Sony defends loss of rumble

By Tom Bramwell Published 26 October, 2006

No second thoughts - Harrison

Sony's Phil Harrison says he has no regrets at all about not including rumble functionality in the PlayStation 3 SIXAXIS controller. But is he bothered about the overuse of capital letters?

"Not at all," he told Eurogamer's Rob Fahey recently, although to be fair he was talking about whether Sony has had any second thoughts about ditching rumble. "I think that the next generation interfaces that can be created built on SIXAXIS motion sensitivity give tremendous gameplay benefits that far outweigh a reactive vibration function.

"The vibration function is the game sending a single channel of feedback to the player - six axis of input puts the player in control in a much richer, deeper way. So, game design can go in much more interesting directions as a result of that than from receiving a single input from the game itself."

The obvious retort to which is surely Sony could just have included both? Immersion, which makes rumble and force feedback technology, has said they reckon it's pretty easy. "I think the caveat to that statement always has to be based on the fact that when we make a pad, we're making maybe 150, 200 million of them," Harrison explains. "So it has to be done at a price, and it has to be done at a volume that fits our production requirements. I think the decision that we’ve made to build in the SIXAXIS functionality, and Bluetooth wireless, and great battery life, and all the other functionality that comes with it, far outweighs the chatter that we’re getting on vibration. And, it's incredibly light! Just pick it up!"

For more of Rob's interview with Harrison, keep an eye on Sony's semi-official Three Speech blog, where it's being serialised over the coming weeks.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (97) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • JediMasterMalik #1 5 years ago

    Nothing to see here fanboys.... Move Along.

  • skillian #2 5 years ago

    I lolled at the first joke :)

  • Dizzy #3 5 years ago

    I guess you will pick locks in SC by shaking the SIXAXIS!? (I think the SIXAXIS! should always have a ! because that is how awesome it is!) /sarcasm

  • smoothpete #4 5 years ago

    Is light good then? I quite like substantial controllers myself

  • billythekid #5 5 years ago

    Light is not good! I'm with you smoothpete, the weighty nature of the wireless 360 pad is spot on. The wired 360 pad feels like a fisher price toy in comparison. Still at least it's ready to RUMBLE!

  • PS3lol #6 5 years ago

    "PS3 pad is cheap, gimmicky, plasticy."

    IGN

    says it all really.

  • haowan #7 5 years ago

    I, too, made a lol

  • manic_mouse #8 5 years ago

    Sony: "We can do no wrong, didn't you know that?"

  • jonsaan #9 5 years ago

    Lets hope they don't make the batteries for'em.
    Edited by 1 at 26/10/06 @ 15:36

  • dbeamish #10 5 years ago

    200 million? Are you having a laugh?

  • mingster #11 5 years ago

    from Spong:

    We can confirm that the motion-sensing works, as we tested it with MotorStorm – and swiftly turned it off, as it rendered the game unplayable.

    sounds rubbish then

  • lambtron #12 5 years ago

    THIS RESPONSE WAS IN NO WAY SCRIPTED!

    That is all.

  • Zuiyo #13 5 years ago

    "And, it's incredibly light! Just pick it up! Oh, and we also happen to make this lotion against balding, wouldn't you be interested?"

  • jonsaan #14 5 years ago

    Actually yes. Does it work? I tried regain and it was just rubbsih frankly.

  • Nobuo #15 5 years ago

    Agree, lighter ISN'T always better. At least he admits losing the rumble was due to the cost.

    I can't imagine how much I'll miss rumble, it's been ages since I played a game without it. I'm a bit skeptical about motion sensitive controllers too if I'm honest, it sounds too wierd.

    Though by the same token I used to consider vibrating controllers retarded.
    Edited by 1 at 26/10/06 @ 15:48

  • Zuiyo #16 5 years ago

    Jonsaan, rumour has it, it works in armpits and groins but not the skull.

    Oh and apparently too, the batteries explode after 3.6 minutes of use.

  • Concrete #17 5 years ago

    Having used the pad a fair bit, I can confirm that it is very light - some people hate it, but it doesnt bother me too much. Anyway, sod that pad - the PS3 is *quiet* so much more so than the 360, it really makes a nice change to not have a console roaring away in the background while playing!

  • Penguinzoot #18 5 years ago

    The obvious retort to which is surely Sony could just have included both? Immersion, which makes rumble and force feedback technology, has said they reckon it's pretty easy. "I think the caveat to that statement always has to be based on the fact that when we make a pad, we're making maybe 150, 200 million of them," Harrison explains. "So it has to be done at a price, and it has to be done at a volume that fits our production requirements.

    Um ... did he just say that the decision to omit rumble was not about technical feasibility, but about price? I thought Sony had previously said it just wasn't technically possible? Hmmm....

    "And, it's incredibly light! Just pick it up"

    Its light because you took out the motors, duh!
    Edited by 1 at 26/10/06 @ 15:53

  • escapedape #19 5 years ago

    "Sony have done it again and trampled on the opposition with their design and innovation"

    innovation?

    LOL
    Edited by 1 at 26/10/06 @ 15:51

  • Moggo #20 5 years ago

    And what's the bet they'll release a PS3 controller down the line that has full rumble capabilities.

    It'll happen, rendering all SonyShitface's statements hypocritical.

  • AcidSnake #21 5 years ago

    @yellowtruck:
    It might easily (very easily) me quieter than the 360...
    But does absolutely not look fantastic...
    It's massive and its design reminds me of the late eighties...
    Then again that's just my opinion...

    On topic, indeed this is another inevitable Sony comment and they won't admit that they miss rumble until the PS4 comes out...

  • #22 5 years ago

    The fact the Sony named their previous controller in honor of the rumble feature speaks volumes to how important they think this feature really is.

    They have dropped it as they know they court case with immersion is going south and want to minimise the damage.

    Have to say I'm somewhat sceptical of the SIXAXIS too. When I play a game I like to rest my arms on ly lap generally.

    "six axes of input" too.

  • ChromeMud #23 5 years ago

    Sixaxis sounds like something from the Nazis.
    BotchedUpDualShock would of been my prefered choice!

  • Eighthours #24 5 years ago

    Most hands-on PS3 reports I've read say that the controller is the weak link.

  • peterfll #25 5 years ago

    My two penneth:

    So ASK THE QUESTION Rob, put him on the spot and ask him if it's really nothing to do with the issue with Immersion.

    If this interview is another puff-piece count me out. PH deserves to have a lot of tough questions fired at him given Sony's recent public track record. The fact that it's being placed on that blog suggests it won't be the killer interview PH deserves.

    ps The Sony fanbois are clinging to the fact that PS3 controllers pick up and register with the console when switched on faster than the 360 (albeit by about half a second). If that's what it's going to come down to what next? Mine has a better off button that yours? I shouldn't joke clearly.

  • OnlyMe #26 5 years ago

    Been playing without rumble with the Wavebird on Gamecube for as long as I can remember. Can't say I've missed it much. It's one of those that you don't notice wether it's there or not, unless you stop and think "hey, didn't this use to rumble when I did this?".

    It's really not that important.

  • escapedape #27 5 years ago

    yellowtruck, that's a bit tiresome you know. you clearly think you're far funnier than you actually are.

  • #28 5 years ago

    Hahahaha @ Yellowtruck

    Delfect the deficiencies of one console by pointing out those of another. Classic fanboyism - well done!

  • the_dudefather #29 5 years ago

    how you you pronouce SIXAXIS when speaking do you shout it, or take a pause before and after the word to emphasise it?

  • peterfll #30 5 years ago

    @OnlyMe

    Actually, you've made me realise something for the first time. I didn't think I'd be bothered about the lack of rumble on the PS3 pads, but then realised I DID miss it on my Wavebird.

    I guess it's a personal thing.

    ps My 360 doesn't roar, it purrs. Bless it.

  • Garulon #31 5 years ago

    "the PS3 is *quiet* so much more so than the 360,"

    Is this because it's off most of the time because the launch titles are so suckey?

  • escapedape #32 5 years ago

    Having played plenty of rumble-tastic games, i'm incredibly used to using it to gauge things such as being shot in shoot 'em ups and drifting off the road in racing games. It gives a nicely helpful bit of tactile feedback when you're concentrating on other stuff, and visually it isn't always made clear.

    Case in point: without rumble, half the time i'm being shot in Splinter Cell: Double Agent, I wouldn't be able to notice as quickly.

  • SimonM7 #33 5 years ago

    "I think that the next generation interfaces that can be created built on SIXAXIS motion sensitivity give tremendous gameplay benefits that far outweigh a reactive vibration function."

    So do I.

  • gizmo #34 5 years ago

    "Sixaxis sounds like something from the Nazis."

    lol

  • escapedape #35 5 years ago

    yawn @yellowtruck's increasingly tiresome and frankly boring remarks

  • peterfll #36 5 years ago

    I think you should throw a PS3 pad at Phil Harrison's head and see if the console picks up the SIx AXis movement, and then check to see if Phil felt rumbled.
    Edited by 1 at 26/10/06 @ 16:14

  • tenma #37 5 years ago

    And, it's incredibly light! Just pick it up!"

    As if the ps2's controller was incredibly heavy...?

  • El_MUERkO #38 5 years ago

    PH mentions input and output, well thinking along those lines:

    A PS2 has 3 methods of output

    A PS3 has 2 methods of output

    = :(

  • Moonprince #39 5 years ago

    "The vibration function is the game sending a single channel of feedback to the player - six axis of input puts the player in control in a much richer, deeper way. So, game design can go in much more interesting directions as a result of that than from receiving a single input from the game itself."

    An attempt to get a job at Nintendo surely?

  • Razzajazz #40 5 years ago

    I can't help but thinking it feels like a backwards step. Joypads are a process of evoloution, and through those evoloutions we have the pads we have now. If we look at stuff like shoulder buttons (SNES), analog stick (N64), rumble (N64 again) and dual analogs (PS), these are now almost industry standard, and so to not have one of these feels like a devolution.

    Regardless of who wins the battle this generation, I almost guarantee that consoles from the next generation onwards will have some sort of motion sensing built into all of them, so Sony should have just bitten the goddamn bullet and put rumble in, it just doesn't feel right!

  • Xerx3s #41 5 years ago

    Nothing to see here fanboys.... Move Along.

    Makes you wonder what you are doing here then... ¬_¬

    Actually, I kind of want my controller to have some weight. My biggest con against the sony controllers is that they are usually to small and to light. Add some weight and make the grip longer and they would be great.

    But before we jump to conclusions, let's just wait and see how it turns out to be eh? Most ppl, me included, haven't even touched the damn thing.

  • Azazel #42 5 years ago

    names like SIXAXIS remind me of the golden days when CD content was referred to as an INTERACTIVE MUTIMEDIA EXPERIENCE...

    for some reason
    Edited by 1 at 26/10/06 @ 16:22

  • BartonFink #43 5 years ago

    You didn't include rumble in it because you lost your court case with Immersion.
    You would have to licence the technology from Immersion costing you more money.

    That is the only reason it's not included. They should try for once just to tell the flippin truth people might respect them more for it instead of laughing at their horrible attempts at spin.

    [edit] Apparently Phil did say that it would make it more expensive. EG just neglected to mention that in the article.
    Edited by 1 at 27/10/06 @ 08:38

  • tenma #44 5 years ago

    So the "SIXAXIS" is officially written in caps lock now?


    OH JEEZ.

  • mingster #45 5 years ago

    Well supposedly the motion sensing is awful .. and will mainly be used as a gimmick and is not good enough to actually controll things accurately ingame.
    You will end up using the normal analogue stick control..

  • Inspirius #46 5 years ago

    So is the controller lighter just because they've removed the hulking bits of metal and motors required to make rumble work? There wasn't much left over in the PS2 pad once you've done that.

  • Wobble #47 5 years ago

    COSY FUNK

  • NOSAVIOUR #48 5 years ago

    Quality gadgets are always solid and heavy.

    The lack of a rumble sucks. Games with suspense in them will never be the same. When you rcharacters heart beats along with the controller it truely absorbs you.

    Sony has screwed up and taken a step backwards.

  • SeesThroughAll #49 5 years ago

    Somebody silence Phil Harrison. Please.

  • penhalion #50 5 years ago

    You know it just occurs to me that MicroSoft already have a motion sensing solution that they own, from way back in their PC pad days. Wouldn't it be childs play to add that functionality to the 360 pads at a later date just to spite Sony?

  • mingster #51 5 years ago

    MS could add it...
    but nobody wanted it at the time.. it was just a novelty

    And i doubt anybody wanted it now either.

  • SpeedyThing #52 5 years ago

    If lighter is better why do they put metal in the Singstar microphones to make em heavier?

  • asphaltcowboy #53 5 years ago

    Is it always Rob that interviews Mr. Harrison? Is that the reason there's never really any hard questions?

  • #54 5 years ago

    A DSLR is a device desined to be held, moved and used with precision.

    Manufacturers have found that a solid feel and weight not only add a sense of quality and better build to the camera, but also improve the handling of cameras.

    Weight in itself in your hands would act as a damping mechanism to your movements, making them smoother and more deliberate. Making the "lightness" of the pad a "feature" as Harrison is, only seems to highlight it's plasticy build and percieved cheap quality, as well as making it too easy to manipulate and therfore over-control.

    Really the solution is in the software in the end (tha games), but a bit more weight would most likely help for all kinds of precision control other than shaking the bloomin thing. I'm not talking kg here, a couple of hundred grams tops. Ever noticed how it is easier to hold a heavier item still?

    The 360 pad's weight is absolutely spot-on IMO, I have never felt tired when holding it for hours on end, but then I do rest it in my lap while playing - an option not possible for some Wii/PS3 games it would seem.

  • JediMasterMalik #55 5 years ago

    @Xerxes - When do I bash the 360 or Wii?

  • J*C #56 5 years ago

    Fuck off sony.

  • rogermellie #57 5 years ago

    For me the rumble feature is very important in survival horror games.

    It would be nice if we could use the XBox 360 controller with the PS3.

  • SomaticSense #58 5 years ago

    Sony talking bullshit.

    AGAIN

  • PS3lol #59 5 years ago

    [link url=http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2006-10-26-sony-2q_x .htm
    ]http://ww w.usatoday.com/tech/news/2006-1...[/link]

    Sony profits plunge by 94%

    RIP Sony

  • OllyJ #60 5 years ago

    The pad is actually too light if you ask me, quite cheap feeling.

    The whole console looks really ugly and has loads of weak spots that I can see breaking.

  • DanMW #61 5 years ago

    Of course you would Mr Harrison. I personally don't mind wether it has rumble or not, I don't really notice it to be honets. Let's not forget that before the Dual Shock, there was a controller with analogue sticks but no rumble for PS. So maybe rumble will be added on later, depending on the response they get. As far as I know it's not becase "it can't be done" or it would put the price up a lot, this has already been demonstrated not to be the case. Mr. Harrison, if not second thoughts maybe third thoughts.

  • Zuiyo #62 5 years ago

    Certain questions come to mind.

    Why did Sony feel the necessity to thoroughly redesign most features of a previously successful product which has become an industry standard?

    When and why did Sony come to the conclussion that rumble and a lighter pad were actually desirable features?

    If incorporation of the sixaxis technology is the priority and removing rumble an almost desirable outcome, seeing how confident they are about ditching it, how come the outer shell is identical to the DualShock - are they absolutely happy about the comfortability when manipulating the controller in space? Because that original shape was not obviously designed for that, but to accomodate a rather still life (no need to move the controller about - just rest it in your hands) and better transmit rumble feedback to the user (bigger handgrips than the original PSX no-rumble one). What tests were performed to ascertain that the controller was usable as 3D operation device with the DualShock shell?



  • moggsy #63 5 years ago

    I think the PS3 pad is a real missed opportunity. For all intents and purposes it is a PS2 pad without rumble. The PS2 pad was in turn identical to the late PS1 pads. So they haven't changed their pad design in almost 10 years.

    They've obviously considered changing it's design as can be seen from the 'boomerang' controller shown when the PS3 was first showcased. Why didn't they carry on with this research and find a way to evolve the feel of the pad like Nintendo and Microsoft have with theirs?

    That's the real question in my opinion.

  • Xerx3s #64 5 years ago

    Is that the reason there's never really any hard questions?

    I can only guess that A) questions are screened before the interview and/or B) Interviewers tend to duck the tough questions because they fear that they won't get any interviews in the future.

    @Xerxes - When do I bash the 360 or Wii?

    Afaik; a fanboy means that you are enormously positive to one product/thing. It's doesn't perce mean something negative or that you MUST hate other products/things.

  • alimokrane #65 5 years ago

    OFF TOPIC:
    Dont you just love his refering to we're making 150-200 millions of them ... they sure seem to be determined to sell more than 100 million PS3s ...

  • OllyJ #66 5 years ago

    wait till you all hear the microwave oven sound when you press the eject disc button, comedy gold!

  • space_ace #67 5 years ago

    Sony defends loss of rumble

    and fails

  • BadBoyBonner #68 5 years ago

    I feel confident in forecasting that they will make more Pads than consoles, so even if the PS3 only does half as well as the PS2, 100 million pads should be a breeze.

  • JonFE #69 5 years ago

    My 2 cents:

    First, about the weight. Shouldn't they make it heavier instead of lighter, so that it would be more difficult to move it by accident, thus helping the motion detector to make less "erroneous" (unnecessary) readings?

    Second, when Phil Harrison says that cost drove them to drop the rumble feature, he kind of admits that the actual reason was Sony losing to Immersion in court over the patent. Can you imagine the licensing fees they would have to pay to Immersion for including rumble in those 150-200 million (sic) pads? It would drive pad costs through the roof.

  • killyourtv #70 5 years ago

    just shut up trying to feed us this crap. we all know the reasons why its not there, so stop talking shit

  • Mordum #71 5 years ago

    I could'nt imagine playing a game without rumble now. It helps to understand your tyres grip on the road (Forza, etc), and helps to immerse you in games with its rumble effects when shooting/getting shot, aswell as other subtle effects in games like Splinter Cell (as has been mentioned), and survival horror games. Feeling a physical response to your ingame actions helps hugely with immersion in the games I play (in my opinion anyway).

    On a different note concerning the PS3 controller... why haven't they moved the damn left analogue stick into the correct position, just above the d-pad where it should be? It feels so uncomfortable using the analogue sticks on the PS2 controller, and surely almost no one uses the d-pad for in game movement these days right? Considering the controller is one of the most important parts of a game console I would have hoped they would have put more effort into the design of their new(?!) pad.

  • MadMirko #72 5 years ago

    So sad. The supposed real next gen comes with a 12 year old controller, if you discount the useless SIXAXIS (which should be called THREEAXIS, because that is all there is for us 3D humans, and all marketing talk won't change that) "feature".

    I really hope the market teaches them a lesson, they deserve it.

  • Lex_Luthor #73 5 years ago

    Some threads you can just predict every post before you set foot in them these days. Pretty sad.

  • matharding #74 5 years ago

    I want the boomerang back!

  • captainrentboy #75 5 years ago

    IMO the Dualshock pad design in general sucks mighty balls,but that's probably something to do with my mighty Ape like hands.The two prongs dig into my palms like a bastard,and the analogue sticks are positioned bloody awfully.Other than that it's a joy :).....Wait,the L2 and R2 buttons aren't too hot either.

  • BartonFink #76 5 years ago

    You forgot to mention the holes in the grips digging into your hands. All that aside it's fantastic ;)
    Edited by 1 at 26/10/06 @ 20:34

  • Foxclose #77 5 years ago

    I am surprasied at the amount of games that actually plan on using SIX AXIS.

    Looks like another Sony WINNER to me. :)

    Yeah, PS fans will miss the rumble, while X360 fans will have plenty of it LIKE ON ALL THE TIME LOL!!!!! ;)

  • Les #78 5 years ago

    When I first used the GC pad, I thought it was the best pad ever: it fitted so nicely in my hands! But if I play it for more than 30 minutes, my hands begin to hurt. In Mario Kart it was impossible to keep my thumb on the stick for an entire race (so approx. 5 min) and for anything outside Zelda, the button layout really sucks. After that experience, I really began to appreciate the dualshock. It's a shame the sixaxis won't have rumble, but overall, I like that it doesn't deviate too much from the original design: if it aint broken...

    I'm also very curious about the Wii experiment. When KH3 will be released for it (somewhere 2008, 2009 I guess) I might be tempted to pick it up.

  • Lex_Luthor #79 5 years ago

    "I'm also very curious about the Wii experiment. When KH3 will be released for it"

    Huh?

  • Les #80 5 years ago

    "Huh?"

    Square hasn't decided yet on which system Kingdom Hearts 3 will be released. The cartoon-like graphics and keyblade based gameplay would be a perfect fit for the Wii. Plus, there's already a KH GBA game. So I think it's a pretty safe bet the Wii will be the new home of the series.

  • mkreku #81 5 years ago

    The weird thing is that this new controller will probably fit me better than the old Playstation 2 controller (which I thought was quite excellent, actually). I really don't care for the rumble effect. Most often when a game utilizes rumble, I lay the controller down because the vibrations annoy me. I hadn't thought about that until all these discussions about rumble occurred. The most annoying thing is that if I put it on my living room table, it sounds horrible as the controller hops around and tries to jump down on the floor. I have to put it on my couch, where it usually manages to nestle its way down below a bunch of pillows.

    The new controller will not have rumble, which is a good thing for me, and I've also read that Sony has increased the distance you can "bend" the analogue controllers, and that's a REALLY good thing. Anyone who's tried the Gamecube analogue controller will know this.

    The weight is of no matter to me, as long as the controller itself still feels sturdy and not too cheap.
    Edited by 1 at 26/10/06 @ 22:53

  • Inflatable #82 5 years ago

    Rumble is very important for the immersion in many types of games.. Once the PS3 is out I'm sure more & more complaints will arise as people will discover it kindof sucks playing without.. It's like playing games with no sound, and having to move the controller arround in stupid ways is not gonna make up for that.. Big mistake by Sony, mark my words..

  • Shinji #83 5 years ago

    So ASK THE QUESTION Rob, put him on the spot and ask him if it's really nothing to do with the issue with Immersion.

    I think he pretty much answered that when he said that it was to do with the cost, don't you? I pointed out to him that Immersion have technology that can do both rumble AND sixaxis motion, and he openly admitted that they don't use that because it would be too expensive - I'm not sure how you think I should have pushed that line of questioning further, really. I'll be doing a follow-up interview soon though, and I'm happy to take further questions to him if there's stuff people genuinely want to know.

    Is that the reason there's never really any hard questions?

    I'm never going to be able to ask questions "hard" enough to satisfy the frothing fanboys, because I'm not stupid or unpleasant enough to do so. Every time I get accused of not asking hard questions, it seems to boil down to the fact that I didn't say "WHY IS YOUR CONSOLE SO FUCKING SHIT YOU BASTARD?" or shout "I THINK YOU'RE A BLOODY LIAR!" in his face in response to every question he answered. I see a lot of bile in this thread, but remarkably few real suggestions about questions that should have been asked - I think what people actually wanted to see here was an interviewer just being plain bloody rude to Harrison, rather than trying to get information out of him that's useful or interesting to gamers.

    Zuiyo :-
    What tests were performed to ascertain that the controller was usable as 3D operation device with the DualShock shell?

    I'm nicking that question for next time I interview him, it's a bloody good one. Hope you don't mind :)

    I have to admit that I'm constantly surprised how much hatred there is for Phil Harrison on these threads, by the way. Is there something in particular he did that I missed? I can understand it directed at Kutaragi and Hirai, both of whom come across as utterly, unspeakably arrogant - but having interviewed them both many times, I'd rate Harrison, along with Peter Moore (Microsoft), among the most straightforward and personable senior execs in the industry. At the end of the day, if I asked Hirai or Kutaragi why they don't use Immersion's rumble AND sixaxis tech, I'd get bluster about how PS3 will conquer all - when I asked Harrison, he said it was because it's too expensive. As an interviewer, that's fair enough for me. I'm not really trying to leap to his defence (christ knows I'm sure his annual salary probably means he doesn't lose any sleep over what you, I or anyone else thinks about him), just genuinely curious where the dislike springs from really!

  • Inflatable #84 5 years ago

    True, he spoke the truth about the cost.. But I think people are just a bit fed up with the general Sony BS and lies.. Like you said Kutaragi and Hirai are arogant asses, and that whole Sony image is reflecting on how people think about Harrison aswell.. Especially when he comes with BS talk aswell about how SISXAXIS will be so much better for gameplay then rumble.. Everybody with plenty of gaming experience simply knows that's BS.. Sure motion detection can be interessting in a few games, but it will never be able to replace the immersion that rumble adds in almost all games.. Like I said, playing games without rumble is almost like playing with no sound.. Especially racing and FPS games will never be the same without rumble..

    Sony calls it next-gen, I call it 2 gens back in time..

  • Jo0j #85 5 years ago

    @ inflatable


    agreed. I'll miss feelin a grenade goin' off next to me, or knowin' when I hit the wall after blowin' a turn...no wait, no I won't, I've got a 360 :)

  • MaxiSleep #86 5 years ago

    "Shinji"
    "I have to admit that I'm constantly surprised how much hatred there is for Phil Harrison on these threads, by the way."

    I think it shows the depth of anger at sony. It is amazing from a brand perspective to see what sony has done to itself over the years. Certainly if I was working in sony marketing I would be very very worried about how the opinion leaders are moving from sony. At the moment that has not moved in to the public conciousness, but there is generally a long lag before it gets you.

    (Sony brand themselves as hi tech premium. the way the marketing theory goes you need to get the opoinion leaders on this in the long run otherwise the chain breaks and you start losing market share)

    The question then is - why hate a company? The fact is that people realy hate been taken for granted. Microsoft and Nintendo are just the same hulking corporate goliaths that sony are, but they (esp micosoft) have realised that they need to ovecome this through PR. Msoft have done very well this time around appearing to care about european consumers in the gaming arena. Sony have not. Hence people become pretty pissed. This does feed into brand perceptions etc.

    As i have said before my house used to be 100% sony (TVx2, HIFI, PS one and two dvd player, high end PDA etc) . I was happy to pay the premium for sony because I liked the brand and they had the best screen tech (trinitron). Now I would not touch a sony product because they are so obsesed with their own media standards, they have crap software (sonic stage was an appaling piece of muck) and if possible they will restrict your choices as a consumer (like their Clio PDA s for example where they deliberately made it more difficult to use MP3's)

    I think Phil Harrison has a pretty thankless job . I would guess he is not particularily enjoying it at the moment.

    (My experience working in large multinationals is that the people who survive and prosper are those that can agree in public with the leadership whatever their own position. But this really does corode the soul after a while)

  • EmiliasHorse #87 5 years ago

    The joy of knowing just how much grip you have in PGR would be a shame to lose...lucky the 360 has an excellent pad with lovely rumblyness. I would love to see a tilt controller used in a driving game like PGR. You could take a tour of every barrier on every lap, even on the straights.

    I remember being advised by Psion to use a sticky tape roll on my Speccy keyboard cursor keys to get the "real" sensation of driving. Now that was liberating.
    Edited by 2 at 27/10/06 @ 06:09

  • melw #88 5 years ago

    This is like Satoru Iwata defending the naming of the Wii... Move along, and you corporate executives should get something new to say.

  • Zuiyo #89 5 years ago

    "What tests were performed to ascertain that the controller was usable as 3D operation device with the DualShock shell?

    I'm nicking that question for next time I interview him, it's a bloody good one. Hope you don't mind :) "

    I'm glad to be of assistance! :-D
    I'm sure this will boost my journalism career. Back to rewrite my CV...

  • cooper #90 5 years ago

    @Shinji
    Well said. It's kind of pointless trying to reason with the fanboys, though.

  • captainrentboy #91 5 years ago

    I don't think the EG staff should complain about all of the fanboys frothing at the mouth too much,as without them on here doing their usual thing this site would probably get about 5 or 6 posts to go with each story and that would be it :) The fanboys bring on those 200+ post threads.

  • BartonFink #92 5 years ago

    @Shinji - on what Phil said about including rumble making it too expensive. Why didn't you put that in the article then? Or was that left out to provoke this type of reaction? Then again even if you did you would still have a bunch of muppets frothing.

    Totally agree about Harrison Sony would be better served having himself and the likes of O'Hanrahan as their mouthpieces (much like Moore does for MS).

  • Shinji #93 5 years ago

    Barton :-

    "I think the caveat to that statement always has to be based on the fact that when we make a pad, we're making maybe 150, 200 million of them," Harrison explains. "So it has to be done at a price, and it has to be done at a volume that fits our production requirements."

    Okay, it's not the straight-talking "it would be too bloody expensive, right?" which we might all want, but that's about as clear an answer as you'll ever get from a senior executive, politician, or priest :)

  • BartonFink #94 5 years ago

    lol - very true and would be even truer if he was Irish ;)

    Good enough for me.

    Definitely think they should just gag the others and let the likes of Phil do the talking. The others like Mad Ken should never be allowed make another public statement or do an interview again. They are not good for the company at all.
    Edited by 2 at 27/10/06 @ 08:58

  • Blerk #95 5 years ago

    Okay, it's not the straight-talking "it would be too bloody expensive, right?" which we might all want, but that's about as clear an answer as you'll ever get from a senior executive, politician, or priest :)

    And probably about as truthful as an answer from a senior executive, politician or priest. ;-)

  • drumbaby #96 5 years ago

    As light as a feather and as silly as the Wii....what a winning combination!

  • belziah #97 5 years ago

    ".....Chien Fu! I saw a fanboy!"

    Jackie Chan continues to balance a stool on his kneecap

    "....Did you see him?"

    "..... which way did he go?"

    Edited by 1 at 27/10/06 @ 14:09

  • Kengro #98 5 years ago

    Racing games witout rumble is not gonna happen for me, i just can't see Colin McRae Dirt og WRC with no trace of rumble...
    Rally games are usally hopeless to drive with a steering wheel too, so i can see trouble ahead...
    Looks like my 360 will have to do my racing games, wich leaves little to be desired on the Ps3. I hate typical Japanese games

  • floppylobster #99 5 years ago

    This sounds a lot like Microsoft when they were defending their huge game pads made for 'American hands'. They said "all our focus groups say the bigger pads are better" - a few months later they were back-tracking and came out with the smaller 'S' pads. And what about Nintendo, didn't they say the loss of the Final Fantasy series outweighed the benefits of cartridge for N64? And Sega, who said they weren't worried by the loss of EA development for Dreamcast. There may be some merit to these arguments (I agreed with Sega), but I don't believe it's just 'chatter' about the loss of rumble.

    Isn't the decision not to include rumble all about who has the patent for the rumble feature? If Sony admit it isn't them they'll have to pay royalties for the all the Dual Shock controllers they sold for PS2. (I believe Microsoft settled out of court).
    Edited by 1 at 30/10/06 @ 07:40