Over the last few weeks, some of us at ExperienceLab have
been trying out the Moves fitness app. It’s actually causing
a bit of rivalry between us, we’ve been emailing screen shots to each other
showing how many steps we’ve taken! My colleague is definitely winning so far
with 32,589 steps in one day as he explored NYC!
My MacBook Air died about 4 weeks ago, right in the middle of a busy work period. There were no other spare Macs around at work, but there was a nice new Vaio laptop. I thought it was about time I used a PC again, to keep my hand it, so I was fine about switching. I don’t want to be someone who raves about how much better Macs are than PCs, so I went into it with an open mind.
I found this machine in an amusement arcade on Sandown pier.
The idea is that you put in 50p and move the claw across the top of the cabinet. Then you press the button to make it drop down and try to pick up one of the money cartons underneath it. They are valued between £5 and £20 from what I can see.
At least, I assume that’s what the game is. That’s what I told my daughter. Then I noticed that there’s a note written in biro at the front of the cabinet. It says: ‘There is a TIME LIMIT on this game’.
I cycle to work in London nearly every day. It’s about an 8 mile round trip. When I can, I also cycle to client meetings, provided it doesn’t mean I arrive sweaty and smelly.
I’ve never found a bike route planner for the iPhone that works very well. They either were all too concerned with allowing the user to tweet their location and publicise the app, or they just didn’t work.
Bike Hub is an app that drew my attention recently. Bike Hub is the UK cycle industry’s voluntary levy on new bikes sold, which is designed to help fund cycle schemes. It also funds their new iPhone app, and the app is the best I’ve found for the iPhone yet.
The Wiimote has been in use since around 2007. Since then it’s been the main motion-sensitive console controller. That’s three years of time to get used to the way it works, it’s nuances and mechanics: three years to create our mental model of what a motion controller can and can’t do, and how to use it.
Sony’s PlayStation Move now finds itself positioned within this mental model. The Wii paved the way for motion controller acceptance and understanding, which should be good news. However, there are differences between using the Wiimote and the way the Move works. Gamers who bring their Wii-based experiences to Move games will take a little time to adjust to it.
Here’s how these differences affect gameplay, and some suggestions for how Move developers could help overcome gamers' Wii-based expectations.
This article doesn’t say one controller is best; it just points out that Wii-familiar players might need extra, or more precise, instructions to use the Move controller in the way developers intend, and to stop them expecting it to work as a Wiimote.
If you're interested in reading the full article, it can be found here.
