Allard on Rev.Controller:Had a similar idea,but was rejected

**Aquanox** · 10-07-2005

Xbox corporate VP J Allard has criticised Nintendo's "freestyle" Revolution controller, claiming that he had a similar idea which was rejected after consultation with gamers and developers.

Speaking to US website Gameinformer, Allard said the controller was "Well intentioned" but argued that he couldn't see it being used to play sports or racing games.

"I don't think most Electronic Arts games are going to be played with that thing, I think they're going to be designed for the classic controller," he added.

"Four years ago I wrote an email treaty and said, 'Why aren't accelerometers in remote controls? Why can't I scroll down my channel guide with a gesture instead of up, up, up, up?"" Allard revealed.

"We did a lot of research with gamers, talked to a lot of game developers and said, 'Should we put an accelerometer in there and do the tilt thing?' And there wasn't that much enthusiasm around it."[/b]

Allard did note that the Xbox 360 remote control features A, B, X and Y buttons, and confirmed that "You're going to be able to play casual games on Live Arcade with the remote control."

He also conceded that Nintendo could make good use of the controller in first party games, and that it could prove a hit with gamers as a result. He went on to praise Nintendo for its innovation, suggesting that Microsoft might also consider producing a simplified controller in the future.

"Remote control, that's great," Allard said. "Let's take it one step further and do a simple controller. We've talked about it. I like the idea."

But that doesn't mean Allard is sold on Nintendo's version - "I don't know if I like the implementation because it ain't my remote."

"How am I going to watch a movie on Revolution? Am I going to have a different remote than that or am I going to have to use the four colored buttons?"

Allard's comments suggest he is less keen on the Revolution controller than fellow Xbox VP Peter Moore - speaking to GamesIndustry.biz at the Tokyo Game Show last month, Moore said he wanted to "give kudos" to Nintendo, adding that he could see how the device might bring lapsed gamers back to gaming and attract new consumers.

Allard hit back at critics of Microsoft's decision to offer two versions of the Xbox 360 in a separate interview with Edge Online, claiming that the move will be welcomed by consumers.

"Consumers like choice, and it's a very pro-consumer move on our part," he told the website.

"You buy the Xbox 360 Core system, you can build up to the premium system and you won't be left out of anything along the way. You can pace into this however you want, unlike any of the traditional categories," he said, citing the iPod Shuffle as an example of a piece of technology that can't be upgraded - leaving consumers who want an iPod Photo "screwed."

"There isn't a game on 360 that you can't play without a hard drive, so I think that's a good thing for consumers. We've made a commitment to broadening the audience," Allard stated.

He went to concede that some developers may have been disgruntled to learn that not all Xbox 360 consoles would come with a hard drive as standard, telling Edge Online: " Sometimes doing the right thing means doing the hard thing."

"Are there developers who are disappointed? Yeah, sure... It was a difficult one. I was the biggest fan of the hard drive and its potential, but the problem is that we sold 22 million Xbox consoles and 5 million, maybe 10 million just don't care about it."

But Microsoft picked up the tab for those unused hard drives, Allard pointed out - which raised the question of who should pay this time around.

"We can either ask the gamer to pay for it, pay for it ourselves, or prove that there's enough value in it and have the gamer say 'I want to pay for it'," he said, adding: "I think that's the right model."

"You know, being first you sometimes get some crap, and we've had some crap," Allard concluded.

"But I think it's very pro-consumer and very pro-developer, and I think that in five years everybody will look back and say that this was a very, very good move on our part to launch worldwide and to have the flexibility for consumers to decide on their products."

Gamesindustry

It seems that Allard doesn't want to give Kudos to Nintendo =P

**Lefein** · 10-07-2005

Wow, and on other news, Al Gore invented the internet!

**Blake** · 10-07-2005

Exactly, what he said.

**Lefein** · 10-07-2005

Honestly, I know MS, they would have put a patent on that kind of tech before bringing it before anything. J Allard.. Gahd, I think if it weren't for that guy I might possibly like the Xbox. This is the same guy who said the Xbox 360 would be wireless straight up at E3. I don't like him very much.

**Stoffinator** · 10-07-2005

M$ came up with something like the Rev controller?

Sure, and they also create a stable OS and invented the internet and the personal PC.

**Lp Chris XII** · 10-08-2005

Haha, that was one of the funniest things I've read. Maybe this is the wrong section for it. All in favour of moving it to the "Jokes" section?

**Boogie Woogie** · 10-08-2005

Originally Posted by Lefein

Honestly, I know MS, they would have put a patent on that kind of tech before bringing it before anything. J Allard.. Gahd, I think if it weren't for that guy I might possibly like the Xbox. This is the same guy who said the Xbox 360 would be wireless straight up at E3. I don't like him very much.

I don't like him very much either . Of all the MS bigwigs , J.Allard is the one that i hate the most simply cause he is just too damn "cocky" - (can i say that) .
I think the Revolution Controller is a fabulous piece of kit and i'm really considering picking up a Revolution . Either J.Allard is talking nonsense or his market research for such a technology was a half assed job .
This is the same guy who says he wants to see Ken Kutaragi's resignation letter hang on his bedroom wall or something like that . Sometimes he acts really immature .

**Steroyd** · 10-08-2005

wow first he tells us Wireless pads are standard, he leads us to believe the hard drive will come standard, he also defended his stupid 2 SKU idea saying it's giving consumers choice, heck i'm sure he's the one who said Microtransactions are cool (for him anyway he's the one where the money goes to).

Wow next thing you know he'll start saying the Xbox 360 is the more advanced console on the market. If Xbox fans don't trust Sony then they must be deaf when they listen to J Allard and co.

**The House** · 10-08-2005

this is off topic but doesn he look like phil harrison

**c.a.p** · 10-08-2005

@ the house: I never really thought about it, but he really does.

Anyway, back on topic, he's simply making me hate Microsoft more than I ever did. I bet they also came up with the Walkman.

**mike** · 12-08-2007

Firmware updates to be less frequent
James Gordon

It's good news all round for PS3 gamers, after Sony revealed that they are hoping to make firmware updates less frequent.

Many fans are getting frustrated by the sheer number of firmware updates seen recently, particularly as many bring just minor updates. Not that we mind when there are major updates though.

Eric Lempel, PlayStation director of network operations, told MTV: "We're trying to certainly cut down on the amount of times we do it. But on occasion when we've got these good features ready to go, let's give them out to the consumers. Let's get them out there. We definitely understand that it does happen frequently and that can be somewhat annoying to some users."

Although gamers can continue to play their games without the firmware updates, they are unable to sign in to PlayStation Network and therefore are unable to participate in online gaming.

One more firmware update is still expected this year, with the much desired in-game XMB, custom soundtracks and friends list functionality rumoured to be included.

Source