Moving nowhere with the PlayStation Move

There's quite a number of differences between the Wii and the new PS3 motion control add-on the PlayStation Move, but it's not a huge exaggeration to call it Sony's 'Wiimote-HD', since both controllers are used in similar fashions when playing games. The most important distinction is the Move's accuracy; it's far better at tracking where the controller is, so it can do a lot more than even the upgraded Wii Motion Plus can hope to do.

So will the Move be Sony's gaming holy grail? Sadly, no.

Unique controls do not always produce unique gameplay. The Wii has proved this with years of simplistic-but-mediocre games best suited for very young kids. Aside from the Nintendo-developed Wii Sports Resort, there hasn't been a Wii game that has delivered on the Wii's original promise. And does Sony really expect the sell the PlayStation Move to the mainstream 'non-gamers' if it's an additional $100 (let's be honest here, it won't be much less than $100) cost on top of the $300 PS3?

Once you consider the launch games for the Move being very similar to current games being offered on the Wii right now, all of what has been announced so far has been rather underwhelming. With the Move, Sony simply isn't making a compelling argument for gamers or mainstream non-gamers to purchase it. These same problems also affect Microsoft's Natal motion controller, so these are problems that aren't necessarily limited to Sony.

I'm tempted to call the PlayStation Move another knee-jerk attempt by Sony to bandwagon on technology trends. But unlike my opinion on the PSP Go, I actually have some hope for Sony in this case. There's some promise in what the Sony can offer through the Move because the technology behind it is rather versatile, but it remains to be seen if they can capitalize on it with some great games after it's launched.