Rayman: Raving Rabbids (for Wii) mini review

For those who read my blog and couldn't care less about video games, I'll keep this one short. Rayman is basically a collection of humorous minigames. Going with this approach is probably a good idea with the Wii, since the wii-mote is capable of so many different methods of input. Each mini-game features a different play mechanic. Some simply involve pointing the wii-mote and shaking the nunchuck while others have you tilting the wii-mote to control your character as he sky dives, flies, or races a giant pig. As a whole, the mini games are a mixed bag. Some are really clever and fun, some are lame. Some are challenging (but not hard) and others really easy. The highlights for me are:

• Shooting sequences where you shoot bunnies with plungers. Most of these seem really easy though.


• Music sequences where you must time shaking the wii-mote and nunchuck to the beat a la guitar hero or DDR.


• The choir game where you must find the rabits who are singing off key and slap them


• The racing / flying games are also fun

Some of the minigames can be played with up to 4 players, others can be played one at a time. Overall I'd give this game a C+. The art style is nice and some of the mini-games are memorable but the game is just not very deep and I've progressed though it fairly quickly. It seems like it would be more suited towards younger kids, casual players or as a 'party game'.

Wii Impressions

Now that I've had a few days to play with Nintendo's Wii I thought I'd share some impressions of it. First, I am pleased with the general experience of using the console and the fact that you can do more than just play games with it. You can download games and applications (a web browser is expected), view pictures, listen to music, send messages to friends, etc.

The wii-mote and nunchuck work well (they met my expectations going in) and are very responsive to motion. The mouse-like functionality (which as we said earlier, relies on infrared LEDs and a camera inside the wii-mote) also works well, though it's not 1:1. The cursor doesn't appear exactly where you point. This is okay, since it' just feels like using a mouse. It would have been nice if you could calibrate the cursor so it mapped perfectly to your TV. Interestingly, you can also roll the wii-mote and the cursor rotates on screen - a nice touch that shows what the wiimote is capable of. The wiimote can also tell how far you are from the screen. The wiimote seems to be able to tell how it's pointed in full 6DOF 3d though I suspect it might just be extrapolating that from the motion sensors, since it seems to be a bit slow or innaccurate in that department. My fiance was playing Wii Sports golf and the game thought she had swung when she moved the wii-mote in the opposite direction. Still, all these things aside, the experience of treating the controller like a bat or a golf club or a tennis racket really feels immersive and is kind of novel. It has been done before in games like Dance Dance Revolution, Guitar Hero, and others but it will be the first console that really emphasizes this style of gameplay. And I think it's good that kids will be able to get some excercise. I wonder how long it will be before we see a fitness oriented game? I also think the wii-mote has the potential to be a very accurate input device for FPS games (as good as a keyboard / mouse setup).

I think the console will appeal to parents and non-game players more than past consoles. As a test, I showed my grandmother in-law Final Fantasy XII and then the Wii. She was fairly turned off by the fantasy stuff and the violence in FFXII, but she got excited when she saw Wii sports and watched us play for quite a bit. I've already heard several "grown ups" talk about the Wii around the office, so this is a good sign for Nintendo. It has a very good buzz right now.

The wii-mote is dangerous. I can easily see why people have broken TV's and/or injured onlookers with this thing. The problem is that the wiimote is both slippery (if you are perspiring) and fairly weighty. Excited gesturing could easily send it flying. My fiance has already smacked me a couple times with the controller. I think I will spray the battery door with some rubber spray that I have left over and see if that helps.

There are only a few downers for me about this system. One is the graphics. It's too bad that Nintendo couldn't find a way to add more graphical power to the system. Sure it's a nice, compact little system that's affordable, but I would rather have a slightly bigger box and pay a little more for better graphics. I'm not saying this ruins the system, but it could have turned a very good console into an even better one. Also, it's disappointing to think I'll be playing the same Gamecube grade graphics for the next 5 or so years. But, in a way it forces developers to be more creative and to leverage the unique controls rather than going for eye candy. The other downer is the current lack of content on the online service and lack of titles that support online play. Right now the weather and news channels are not working yet and there are only a dozen or so games available for download in the virtual console. But, I'm sure these things will be addressed in time. Hopefully Nintendo will make their online offerings equal to Microsoft and Sony's.

Hexstatic - Vector

Here's a song / video using a lot of retro video game sounds and imagery. I've always liked the idea of having sounds in the music being directly tied to different images (which this video does).

Via: VideoSift

Finally got a frickin' Wii

I struck gold at EB finally - I got up at 4:30 am today. I hit up walmart first but they only had 1 Wiimote which someone else snapped up. EB only had 3 Wii units and I was second in line. They also had 4 PS3's surprisingly (the 20 gig variety) which is weird because it's supposed to be much harder to find. I felt bad for the 25+ people who lined up for the Wii (no doubt I stole some 12 year old's christmas present). There were only 6 people in line for the PS3.

Haven't had too much time to play with it yet - I have relatives over. I did notice that the two windows I have next to my TV seem to be messing with the Wiimote :/ maybe I can adjust the sensitivity. I'll try to take some IR pictures of the sensor bar soon too. Maybe we can get some insight into how it works.

Nintendo Wii, Life sucking

My experience so far trying to get a Nintendo Wii console has been terrible up to this point. First I was unable to get a pre-order from Toys 'R Us. Today, I woke up at 5:00 am in order to go to Walmart and try to get one there (they open at 7:00 am). I ended up being #23 in line and they only got in 20 units. So I immediately left upon finding this out (at 6:30 am) and went with my back up plan. I drove down to the nearest major shopping district which has a Target, a Best Buy, a Comp USA, Sears and a couple other places that might potentially have a Wii. I did a drive by at Target knowing that the line would be massive. It was. There looked like over 200 people in line there, so I kept going. I then drove past Best Buy. From the highway I could see that the line was wrapping around the building, so I nixed that from list as well. I had heard that Comp USA was supposed to sell them, though they would only get a few units. I parked in the lot and there was only one other car parked there with the lights on and engine idling. And there was a wierd but nice old dude waiting at the door. Great. I got out and joked with the old guy that he was lining up already but he said he worked there and was waiting for it to open. I asked the old dude if they carried video games and he said 'oh sure'. Disturbingly, he didn't know what the Wii was or whether they would have it. After a few minutes other people started arriving so we all lined up. I was #2 in line which should have pretty much gauranteed me a console. They open at 11:00 so it would be a long wait. The #1 dude was a teenager who already had a pre-order somewhere but didn't want to wait. There got to be 20-30 people in line which was probably way more units than they would even have. By 9:00 employees started arriving. They went in and ignored us without giving us any information. By 9:30 a woman came out and told us "Sorry, we didn't get any Wii's". With no other explanation. In retrospect, I probably should have tried to get a rain check at that point. Needless to say, everyone was pretty disappointed. As a long shot I drove over to Sears, knowing that not many people would know about them (they open at 10:00). There was already 12 people in line. After waiting until 10:00 we found out that they only had 3 consoles and I didn't get one. By this time Target and Best Buy had surely already sold out of consoles so I was out of options. Interestingly, I heard from other line waiters that Target had apparently gotten 200 consoles so I still might have had a chance there, had I gone there first (or pretty much anywhere other than freaking comp USA). I returned home empty handed and disappointed. I'm hoping the next shipment of units won't be too far away - I haven't see any info about it on the net yet. Looks like I'm going to have to do it the old fashioned way - calling around.

Another idea for a project

I had another idea for a project you could do using a PC and webcam - a pseudo 3d display. Basically the camera would be used to track (or estimate) the position of a person in the room and the display would show a 3d scene where the camera would change orientation depending on where the person is standing. Basically the person would be able to walk around in the room and it would look like they are looking out of a window into a 3d scene. You could have the person wear a bright colored hat or something like that to make tracking easier (or you could use RFID instead of a the camera). The idea is a variation on some other projects I've seen where an on screen character turns his head to follow you.

FTIR screens from around the world

Gravano sent along some pictures of his progress on his screen. Nice work!

FTIR - Identifying users via Biometrics?

It just occurred to me that it might be possible to identify individual users (and specific fingers) in a multiuser setting via their finger prints. You could acquire a high resolution picture whenever a new touch is detected and compare the fingerprint pattern to a database just like current biometric securty devices currently work. The only problem is that it might not be fast enough for realtime but it is an interesting idea.. Most fingerprint scanners you find on laptops are made using FTIR.

Touchscreen FAQ

I've starting putting together a FAQ page for those looking to build their own screen. It answers some of the frequent questions about hardware. Check it out here. If you have any additions you'd like to see included, post them in the comments section.

Some good, free music

If you like accessible electronic music, check out Hamster Alliance. He has decided to make all his tracks available for your streaming audio pleasure here. I haven't calculated exactly, but there is well over an hour of music on there. My favorites are Pursuit, Faculty and Park Place but there are many other good ones on there as well. I could easily see a few of these being used on a movie soundtrack. Also, Hamster informed me that he used my VST synth Zero Vector on a lot of them which makes me very happy.

Archives fixed

The archive links on the right are working now.

Genome UI

Here's a little UI test I'm working on for Genome. It's a bit Star Trek influenced (but with less wacky colors). The buttons are big so that it's usable with a touch screen.

Multitouch(ish) links

Here's a few links that have floated my way recently:

• Natural Interaction
• Touchlight video
• Types of screen material
• Rosco Screen #02105 (Han's 'compliant surface')

Thanks to the people in #ftir for these. ;)

Walmart Wii at Midnight

It's confirmed, Walmart will be offering the Wii at Midnight (12:01am, Nov 19th). I think they are the only store doing it at this point (that may change). I'd much rather wait a few hours during the day/night than have to wake up early (and I'm definately not camping out). It's kinda sad that a 27 year old man is this excited about a game console, but what else do I have to look forward to?

Final Fantasy XII - first 5 hours

I put in a serious chunk of FFXII time yesterday. This game is probably one of the best produced games I've ever played. The CG animation is top notch, the menus and associated sound effects are very slick and the dialog and voices are great. Even the in-game character models are well animated and expressionate (not wooden feeling). The writing seems decent so far. The graphics are really good considering how old the PS2 hardware is. I think it goes to show that you can make a good looking game even without lots of modern effects. This game has no bump mapping, no HDR, no realtime lighting with shadows and basic shaders. All the nice graphics are done with clever texturing, a good particle system and skilled art direction.

I'm not sure I really like the new combat system. I miss being able to see the characters more close up and in detail as they carry out their attacks - I think this adds a more emotional element. In the new system they are much smaller on screen and zooming doesn't really work how I would like (it ends up putting the camera low to the ground when you zoom in). Also combat feels more like Dungeon Siege which I thought was a rather bland game. Maybe I will like it more as I get deeper into it. They say that the combat system is this way because it was intended to be an online game - I wonder how that would have worked exactly. Would you be able to play through the storyline with your friends? A two player co-op function definately would have been fun, even if it was just letting another person pick up a controller and help issue commands during combat.

A big criticism of the FF games is that you spend as much time watching movies as you do actually playing. While this has some truth to it, I play a game to be entertained and if the movie portions are entertaining then that's fine with me. I think that being able to control the characters makes you identify with them more and makes the movie portions more interesting because you care more about what happens. Likewise, having a good story can make even bland gameplay seem more interesting and emotional.

Programming Updates

Work continues on Genome, my multi-user music app. I've revamped the network code and I'm currently taking a look at the big picture - both to see how I can make the code more simple and easy to understand and to help remember how everything works. Returning to a large project after being away is always difficult, especially for one as large as this - it already has nearly 200 source files. Fortunately, most of the classes are small and focused and I used design patterns for many things so it's just a matter of refreshing my memory.

I'm trying to take some concepts used in XML processing, such as XPath commands and thinking how they can be applied to the song structure. The 'song' and (also every instrument in the song) consists of modules. Modules can contain other modules, so it naturally lends itself to a hierarchical structure, like XML. By making it so that individual modules can be accessed similar to the way that XPath commands work. I see this being useful for scripting - it would be interesting to allow people to build a custom interface that gives them the ability to send events to any instrument or effect in the song. They could lay down buttons and sliders and attach scripts to them that generate events like triggering patterns, notes or control changes. This is a feature that appeals more to experimental or live musicians so it might not be in the first version, at least but the hooks will be there.

I read a bit about Extreme programming (XP) yesterday, and I realized that some aspects of it are things that I already practice and believe strongly in. For instance, not trying to anticipate every possible use of a piece of code and adding lots of extra functionality. This only a) complicates the code and b) you can never fully anticipate the exact requirements so anything you write will probably need to be changed or re-written (so you end up wasting extra time instead of saving time). Doing the simplest thing first - I always do a 'first run' algorithm just to get it working and then worry about optimizing it or improving it later. Often this will help you see what needs to be improved far better than trying to anticipate it up-front. Plus if you are not afraid to change your code, you'll be less likely to leave something in that isn't optimal. Extreme programming is all about making constant refinements to the code. I also really try to make the code easy to understand - instead of adding lots of comments, think about how you can change the code to make it more understandable. If it requires a big explanation, chances are that what you have done is confusing. One thing I probably should do more of is Unit Testing. I usually make small changes and do functional tests immediately, but creating some test classes should save time and also help catch more bugs. I think the big theme of XP is not to overload your brain trying to plan everything out, but instead to stay aggressive and keep plugging away at the problem a little piece at a time.

The other big aspect of XP is Paired programming, where you work with another person. I think this can work well if both people are at the same skill level and stick to the ideaology of Extreme Programming. Otherwise, it's very likely that one person starts doing all the work while the other person gets distracted and starts playing with a pencil and some paper clips. Or, one person becomes the secretary typing out all the code while the other directs him.