Recently gaming has taken an unexpected turn. During the last generation of consoles, if you were to think 'what is the future of gaming?' the vast majority would have said 'better graphics, better physics, more cinematic looking games'. Though this is not too far from the truth with consoles such as the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3, the eldest of the console developers, Nintendo, decided to expand in a different market. Rather than compete with two of the largest corporations in the world, Nintendo's angle cast new light and blazed a trail quite separate from its competitors. It is clear from the cavalcade of titles in your local supermarket that the Nintendo Wii is quite a different beast from the Microsoft and Sony's comparatively more advanced systems.

Motion controls, similar to the like of the Nintendo Wii's infamous Wiimote and Nun chuck, may not be as innovative and lucid as first anticipated, but they allow for an alternative way of playing games. The image of the controller or keyboard and mouse, can put the less enthusiastic gamers off altogether. Analogue sticks and up to eleven buttons, each context sensitive to game in which is being played is daunting for those less confident in their abilities as a gamer. Also for many, the controller is a reminder of the stereotyped image of the gaming geek. The reclusive, agoraphobic and obsessive character who is on the one hand, demonised for being a potential psychopath due to the amount of violence consumed daily through their chosen form of entertainment; or a ball of anxiety and social awkwardness as their only frame of reference is their high score on some obscure arcade emulation or the level of their character on whatever MMO grind fest they are addicted to this month. If we compare these images to Nintendo's family friendly and above all social console, it is plain to see the attraction for the casual gamer. No button combinations to remember or need for dexterity that would give the hardcore gamer who is used to these concepts a clear advantage. Instead the use of motion levels the playing field, allowing nearly all people to come to terms with a games interface. This ethos fits in well with Microsoft's vision of Natal. Microsoft Game Studio's general manager Kudo Tsunoda says 'We all know people who tried to play a videogame for the first time and got stuck trying to figure out the controls. With Project Natal, all you need to play is your own life experience.' With Microsoft's current fan base of hardcore gamers and casual gamers alike, Natal will have to cater to much more than simple Eye Toy type games. With this in mind, it will be interesting to see how developers take to Microsoft's motion technology. Peter Molyneux's Milo and Kate though little hes been discussed, sounds to be quite experimental with its use of the Natal hardware. In an interview with Edge Magazine Molyneux talked about the difficulty of making an interesting casual game, 'It was much less of an interactive experience. We said it had to be done with more or less one button, because the kind of person we want to play it has never touched a controller before.' The fundamental truth to successful motion control seems to be simplicity, which is possibly the major point of contention between the hardcore gamer that need more than the simplicity that casual games offer. Again Nintendo's decision to give the traditional controller a back seat with the Wii, makes them an important example of how motion control attracts the casual gamer, and ultimately how simplicity is key with the causal.
When the Wii launched in December 2006, no one quite knew what to expect. For many the prospect of downloading retro games far outweighed the prospect of new games but, 3 years later, you need only look in game shops and internet stores to see that the Wii is now the predominant platform due to its role as a casual console. New releases for the Wii include It's My Birthday and Horrible Histories: Ruthless Romans sporting a combined total of 45 mini games is somehow representative of the majority of Wii titles. Many thought that the motion controls of the Wii would yield innovation and new experiences; instead the results have been disappointing to say the least. For every descent title released there seems to be at least 5 shockingly bad mini game compendiums that are aimed at the casual gamer. Alternatively, this means that Nintendo with both the Wii and the DS have a strong hold over the casual gaming market. With more and more titles pertaining to casual play as opposed to the more serious, traditional tone that video games usually adopt, Nintendo has alienated many gamers. In an article describing Nintendo's performance at this year's E3, one journalist wrote 'It seems Nintendo divides up the Wii roster by subject matter rather than quality, making The Conduit aimed at an imaginary audience of slavering gun nuts. Two out of three of these games being on-rails shooters shows that the company is simply out of touch with what the older proportion of its fan base are all about'. Games such as Suda 51's No More Heroes and Platinum Games' Mad World seem to be the only real alternatives to the casual games if we discount the obvious choices of Mario, Zelda and Metroid. With the cost effective price of both games and the console there is very little to sway Nintendo's casual demographic away from them, as well as the reputation of the Wii as a fun and social way of entertaining the family Microsoft and Sony now have their work cut out for them. It is unfair to say that Nintendo hasn't contributed to this current generation but, for the most part motion control has just heralded a sudden influx of cheap, disposable casual games.

As I said earlier, for every decent title there are a myriad of bad casual games on the Wii, but it is worth looking into the great games of the Wii to see how useful and innovative motion control really is. Games such as Mario Galaxy and No More Heroes have made quite an impact on the console gaming landscape, and the Wii is possibly the perfect platform from which to achieve such notoriety. The familiar framework of Mario Galaxy does not deviate from what previous Mario titles had already covered, but the Wiimote and Nun-chuck allowed for a different way to play the familiar. More intricate level design and new challenges made it a must have title for not only die hard Nintendo fans but for all Wii owners, casual or otherwise. The act of moving Mario with a different control method on the surface seems to be a shallow experience but still undeniably fun. The replacement of the controller with motion controls caused the game to be viewed form a different vantage point, it wasn't just a question of aesthetics and character design, it was about whether the game worked and how well it fit in to the much loved Mario franchise a good example is IGN's review 'It is a marriage of old and new - a theme that extends beyond presentation and into the gameplay mechanics...' Nintendo literally changed the way we play Mario with Galaxy and this would not have been done with a more robust graphics engine and high definition. Alternatively, No More Heroes catered to a more educated and adult audience. Taking accepted boredoms that hamper video games and utilising them in a collage of violence and self conscious parody. For a creator like Suda 51, games are themselves a criticism of their form and No More Heroes was no exception. The limitations that gamers frequently come across such as control issues and pseudo non linearity are meticulously brought to the fore ground of No More Heroes. The random waggle attacks and the ridiculous mini games serve to comment on casual gaming and new control methods showing just how limited they are. Plus the ironic draw of such a violent game appearing on a family console has had influence with games such as Manhunt 2 and Mad World. The inclusion of such a potentially detrimental game on a console that seeks to redress these limitations was a brave move by both Grasshopper Studios and Nintendo. While a console whose gaming repertoire is filled with plumbers who save princesses and Pokémon, a porn renting violence loving otaku is certainly an odd choice to add to the line up of featured games. These examples show how exactly the motion controls have been taken and utilised. From casual games that require very little skill or experience to play to reiterations that breathe new life into old favourites and games that or not intended to be good examples of games Nintendo has covered all of the bases. This is promising for Microsoft and Sony, two companies that have more potential power under the hood of their respective consoles. With both Project Natal and Sony's motion Wand could have all the benefits of Nintendo's motion control with very few of the limiting factors that have sullied the Wii, for example the cheaply made mini games compilations.

At E3 both Sony and Microsoft made waves with their ideas for motion control (especially Microsoft), but by looking at what Nintendo has accomplished with motion control can either company pull it off? Nintendo is a different animal to both Sony and Microsoft with its pre established, long running franchises, as well as its family friendly image. It wouldnt make sense for Microsoft or Sony will neglect their fan bases as both consoles have would not sacrifice their pre existing control methods. Both motion control options are essentially just peripherals, like a light gun or arcade stick, however casual gaming is certainly where the money is and this is the underlying difference between Nintendo and its competitors. Although there is nothing to say that these motion controls are primarily for casual gaming we can only speculate and use our past experiences to forecast what may come. Is motion control the future of gaming? Probably not, but it will certainly play a part in developing the industry and expanding the market.