Nyko Technologies recently released its SkillShot peripheral for the PlayStation Move, a cheaper alternative to Sony’s first-party SharpShooter gun. Nyko kindly sent a SkillShot sample to PSU Towers, and after mowing down waves upon waves of Helghast in Guerrilla Games’ superb Killzone 3, I’m ready to report back with my impressions.
Priced at $19.99 USD, the analog SkillShot doesn’t contain any technology in its innards; it is, in essence, a plastic shell that houses the Move and Navigation controllers. This is in stark contrast to the digital SharpShooter, which remaps some of Move’s buttons into various features of the gun. It’s worth noting, however, that at $39.99 USD, Sony’s SharpShooter is twice as expensive as Nyko’s SkillShot.
The SkillShot’s bright-orange trigger is linked to a pulley mechanism inside the gun that physically pulls the Move’s ‘T’ button. Squishy and satisfying to press, the trigger provides a decent amount of resistance. The SkillShot also features an extendable stalk that fits snugly against one’s shoulder, offering increased stability while picking off enemies in the Move-capable shooter of your choice. Additionally, the Navigation controller attachment can be rotated up to 30 degrees in either direction. I found this feature particularly useful; as a right-handed gamer, I skewed the Navigation controller 30 degrees to the left for maximum left-hand comfort. The SkillShot has a built-in sight, but I tended to ignore it; it obscured my view too much to be helpful. Killzone 3 has an on-screen reticle anyway.
My only issue with the SkillShot is the ease of accessibility of the ‘Move’ button — or, more accurately, lack thereof. To access this button, which crouches and takes cover in Killzone 3, I had to take my left hand off of the Navigation controller, bring it above the gun and press the button, and then quickly return my hand to its regular left-hand grip. Initially, this proved extremely disorienting. When I got used to it, however, it wasn’t actually that bad — I simply had to change my play style. Rather than playing aggressively, as I tend to with a regular controller or Move controls sans gun, I hung back a bit more, carefully planning out my cover points. This newfound patience actually helped me keep my death count to a minimum.
While Sony’s SharpShooter is undoubtedly a more fully featured peripheral than Nyko’s gun, the SkillShot is a reasonable alternative for budget-conscious gamers. I vastly prefer using the SkillShot to only the Move and Navigation controllers. It’s available for purchase at your local game store and at online retailers like Amazon.
