Wii-eel attachment looks rather un-wii-ldy

by Ross Miller { Sep 9th 2006 at 12:45PM }

Oh, the fanboys are going to hate us for this one ...

With eight launch titles, including the much-hyped exclusive Red Steel, there's no denying that Ubisoft is an avid supporter of the Nintendo Wii. For the launch title GT Pro, however, Ubisoft is preparing to set a dangerous trend by packaging what appears to be a cheap plastic steering wheel attachment.

Shown to IGN, neither the concept art nor supposed prototype give the impression that this attachment is anything more than a large, plastic donut. The interview claims that this attachment will work with any racing gaming -- and unless there is a stand involved with the wheel, we'd go so far as to say it could work with any game that doesn't need the use of the Wiimote's trigger button.

Does this mark the beginning of an over-saturation of Wii attachments, thus cheapening the controller as a whole? The nunchuks have an accelerometer and the zapper has trigger and added joystick, but the steering wheel looks to add nothing to functionality.

Prove us wrong, Ubisoft.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)

Henry @ Sep 9th 2006 12:47PM

Could this be the fastest first post ever?

PSWii360 Fanbot @ Sep 9th 2006 12:49PM

This looks like a POS. Unless there is a stand, count me out.

Ryan "Quass" Maule @ Sep 9th 2006 12:51PM

Nothing... except for the fact that it makes it easier to hold the "wheel" in a racing game and lends to a more intuitive feel.

... have you guys ever driven a car?

Red Viking @ Sep 9th 2006 12:54PM

Well, the entire point of the Wii is to make games interactive, right? wouldn’t make sense to release an attachment that makes the controller feel (and act) more like a steering wheel for racing games?

eight @ Sep 9th 2006 12:55PM

Agreed, Ryan, i think it looks pretty fun, and it definatly adds functionality.

Corey @ Sep 9th 2006 12:54PM

Henry, you're an idiot for wasting our time reading your "first post".

This wheel is very...interesting. It looks like it might work, though it seems kinda awkward. Only one way to find out...

peko @ Sep 9th 2006 12:55PM

wt about a gear for nunchack?

Brandon Konran @ Sep 9th 2006 12:56PM

I think this would actually be harder to control than just using the controller by itself. By the simple fact that you would have to hold the wheel outwards at all times and wouldnt be able to rest your hands on your lap. Using the wiimote you could just rest your hands on your lap and rock the controller from side to side to steer, you cant do that with this, and it would become very tiresome.

PSWii360 Fanbot @ Sep 9th 2006 12:56PM

bzzzt....

what is a "car".....

bzzzzt.....

Babylonian @ Sep 9th 2006 1:23PM

"cheap plastic steering Wii-eel attachment"? They're bundling it free with the game; how high-quality to you expect it to be? If it works, it works.

My only concern is how acceleration and deceleration will be handled. those buttons don't look very easy to reach with your hands wrapped around the sides of the wheel.

stupidgit @ Sep 9th 2006 12:59PM

Jesus, could you all be more pessimistic?

It's FREE, for god's sake. If it's lame, just go back to playing your game without it.

GregZ @ Sep 9th 2006 12:59PM

Next up: Wii Frisbee.

Kerber @ Sep 9th 2006 12:59PM

They could at least include buttons for acceleration/brake on the wii-eel itself so that you don't have to stretch your thumbs toward the wii-mote while pulling a power slide. Without added buttons or a stand, it just doesn't seem to add much comfort.

And will this free-floating plastic donut really lend a "more intuitive feel?" Maybe more than just the rectangular wii-mote itself, but I doubt that it's worth any extra cost.

Flame @ Sep 9th 2006 1:06PM

So it's a plastic circle. Big deal. We'll see the functionality when it gets here, but it doesn't really look that bad, at least not enough to "cheapen the controller as a whole".

Psaakyrn @ Sep 9th 2006 1:03PM

to #10 stupidgit

In short term view, yes it would be free because Ubi would not raise the price of the game based on this attachment alone (assumption, but hopefully an accurate one). However, it would mean less overall profits, and thus, theoretically less money reinvestment into future games.

PSWii360 Fanbot @ Sep 9th 2006 1:05PM

@10

Are you sure it's free? All I see is a mention that Ubisoft is packaging it, not that it is necessarily going to be bundled with the game. I guess it's ip for speculation, but I don't think I would buy it, but if it came free, i would surely give it a try.

dsub @ Sep 9th 2006 1:07PM

ummm...what do you do to accelerate? No foot pedals. I Sure don't want to have to push buttons on my "steering wheel" that I am driving with. This looks like the equivalent of driving your car around using cruise control. Not. Fun.

subnet6 @ Sep 9th 2006 1:09PM

@Brandon,

My thoughts were exactly the same as yours when I first saw these pictures.

Then I looked a little closer and realized this wheel is only about 1/2 inch wider on each side than the wii-mote itself! Knowing how small the wii-mote is, we can determine this wheel is tiny. Not much bigger than holding just the controller.

My initial instincts were that this wheel was somewheree near a regular steering wheel size or 10-20 percent smaller. Now realizing how tiny this thing is, it would either work fine while sitting down or it would just be too small to worry about.

I won't know till I lay hands on it and as long as it doesn't raise the price of the game, I'm all for giving it a try. If I don't like it, I'll just toss it in the closet for when my nephew comes over who will love it whether its good or not, simply because its a damn steering wheel. :)

Falk0n @ Sep 9th 2006 1:11PM

@ #10
This will not make Ubi lose substantial money. It's a piece of plastic, and costs them 5 cents to make. Don't worry about that.

But have you seen the screenshots for the game itself? It looks fucking god-awful! I've seen much better graphics on the GC, and similar ones on DS! I know the Wii doesn't have really high end graphics, but the graphics hardware is better than GC. The game does not match that hardware.

SoularPowered @ Sep 9th 2006 1:12PM

Maybe it wouldn't look as cheap if they pictured a black Wii-mote instead?

ElChibo @ Sep 9th 2006 1:12PM

I coulda swore the analog in the gun was the analog from the nunchaku, and the trigger from the nunchaku was used. like it was a piece of plastic which you slipped in the nunchaku, then the wiimote. THat's also a piece of plastic, whats wrong with this?? I would much rather hold a thing shaped like a wheel than a rectangle thing. Though I'm not bashing the wiimote at all, but we should embrace things like this. plus its cheap enough to manufacture for little cost and have as an add on that wont increase the game price.

Bub @ Sep 9th 2006 1:13PM

I think this is fine for something included... I would hope that someone will provide a more 'steering-wheel-like' steering wheel, at some point. There's a car game coming to Wii? Definately picking up the Wii, then.

Marc @ Sep 9th 2006 1:17PM

"It's FREE, for god's sake. If it's lame, just go back to playing your game without it."

Good point. No one said that you *have* to use it.

I personally think it's more than just a plastic steering wheel (see: conspiracy). If you look at the bottom of the wheel, there appears to be a port or a plug.

I started the fire, you guys keep it going.

friedriches @ Sep 9th 2006 1:15PM

I think that the issue isn't the wheel and holding it in midair- I think the issue is rather the size of the wheel. One gripe I have with many Nintendo products of the last, oh, 10 years, is that their controllers are never comfortable for my hands. The Wii might or might not change that, can't tell as I haven't used one, but if the wheel is tiny, then I'd just forego it entirely.

Also, I think it's a good idea (size aside). What sounds better- holding a wheel and driving or holding a... stick?

OOH! Idea! Using nunchuck attachment, one hand is the wheel, and one hand is the shifter! Yeah, too unwieldy, but it'd make you feel baaad.

Marc @ Sep 9th 2006 1:19PM

"Maybe it wouldn't look as cheap if they pictured a black Wii-mote instead?"

If you go to IGN, they have a Black Wiimote in it. Joystiq just photoshopped a white Wiimote into the Wheel.

Alpha @ Sep 9th 2006 1:17PM

Once again I don't see why people are complaining about something that is for free. You dont have to pay for it, you can throw it out if you don't like it. Now if this thing was required to play the game and was priced around $20, then you can be all fussy about it.

LaughingTarget @ Sep 9th 2006 1:17PM

If it attached to a base of some sort to simulate the fact that wheels have a limited turn radius, it would be a fairly decent attachment. It would still be cheap, and it would do the exact same thing stand-alone wheels do. I'd like to see them have some pedal attachments as well to plug into the Wiimote.

dsub @ Sep 9th 2006 1:21PM

I know the Wii isn't about graphics, but those screen look...well...bad. Almost PS2 bad.

Sure, the Wii isn't as advanced s the 360/PS3 in terms of graphics, but I was al least hoping for something on par with the XBOX. These screen almost look like a PSP game. Here's a comparison between GT Pro and PGR2.

http://www.imageviper.com/dip/53985/wiixbox.jpg

ooo @ Sep 9th 2006 1:22PM

"driving in the air" is just stupid, and only applies to little kids or people with no real interest in videogames.
Also the wii controller is nonsense to many who like to play for hours straight withou getting too tired.

john @ Sep 9th 2006 1:23PM

I am all for pointless plastic appendages for the controller bundled with every game! A lightsaber attachment for star wars, complete with plastic 'blade'. A hamster ball attachment for super monkey ball. A skateboard for Tony Hawk. Cheap plastic swords, axes, spatulas, conductor wands, baseball bats, golf clubs! Bring them on! Granted it might be a bit too much clutter for my new york apartment, but I think it could be a lot of fun. Maybe a company could just sell generic plastic attachments for $10-20 a piece, then we could decide which ones to get. More thought out controllers, like the blaster at E3 would be more welcome, but like all extra attachents, game makers wouldn't be able to count on customers having it.

Jonico @ Sep 9th 2006 1:24PM

I belive you reading a little too much into it.

Chris @ Sep 9th 2006 1:24PM

Whether it costs more to Ubisoft to package the 'attachment', whether there is a mount for the wheel to sit, whether the wheel is even remotely close to the size of its real life counterpart...

It's just unnecessary. If it's a trend that continues, it'll just spit 'gimmick' in regards to Nintendo's controller. You might as well add a miniturized Master Sword casing for the wiimote with Twilight Princess, or a Poke Ball casing for the nunchuk, or a cheap-ass Mario hat to wear while you play SMG. In any case, it won't add to teh gameplay at all...

Well, maybe the Master Sword. You can still hit people with that.

james f. @ Sep 9th 2006 1:25PM

I'm surprised by the number of people bleeding on the cross for this tacky gimmick add-on. It should be pretty obvious to anyone not blinded by fanboyism that this is middling (like much of ubisofts crap) and sullies the wii-mote concept. I'ts also rather clear that any car based racing game worth its salt on the Wii will use the classic controller(or whatever its called)instead.

This gets me thinking that if the always superlative Mario Kart attempts to integrate the wiimote as the primary control. I'll be profoundly dissapointed. I could see perhaps some sort of second player co-op battle integration but thats it.

PSWii360 Fanbot @ Sep 9th 2006 1:26PM

@18 & 27

It is a cel-shaded game. Get over it.

PSWii360 Fanbot @ Sep 9th 2006 1:40PM

32
I would take the mario hat anyday as a cheesy addon.
33
As far as Mario Kart goes, that is a good point. The best angle they could take would be to create the scheme for the Wii-mote while allowing an option to use the classic controller.

vidGuy @ Sep 9th 2006 1:32PM

I think it's great. The wheel is free, you don't have to use it. It doesn't come with a base as far as we know, which sucks, but you already have a limited turn radius due to your arms (unless you release and grab the wheel again, which would be akward). It looks light, too, which will help.

Regarding setting a trend: I do see this as a problem. While the ability to expand the controller's capabilities is interesting and could lead to a lot of innovative, if not intuitive, control, Nintendo risks losing the controller's "simplicity" if they allow too many attachments to be made. I like the idea of being able to use a wheel, no matter how 'cheap', for free, but I don't want to have to dedicate a storage bin to Wii remote attachments within the next few years.

The solution to this problem is for Nintendo to restrict what types of attachments get made. When one gets released, Nintendo should notify developers how it works so that they can code their games to work with it. This steering wheel is a neat idea, but it should be the only steering wheel attachment I need for the life of the Wii.

As a sidenote, the port at the bottom of the steering wheel is very interesting. It would make sense for it to be for pedals if it wasn't on a part of the wheel that turns constantly.

Adam Johnson @ Sep 9th 2006 1:35PM

These graphics cant be real right? This looks like Beetle Racing on N64! The Wii is strange; some games look great and on par with "next gen" graphics, and others look worse than Cube. I'm guessing that the games that looks really crappy are just rushed jobs, which I would attribute to about half the games that will be out at launch, and yes Red Steel, I'm looking in your direction.

john @ Sep 9th 2006 1:36PM

"I coulda swore the analog in the gun was the analog from the nunchaku, and the trigger from the nunchaku was used. like it was a piece of plastic which you slipped in the nunchaku, then the wiimote."

http://www-us.flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=147619823&size=l

I went back and looked at the pictures, and that doesn't seem likely. If that was the case, there would be a cord coming out of the bottom of the grip on the gun. I think it's just a reshaped nun-chuck controller that the stick slides into (giggidy!).

James @ Sep 9th 2006 1:39PM

I think Nintendo should get somebody to create a football (soccer) ball which holds the wiimote inside it.

Then they could release a skills games where you get points for kickups and perforing certain (like around the world) skills.

It'd be immense. But will never happen.

GregZ @ Sep 9th 2006 1:38PM

@ 36:

Your sidenote is interesting, but that would mean there is some kind of actual interface between the wiimote and the controller beyond simply being a wiimote placeholder. I wondered the same thing, then decided against it for that reason.

vidGuy @ Sep 9th 2006 1:39PM

@ Adam Johnson,

I'd reserve judgement for when the final games are released. What we've seen of Red Steel is of a 6 month old build, confirmed by Ubisoft. They've held back everything they've done since E3, including improved controls and visuals.

The visual gap between games is likely due to what build of the hardware the game was using. Now that developers have had some time with the real Wii, we should be getting real shots instead of GC-hardware shots.

wii the people @ Sep 9th 2006 1:41PM

Wow, some of you guys are the biggest bunch of crybaby pussies to grace the face of the planet. I fear for any future world war since apparently most of us can't handle the weight "plus gravity" of holding the wii-mote for hours on end, let alone anything heavier than half a pound. Are you fucking kidding me? Most of you hold your own dicks at least that long during the course of the week so just do what you do in that situation and rest your elbow on your lap.

Chris @ Sep 9th 2006 1:48PM

Design wise, you don't really need much more than just a foam wheel. Though, they can add some rumble to the wheel itself and maybe some wireless pedals. That would make the accessory a lot more useful.

Pince @ Sep 9th 2006 1:48PM

there is nothing wrong with the add-on. It seems like it would be useful, but I think the big deal is just that there is much more that could be done with it and, especially coming from Ubisoft, we expect more. If they do choose to keep it this way, I hope they dont try to over-inflate the price. The wheel despite being a good (obvious?) idea, is very bare-bones. The best thing Ubi could do in this case is make it cost 0$ and toss them out of planes and helicopters to land in people's yards and generate press for Uisoft and for the Wii...they could attach cute little parachutes...and a copy of Splinter Cell 4

nick @ Sep 9th 2006 1:51PM

I guess it depends on your perspective.

Wouldn't it be easier to release a steering wheel for the Wii? The remote doesn't necessarily have to adapt itself to every game.

On the otherhand, look at the money you can save by not having to buy an additional steering wheel controller.

Adam Johnson @ Sep 9th 2006 1:51PM

I actually think that Red Steel has decent graphics, it's just the general concept that seemed kinda rushed to me. I'll still check it out though; I'm a sucker for a trashy console FPS (ever played Ubisoft's cell-shaded gem Thirteen?)

In regards to the zapper, has Nintendo actually confirmed that they'd be using that thing anytime soon, or was it just sort of a "See what we CAN do with this new stuff" sort of thing?

Jay @ Sep 9th 2006 1:52PM

I'd like that.

Mactor @ Sep 9th 2006 1:58PM

"But have you seen the screenshots for the game itself? It looks fucking god-awful!"

The game was released in 2003 for the GameCube in Japan. The Wii version looks to be an almost direct port of this earlier effort.

http://cube.ign.com/objects/545/545832.html

tactics @ Sep 9th 2006 2:00PM

i (heart) "wii the people" #42.

anyways... yeah. so this is ubi's *8th* launch title for wii. *8th*. it's no wonder graphics are (seemingly) not up to par. we'll see this game in action soon, i imagine. there may be a lot more to it.

as for the steering wheel... it's barely bigger than the wiimote itself, and you'll be holding the wiimote in mid-air to play ANYWAY. this is the perfect steering wheel addon, and anyone who doesn't think so just doesn't know how to hold the wiimote for a racing game, i guess. you push forward to accelerate, you pull back to brake. just like fuckin excite truck. it's simple as fuck, people. stfu.

-"superfan" tactics.

Ben Hobbs @ Sep 9th 2006 2:01PM

"Agreed, Ryan, i think it looks pretty fun, and it definatly adds functionality."

WTF!

How can you look at a joypad stuck to the middle of a plastic steering wheel and say "it looks pretty fun".

Its getting borin with everyone sucking Nintendo off about the Wi, To me it looks shit and boring - there's a reason that motion sensing hasn't ever taken off in games, because its rubbish.

Nintendo could release a dog pooh in an empty packet of crisps and people would be commenting how much fun it would be.