The PlayStation Move motion controller is not a far fetch for RPGs, according to BioWare’s Mike Laidlaw, executive producer for Dragon Age II. He said in an interview today that “I think there is a place for it, but I haven’t figured out exactly where that is.”
“Given the complexity of interactions that party based RPGs demand, Kinect or Move wouldn’t be ideal as your only interface,” he said. Still, he said, he can imagine using motion controls for different functions, like perhaps casting or arranging spells. He’d also like to see voice what could be done with voice activated controls in RPGs.
“Immersion is what gaming is all about,” he said, adding that Move and Kinect help draw players deeper into the physical gaming experience. “Exactly how to do that is what we are considering.”
The technology was available for BioWare to incorporate Move into Dragon Age II, but Laidlaw said the developer was focused on other areas. “When developing you have to make choices to where you put your effort,” he said. “We were doing enough work changing elements of combat and storytelling, Move and Kinect would just be too much to chew on.”