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| Design Wikinews has related news: Nintendo unveils controller for Revolution console The Wii Remote assumes a one-handed remote control-based design instead of the traditional gamepad controllers of previous gaming consoles. This was done to make motion sensitivity more intuitive, as a remote design is fitted perfectly for pointing, and in part to help the console appeal to a broader audience that includes non-gamers. The body of the Wii Remote measures 148 mm (5.83 in) long, 36.2 mm (1.43 in) wide, and 30.8 mm (1.21 in) thick.[14] The Wii Remote model number is RVL-003, a reference to the project codename "Revolution". The controller communicates wirelessly with the console via short-range Bluetooth radio, with which it is possible to operate up to four controllers as far as 10 meters (approx. 30ft) away from the console. However, to utilize pointer functionality, the Wii Remote must be used within five meters (approx. 16ft) of the Sensor Bar.[14][15] The controller's symmetrical design allows it to be used in either hand. The Wii Remote can also be turned horizontally and used like a Famicom/NES controller, or in some cases (like Excite Truck and Sonic and the Secret Rings) a steering wheel. It is also possible to play a single player game with a Wii Remote in each hand, as in the 'Shooting Range' game contained in Wii Play. At E3 2006, a few minor changes were made to the controller from the design presented at the Game Developer's Conference. The controller was made slightly longer, and a speaker was added to the face beneath the center row of buttons. The "B" button became more curved resembling a trigger. The "Start" and "Select" buttons were changed to plus "+" and minus "–", and the "b" and "a" buttons were changed to 1 and 2 to differentiate them from the "A" and "B" buttons. Also, the symbol on the "Home" button was changed from a blue dot to a shape resembling a home/house, the shape of the power button was made circular rather than rectangular, and the blue LEDs indicating player number are now labelled using small Braille-like raised dots instead of Arabic numerals, with "1" being "•", "2" being "••", "3" being "•••", and "4" being "••••". The Nintendo logo at the bottom of the controller face was replaced with the Wii logo. Also, the expansion port was redesigned, with expansion plugs featuring a smaller snap-on design.[16] The blue LEDs also show how much battery power remains on the Wii Remote. By pressing any button, besides the power button while the controller is not being used to play games, a certain number of the four blue LEDs will light up, showing the battery life: four of the LEDs flash when it is at, or near, full power. Three lights flash when it is at 75%, two lights when at 50%, and one light flashes when there is 25% or less power remaining. Similarities have been noted between the Wii Remote and an early Dreamcast controller prototype.[17] Demo Wii Remote shown at a Nintendo event at the Hotel Puerta America Demo Wii Remote shown at a Nintendo event at the Hotel Puerta America In the Red Steel trailer shown at E3 2006, the Wii Remote featured a smaller circular shaped image sensor, as opposed to the larger opaque IR filters shown on other versions.[18] In the initial teaser video that revealed the controller at TGS 2005, the 1 and 2 buttons were labelled X and Y, respectively.[19] Sensing Sensor Bar highlighting IR LEDs Sensor Bar highlighting IR LEDs The Wii Remote has the ability to sense acceleration along three axes through the use of an ADXL330 accelerometer.[31][14] The Wii Remote also features a PixArt optical sensor, allowing it to determine where the Wii Remote is pointing.[32] Unlike a light gun that senses light from a television screen, the Wii Remote senses light from the console's Sensor Bar (model number RVL-014), which allows consistent usage regardless of a television's type or size. The Sensor Bar is about 20 cm (8 in) in length and features ten infrared LEDs, with five LEDs being arranged at each end of the bar[33] In each group of five LEDs, the LED farthest away from the center is pointed slightly away from the center, the LED closest to the center is pointed slightly toward the center, while the three LEDs between them are pointed straight forward and grouped together. The Sensor Bar's cable is 353 cm (11 ft 7 in) in length. The bar may be placed above or below the television, and should be centered. If placed above, the sensor should be in line with the front of the television, and if placed below, should be in line with the front of the surface the television is placed on. It is not necessary to point directly at the Sensor Bar, but pointing significantly away from the bar will disrupt position-sensing ability due to the limited viewing angle of the Wii Remote. Use of the Sensor Bar allows the Wii Remote to be used as an accurate pointing device up to 5 meters (approx. 16 ft) away from the bar.[15] The Wii Remote's image sensor[32] is used to locate the Sensor Bar's points of light in the Wii Remote's field of view. The light emitted from each end of the Sensor Bar is focused onto the image sensor which sees the light as two bright dots separated by a distance "mi" on the image sensor. The second distance "m" between the two clusters of light emitters in the Sensor Bar is a fixed distance. From these two distances m and mi, the Wii CPU calculates the distance between the Wii Remote and the Sensor Bar using triangulation.[34] In addition, rotation of the Wii Remote with respect to the ground can also be calculated from the relative angle of the two dots of light on the image sensor.[35] Games can be programmed to sense whether the image sensor is covered, which is demonstrated in a Microgame of Smooth Moves, where if the player does not uncover the sensor, the champagne bottle that the remote represents will not open. The Sensor Bar is required when the Wii Remote is controlling up-down, left-right motion of a cursor or reticle on the TV screen to point to menu options or objects such as enemies in first person shooters. Because the Sensor Bar also allows the Wii Remote to calculate the distance between the Wii Remote and the Sensor Bar,[36] the Wii Remote can also control slow forward-backward motion of an object in a 3-dimensional game.[37] Rapid forward-backward motion, such as punching in a boxing game, is controlled by the acceleration sensors. Using these acceleration sensors (acting as tilt sensors), the Wii Remote can also control rotation of a cursor or other objects.[38] The use of an infrared sensor to detect position can cause some detection problems when other infrared sources are around, such as incandescent light bulbs or candles. This can be easily alleviated by using fluorescent lights around the Wii, which emit little to no infrared light.[39] Innovative users have used other sources of IR light as Sensor Bar substitutes such as a pair of flashlights and a pair of candles.[40] Such substitutes for the Sensor Bar illustrate the fact that a pair of non-moving lights provide continuous calibration of the direction that the Wii Remote is pointing and its physical location relative to the light sources. There is no way to calibrate the position of the cursor relative to where the user is pointing the controller without the two stable reference sources of light provided by the Sensor Bar or substitutes. There is a wireless Sensor Bar by Nyko that was recently released. The position and motion tracking of the Wii Remote allows the player to mimic actual game actions, such as swinging a sword or aiming a gun, instead of simply pressing buttons. An early marketing video showed actors miming actions such as fishing, cooking, drumming, conducting a string quartet, shooting a gun, sword fighting, and performing dental surgery.[41] The LEDs can be seen through some cameras and other devices with a higher visible spectrum than the human eye. [edit] Controller feedback The Wii Remote provides basic audio and rumble functionality. At the 2006 E3 press conference, it was revealed that the Wii Remote has its own independent speaker on the face of the unit. This was demonstrated by a developer as he strung and shot a bow in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. The sound from both the Wii Remote and television was altered as the bow shot to give the impression of the arrow traveling away from the player. Another example of its use is in Red Steel's Killer match, where the players will receive their objective through the Wii Remote.[42] The volume can be changed or muted with the "Home" button and selecting the corresponding controller icon at the bottom of the screen.[43] The rumble feature can also be switched on or off using the Home Menu.[43] |