With the Wheel, the Zapper, the Balance Board, and
soon-to-be-released MotionPlus on the Wii (not to mention innumerable
third-party peripherals), the thought of another add-on makes me balk.
But another device is exactly what Nintendo plans to
release.
Nintendo President and CEO Satoru Iwata announced the Wii
Vitality Sensor at the company’s E3 press conference, a device that measures a
person’s pulse and will somehow help in relieving stress.
Not much else information was shared, but I think the
general consensus was the same: not interested. Who needs to dedicate more
space, and more money, to another piece of plastic?
And it’s not only Nintendo who’s guilty of this. DDR
plants a dance mat in the room. Rock Band and Guitar Hero take up space with
plastic instruments. DJ Hero will add a plastic turntable. Tony Hawk: Ride
brings with it a skateboard peripheral. Sony already has the Eye Toy, but plans
to release a motion-sensing wand to go along with it as well. Microsoft’s
Project Natal is a while away, but will still vie for that precious TV-top
space that the Wii Sensor Bar currently occupies in many households.
It doesn’t stop there, either. The list goes on in a tangled
mess of plastic, wires, and dongles that makes my head spin.
Developers understandably want to immerse the player in
their games, but it’s starting to get ridiculous.
I think I share the sentiment of many gamers when I cry:
Enough with the peripherals!