July 15, 2008 - At E3 2008, we chatted with Nintendo producer Shigeru Miyamoto about the newly announced MotionPlus Wii remote technology, which enables true 1:1 movement in games. (We tested it out in Wii Sports Resort and we can confirm that it's the real deal, and that we love it, but that's another story.) Miyamoto went on the record with us about the tech and its future.

"The Wii remote itself is good at detecting larger movements whereas the WIi MotionPlus is good at detecting more subtle movements. By combining the two of those, the feeling is that it just opens up the palette of what can be done in terms of motion control," said Miyamoto. "So that means that there is a lot of possibility, whether it's something like a very accurate version of Punch Out! that goes beyond what Wii Sports boxing can do, or even other ideas, I just think there are a lot of different possibilities right now. And just one point of clarification. Punch Out! is just an example. I'm not saying that we're working on that."

Asked whether or not the MotionPlus technology was open to third-party developers yet, Miyamoto said, no, not yet. "We've only just announced it today, and because of that I'm sure we'll start getting many inquires. But the libraries will be in a state that we believe we can pass off to third-parties very soon," he added.

Of course, the MotionPlus attachment will come bundled with Wii Sports Resort, shipping next week. But what does this mean for the future of the Wii remote? It looks like it'll become the standard.

"There's a lot of potential things we can look at with that," Miyamoto said of MotionPlus. "We haven't finalized anything at this point, but my general assumption is that probably having the Wii MotionPlus coupled with the Wii remote is going to become a much better standard for us to work with."

So, does that mean I'm getting screwed now because I have to buy the added abilities for my two current Wiimotes? Nice. Thank you Nintendo. Now I feel like a PS3 fan when the DS3 came out.

You weren't planning on buying Wii Sports 2?

Superchunk- doesn't mean every game will use it. But what would you rather. Play a future Star Wars game with 1:1 control or one with waggle haha.

This is a much welcomed upgrade and I hope they opt later on to simply incorporate it in all Wiis and the peripheral simply be there to upgrade existing ones. This is the best idea in my opinion.

I mean Nintendo needs to run with this. Not only is this a huge casual marketing point but 1:1 is huge for the core gamers. I mean this is to me what the megaton announcement was for the core gamer. It's just Nintendo didn't play it off as, but it really is. And I think NIntendo the next time they get a chance should show off how huge this is for the hardcore gamer, or something along that. Because me being a big core gamer this is what got me the most excited out of anything at E3.

I think your missing my point Zucas.

Its not that I don't welcome the ability and continued success and enhancement of my Wii and its fantastic controls. What I mean is that I already paid essentially $40 for a Wiimote. Now, I have to pay another $X for this additional feature which will eventually be included in the $40 for a new Wiimote. Thus, I'm getting screwed because I already own a Wii.

If this becomes part of the standard Wiimote at its original size and cost, then I have been cheated. If the new standalone Wiimotes are more expensive then its fair. I expect the Wii's cost to eventually drop and its almost been 2 years. So if the new version is packed in with the Wii at the same or even lower price, then that's understandable.

I think current owners should be able to get some sort of discount for the expanded features. But, unlike the jackets, these cost a decent amount of money to produce, so they won't be free.

@ super chunk. NO! NO! NO! This is not a ripoff at all. I understand that you wish that the Wii Remote was better in the first place. So do I. What Nintendo is doing is adding the latest tech to an already awesome controller. They could have said buy a completely new controller or even worse, wait for the next console for the better controller. This is what is done by most companies. Instead of giving you the improvements on the next system, you are getting them now. You SHOULD be very happy about this. I know I am. I just can't wait until next spring for it.

Wut?

@Dark Prince Lol I didn't notice that.