And maybe by the Second Parties too for as long, I guess.

For the Third Parties, I can't tell for certain, since it might have been disclosed on a per publisher basis.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Of course Deano and friends are probably at E3 lapping up the praise and not around to comment at the moment!

 

[mckmas8808]

Wow didn't know that 1st and maybe 2nd parties team knew that long ago.

 

[Bad_Boy]

Yeah im sure they have known for a while, The specific part im referring to is the GDC Q&A with Phill Harrison when he states all games out of Sony would support the HDD.

 

[expletive]

Now the cats are out of the bag, can any devs comment on if/how they're using HDD and tilt control? How long have you known about these features (if you can say)? Will the HDD just be for file caching to speed up access, or will it likely find better use as mass writeable storage?

FWIW, on the 1up podcast this morning the Sony guy said hardly any devs are using the tilt feature at all for the first gen of games.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Given the Warhawk game added it in 2 weeks, I guess no-one knew about it and it was a last-minute addition. I'd be interested what devs think of it though.

 

[heliosphere]

This is the first I'd heard of the tilt functionality and from the other devs I've spoken to nobody else had heard anything about it until the last couple of weeks. Sony kept this one very quiet from most devs and I doubt we'll see many games making significant use of it at launch.

 

[mckmas8808]

This is the first I'd heard of the tilt functionality and from the other devs I've spoken to nobody else had heard anything about it until the last couple of weeks. Sony kept this one very quiet from most devs and I doubt we'll see many games making significant use of it at launch.

Can you vision you guys ever using it? I mean in a FPS you could use it to turn around faster in games.

 

[rounin]

Can you vision you guys ever using it? I mean in a FPS you could use it to turn around faster in games.

I really like the idea someone came up with on using the tilt to roll left or right for third person shooters as well. And I also like the same person's (not sure?) idea on using it to 'jump' (raise it 'up' to jump)

 

[Barbarian]

Yes, basically we didn't know about the tilt controller till couple of days ago.
The hard drive situation was not clear till yesterday as well. The plans are to use it for caching and save games.

 

[Lycan]

Have NDA's been lifted ?

 

[Tars Tarkus]

Deano mentioned what a godsend it was to have easy access to massive storage for all the assets HS has. A few people jumped on that with "so hd is standard!?!" and he clarified with something along the lines of "blu-ray...talking about blu-ray". That was back in an early March time frame IIRC but his blog's down, E3 black-out or shoddy maintenance , so I can't check exact dates. Interesting about the controller being secret for so long. Wonder how much of that silence was intentional or forced because of design problems.

edited for poor choice of words and phrasing

 

[DeanA]

.. he backtracked nicely with something along the lines of "blu-ray...talking about blu-ray".

My memory of it, after discussing it with him in the pub at the time of the post, is that he wasn't backtracking at all. His comments *did* refer to Blu-Ray.. but as is often the case some people look for context that just isn't there.

Dean

 

[DeanA]

Have NDA's been lifted ?

In most cases (Sony included) NDA's are never really lifted.. they just fade away as more information is made public at events like E3. Even in that case, devs can (or should) only discuss the public stuff. Details that have not been made public remain under NDA.

Dean

 

[TrollFace]

Well, if Warhawk devs only know a couple of days about it before E3, and have already been able to integrate it into the game-controlls, it won't be that hard for devs to do that for launchgames either.

I liked the combo-style options it gave that game with the sensors. I read that normal tilting would steer the spaceship, with with holding down R2 trigger, the stering of the shipwings would become a 'roll' movement. if you look at it that way, it really adds lot's of extra analogue control options.

Depening on how well it works and how sensitive it is, it basicly could be implemented in lots of gametypes, adding not only playability and fun, but also functionality. I was also thinking about better usage in FPS and RTS games that have so far been subject to problems in a console cause of it's standard controllers and lack of mouse-analogue control. De little analogue sticks on a gamepad normally used for aiming in a FPS are still not ideal, and there is always a degree of auto-aim needed. I would say the running, strafing and shooting stuff could still be done with the digital buttons just like one does on a keyboard with a PC shooter, but the horizontal aiming for example could be done with the motionsensors, in combination with one analogue stick for vertical adjustments.

But the flightgames, racegames, platformers (jumping) and I think also fight and hack&slash games (special combo fight-movements) could really benefit from it adding extra fun And how cool would it be if finally some RTS games like C&C could make it to PS3 cuz of this controller. Maybe even browsing the Net on PS3 with it would, using it as a mouse.

Still wondering what sort of movements it can sense though. Tilting the controller is one, lifting and lowering vertically is two, but would it also detect accelaration of you move the thing quickly from left to right without tilting, keeping it horizontal ?

 

[flick556]

Well, if Warhawk devs only know a couple of days about it before E3, and have already been able to integrate it into the game-controlls, it won't be that hard for devs to do that for launchgames either.

I liked the combo-style options it gave that game with the sensors. I read that normal tilting would steer the spaceship, with with holding down R2 trigger, the stering of the shipwings would become a 'roll' movement. if you look at it that way, it really adds lot's of extra analogue control options.

Depening on how well it works and how sensitive it is, it basicly could be implemented in lots of gametypes, adding not only playability and fun, but also functionality. I was also thinking about better usage in FPS and RTS games that have so far been subject to problems in a console cause of it's standard controllers and lack of mouse-analogue control. De little analogue sticks on a gamepad normally used for aiming in a FPS are still not ideal, and there is always a degree of auto-aim needed. I would say the running, strafing and shooting stuff could still be done with the digital buttons just like one does on a keyboard with a PC shooter, but the horizontal aiming for example could be done with the motionsensors, in combination with one analogue stick for vertical adjustments.

But the flightgames, racegames, platformers (jumping) and I think also fight and hack&slash games (special combo fight-movements) could really benefit from it adding extra fun And how cool would it be if finally some RTS games like C&C could make it to PS3 cuz of this controller. Maybe even browsing the Net on PS3 with it would, using it as a mouse.

Still wondering what sort of movements it can sense though. Tilting the controller is one, lifting and lowering vertically is two, but would it also detect accelaration of you move the thing quickly from left to right without tilting, keeping it horizontal ?

If the six degrees are taken literally in a mathematical sense this should be possible. Six should be enough for all possible orientations (rotation and translation) in 3d space.

This is a good illustration
http://www.simlabs.arc.nasa.gov/vms/six_degrees.html

 

[mckmas8808]

In most cases (Sony included) NDA's are never really lifted.. they just fade away as more information is made public at events like E3. Even in that case, devs can (or should) only discuss the public stuff. Details that have not been made public remain under NDA.

Dean

Well then, how do you personally feel about the gyros enabled controller? Can you see yourself impletmenting it into any games in the far future?

 

[TrollFace]

Thanks for the link.

Just stumbled upon the IGN-hands-on for the controller. It says : [q]There are six axis of movement (described as "six degrees of movement" at the Sony pre-E3 conference). It understands roll, pitch and yaw, and "3-dimension acceleration information". You can move it around like a steering wheel, or like a Sit & Spin, or like you're shaking an Etch-A-Sketch, and you can even pull it up and down like you're ringing a bell. All of this is accomplished without additional motion sensing, unlike the Wii. Of course, the PS3 controller also won't be capable of as much versatility of motion of Nintendo's new console controller -- it has a wide range of movement, but not as open a sense of movement. The Wii, for example, lets you swing the controller as if it's a tennis racquet -- perhaps the PS3 controller will also work that way if the game is programmed correctly, but judging from previous controllers with similar tilt technology, we wouldn't bet on it. (In the meantime, the EyeToy can take care of that, but you will have to buy the accessory, and it might still not be as accurate as the Wii for most uses.)[/q]

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/705/705934p1.html

Hmm, I guess that this would indeed indicate it also can sense acceleration-time/speed of the individual movements.