It's no secret that gaming's presence at CES can barely be felt, but we were lucky enough to find some diamonds in the rough, including a few that made us want to phone a lawyer.
While there was no new gaming software to be found, there was a respectable amount of gaming hardware and accessories that stole our attention. Nyko stood out with the company's Wand and Kama Charge Kit and Mad Catz showed off Street Fighter IV-branded FightPads and FightSticks. We were wowed by the Nvidia GeForce 3D Vision, but unfortunately getting it all set up requires a few expensive add-ons.
We were upset to see a lack of products devoted solely to game consoles like we had originally anticipated. So where does this leave gaming's future at CES? Believe it or not, gaming actually had more of a showing at this year than it did in '08, so we'd imagine to see an incremental increase next year. Keep in mind, a lot of third-party hardware and accessories are a result of the Wii, a console that lends itself very well to the production of such items.
Check out these other notable CES gaming stories and slide shows:
- How are these console emulators legal?
- Saitek showed us a flight stick for the home console
- Does this Sixense remote improve on the Wiimote?
- The thought-controlled Mindflex game
- DreamGear WarBeast gaming guitar: An exact replica of the B.C. Rich WarBeast guitar
- The Psyko 5.1 headset puts a new spin on surround-sound gaming
- Mad Catz lets you program 11 buttons with the Cyborg X
One of the interesting trends we saw at the lackluster gaming showcase at this year's CES was an abundance of Nintendo, Super Nintendo, and Sega Genesis hardware manufactured by third-party companies.
Some booths, which preferred to remain nameless, were showcasing 3-in-1 portable players as well, with slots to play all the above-mentioned consoles. All you need are the original game cartridges.
Perplexed as to how this kind of blatant patent infringement could possibly be tolerated, we asked these booth reps, "How can this be legal?" One booth rep immediately told us that "the patent for these consoles has since expired, essentially making it a free-for-all." At a different booth, a clearly uninformed rep responded, "As far as I know, all this is Kosher."
But is it? A while back in 2005 a Gamasutra article disclosed some research and uncovered that simply because a patent is expired doesn't mean protection of the patent has also. So what are these guys even doing at CES in the first place?
We'll be in touch with Nintendo for some further explanation and a statement, but as far as we can tell, some of these vendors appear to be breaking the law with these devices. We'll update this story once we hear back.
Meanwhile, check out our slide show highlighting some of these suspect products for sale from various vendors on the showroom floor.
While the Nyko Wand took our Best of CES gaming award, we were also fans of a few additional accessories the company announced for the Nintendo Wii.
We really like the Kama Wireless Nunchuk we reviewed a few months ago, and Nyko has decided to improve on the item again. We know Nintendo had a fairly unpublicized grievance with the Kama's striking resemblance to an original Nunchuk, and Nyko wouldn't comment if the Kama Charge Kit was a result as a settlement between the two manufacturers.
The Kama Charge kit not only comes with a new and improved Nunchuk--albeit cosmetically different than the original Kama--it comes complete with a rechargeable rubberized battery pack and custom charging cradle. We also really liked the inclusion of an additional battery pack and gripped cover to transform an original Wii remote into a chargeable one.
Check out our slide show detailing all of the new updates to the Kama Nunchuk.
We chose the Nyko Wand as a Best of CES gaming finalist because the product not only improves on the original Nintendo design, but because of the controller's innovative Trans-Port interface.
Check out our slide show detailing the features of the Wand and see how it will combine with accessories like the Pistol Grip.
We've seen our fair share of surround-sound headphones, but the Psyko 5.1 PC gaming headset goes about it in a unique way. Instead of loading separate audio channels in each ear cup, the Psyko 5.1 places them on the unit's headband and it's the ear cups that house the actual subwoofers.
With the speakers located on the top of your head, the Psyko 5.1 relies on the strategic positioning of the channels in the headband to create the surround sound effect. Currently the Psyko 5.1 is only available for PC, but the company assures us that video game console versions will be coming soon.
For more on how the Psyko 5.1 works, check out Tom Merritt's first look from the CNET stage.
(Credit:
Mad Catz)
To celebrate the release of Street Fighter IV, Mad Catz has teamed up with Capcom in order to roll out a collection of branded FightPads and FightSticks emblazoned with various Street Fighter characters.
The FightPad and FightStick will be available for both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 platforms in addition to the Tournament Edition FightStick, which features the exact hardware found in arcade cabinets.
Look for these licensed items to go on sale next month and be sure to check out our slide show of the entire line of Street Fighter IV accessories.
LAS VEGAS--MindArk, the developer of the science fiction-based virtual world, Entropia Universe, has announced that it is spinning off the functional game side of its business into a separate company.
Known as First Planet Company, the new entity will be a stand-alone company that will run the actual virtual world, which it is calling Planet Calypso. MindArk will continue to operate the platform side of its business, focusing on tools that it can make available to partners looking for a custom virtual world.
In recent months, MindArk has put a lot of its energy in developing relationships with outside entities that want to build their own planets in Entropia Universe. To date, it has signed up five partners.
But as part of the spin-off arrangement, announced here at CES, First Planet Company will be treated as one of those partners.
Among others that have set up shop in the virtual world are a Chinese company that is investigating using the virtual world for cultural purposes and a firm that is looking at using Entropia Universe as a virtual theme park. And still another is looking at giving the game's players immersive environments based on hit Hollywood films.
(Credit:
Saitek)
Home console flight simulator and air combat games just got a bit easier to control. Just in time for upcoming titles like Tom Clancy's HAWX, Saitek is introducing the Aviator, a flight stick fully tested to work Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 games. That said, Saitek claims the Aviator will also perform well with the Blazing Angels series of games released earlier on.
Available for both platforms, each Aviator will also have the ability to work with PC games as well, doubling the compatibility. The Xbox 360 version (pictured) not only has the familiar silver Xbox guide button, it also has room for a headset connection in order to chat with other players during aerial dogfights. The PlayStation 3 Aviator features a Home button for access to the cross-media-bar while playing.
Both Aviator flight sticks are scheduled to ship this month for $50.
(Credit:
Mad Catz)
Mad Catz has unveiled the latest in the company's line of PC flight sticks, the Cyborg X. While the new hardware showcases many new features, we're most impressed with the amount of customization it offers.
A total of of 11 buttons can be completely programmed (22 if you're holding down the shift button) allowing for complete control. Compatible with most air-combat and flight-simulation games, the Cyborg X should pacify even the most hardcore of PC gamers. As an added space-saving bonus, the Cyborg X can fold up for easy storage--a feature we've never seen before on a flight stick.
On the ergonomic front, the Cyborg X can adjust its height depending on your preference. No need for extra equipment, all the tools you'll need are embedded in the flight stick's base.
The Cyborg will be available in the coming weeks for $50.
TrueMotion remote is set to ship in December.
(Credit: Erica Ogg/CNET)LAS VEGAS--Imagine playing baseball on Nintendo's Wii Sports and being able to pull the ball to left field or lay down a bunt instead of just randomly smacking doubles or home runs.
A Silicon Valley company says its take on motion-control technology will offer far more accuracy to such games. CNET got the first look at the technology here at CES 2009.
Sixense Entertainment, based in Los Gatos, Calif., makes the technology called TrueMotion, which was first developed to track the head positioning of F-16 and F-18 jet pilots. It consists of a handset and a base station. The controller tracks movement along six different axes, and the base station generates a very weak magnetic field. The data is used to determine the exact position of the cursor on the screen.
Nintendo's Wiimote, by contrast, uses three axes and measures the acceleration of the handset, not the absolute position of the remote. Using the absolute position allows people playing motion-control games, such as baseball, bowling, or soccer, to "use real world skills," said Sixense CTO and Chief Architect Jeff Bellinghausen. As in, if you know how to play baseball, TrueMotion lets you make strategic plays, like hitting a bloop single to left or a double to right.
But TrueMotion also makes a difference in how games are developed, according to Sixense CEO Amir Rubin. TrueMotion measures the exact degree of position of the remote every 10 milliseconds. When developers know the exact position of the cursor, there's less need to develop complex algorithms for games just to compensate for not knowing where the cursor is.
The first incarnation will be available in December for PC gaming. It will be backward compatible with a number of popular gaming titles, such as Crysis, Call of Duty 4, and the Madden and NBA Live series.
Big game makers have already had the TrueMotion development kit for a year. By the time the PC gaming version is released, they will have had two years to play around with it.
And although it's not announcing anything yet, Sixense says it is in talks with all three console makers--Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo--about licensing its technology. TrueMotion for console games won't be available until 2010 at the earliest.
Here's a video I took of Bellinghausen, demonstrating how TrueMotion technology works.
