For those that don't know this is a small USB camera (basically a
webcam) for the PS2 that comes with 12 minigames and a bunch of non
competitive "effects". It's quite cheap: at $50 it's no more than any
other initial release game.
You see yourself on screen and very advanced collision/edge detection is
used to play the games. For example place your onscreen hand under a
control, give a wiggle and you "press" a button.
The games are all simple, but frenetic and fun. Most are timed games
(giving you three minutes to perform a task) making them great for kids
(my son is 5 and loves it) as there's no way to "lose". Some games are
harder than others, but most are simple and have appropriate difficulty
settings.
Playing this thing is awesome: you never touch the physical controller.
You just use your body motions to control things. It's quite a workout
as well - I fully expect to see them (or something like them) in health
clubs soon.
The games generally feature certain kind of movements. In one a soccer
ball is bounced and you have to "keep it in the air" by bouncing it from
underneath. In another soapy windows are presented and you have to use
broad sweeps from your arms and body to "clean" them. The most fun so
far is "Kung Fu": tiny ninjas attack from the sides and you have to
smack them before they reach the center of the screen and "hit" you.
The effects library is also fun. You have "sparkles" which emit glowing
streamers from moving body parts, "Fun house" which warps and distorts
your image in realtime (the kids love this one), and several "chase"
activities where swarms of bees or spiders gravitate towards high
movement.
This is really the ultimate party game... almost makes me want to go out
and find some friends. Kids will love it and it's really impossible not
to get into it after a little while.
I'm hoping the technology takes off. I've tried traditional VR and
non-traditional controllers and gimmicks galore. This is the first one
that actually works EXACTLY as you would expect and takes essentially no
training or gear (headsets, gloves, etc). Also once you play it it's so
clearly obvious that these games are fun because of the quality of the
interface.
I would love to see to mainstream games add eye-toy extensions. Many of
the mini-games in platformers, for example, could be played with either
the dual-shock or (slightly modified) the eye-toy. I could also just
see games using the video feed to great effect (adding your image to the
game, noticing when you move or "leave" or when somebody walks in front
of the camera, etc).
I just think that these little games have only scratched the surface of
what a visually aware game might do.
Jim Davis
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