Variety is claiming that Sony will unveil a Wiimote-type motion-sensing controller at E3, piling another rumour on top of expectations for a UMD-less PSP. No matter what, Sony’s in for an int-er-est-ing June.
The Gadget: Datel Wildfire, the first third-party PlayStation 3 controller to support a combination of Bluetooth, rumble and tilt sensitivity.
In case you’ve been disappointed by the SIXAXIS or Dual Shock 3, Datel has just released the Wildfire. Yeah, it’s a generic controller, but it’s wielding all the standard PS3 functions and then some.
Rubbing your hands over a PlayStation controller for too long has now become a disease: PlayStation palmar hidradenitis.
Unlike Microsoft, Sony never bothered to make PC drivers for their PlayStation 3 controllers; but some Japanese programmer has bridged that fjord for you.
If you like some rumble in your gaming jungle, then you’ll be happy to know that Sony has announced that their Dualshock 3 controller for the PS3 will be released in Australia for $99.95 on April 24.
As a point of interest, the US version (which is exactly the same in every way), has an RRP of US$54.99, or the equivalent of $59.37. That’s roughly $40 cheaper. Factor in the shipping and it’s still cheaper.
Sure, there are economic factors that local companies need to take into account beyond the strength of the US dollar, but $40 is a lot of money in anybody’s book. Sony’s decision to price their controller that high in Australia really will encourage a lot of people to import.
Sony’s been passing out a slightly tweaked SIXAXIS controller to developers to work into their upcoming games. The good news is these SIXAXIS+ controllers have better motion sensing. The bad news is they don’t have rumble. Sony says this is just the natural evolution of controller development. Everyone else says give them their goddamn rumble back. [Gamepro via Kotaku]
Sony is writing off the leaked Sixaxis we showed you as a “bad artist rendering.” [Kotaku]
On the LucasArts website promoting their new Star Wars game, publicity shots show images of an unseen controller with the Sony branding. In this redesign, the left analog stick has been swapped with the D-pad (in a similar fashion to the 360 and Gamecube controllers). So is it real?
At E3, Kotaku received confirmation on rumble returning to the PS3 controllers from an unnamed third-party publisher. We posted Sony responding to the rumor here. If Sony were to give rumble back to their customers, it would also seem like the only good time for a controller layout adjustment, since packaging the redesigns together would prevent a potentially hazardous third SKU on the market. So logically it could be real, but if this shot is actually a leak, we’re calling it intentional. [kotaku]
newVideoPlayer("5sixaxisrumble_gawker.flv", 475, 376); In this clip, SCEA President and CEO Jack Tretton tells us about the potential for the PS3′s SIXAXIS to ever rumble again. [kotaku]
