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Skate It Wii May Get Skateboard Frame for Balance Board
Posted by Brian Crecente at 12:00 AM on June 25, 2008
I was blown away with how fun it was to mess around with the early build of Skate It with the Wii Balance Board that Electronic Arts had on display last week during their event. The controls were fun, easy to pick up and felt much more rewarding when you pulled off a trick than doing the same with two thumbsticks or a remote waggle.
But I was a bit worried about how the game would make sure virtual boarders weren't slowly moving off the balance board's sweet spot. Scooting was a problem I noticed while playing Wii Fit. The more into a game I got, the more intense it was the more I tended to scoot around on the board over time. After ten minutes or so of intense gaming I'd notice the game wasn't responding right because my feet were no longer centered.
The devs told me that that is a concern of theirs as well. So much so that they're actually looking into the possibility of shipping the game with some sort of form that snaps onto the balance board to give it more of a skateboard look and feel. More importantly, this skateboard frame would help gamers realise when they were scooting off the board's centre spot without having to look down, and potential facing into a virtual curb.
Sounds like a fantastic idea to me. [Image Credit]
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
ExistentialEgg
Posted 12:39 AM 25/6/08
@broomperson: Nintendo's always liked their peripherals. I still haven't seen anything for the balance board that justifies the price though, and if they're going to work it into a lot of games it should be bundled with the console. Once I commit to buying a console I'm pretty stingy about all the add ons.
ExistentialEgg
ConstyXIV
Posted 12:36 AM 25/6/08
@broomperson:
It's nearly foolproof anti-piracy tech. What's the point of burning the game for 50 cents if you still have to buy the gizmo to go with it?
ConstyXIV
broomperson
Posted 12:29 AM 25/6/08
So Nintendo makes the cheapest console, and then loads up with this crap. You need an extra room just for the peripherals.
But it's probably gonna be fun. *sigh*
broomperson
CockroachMan
Posted 12:25 AM 25/6/08
There should be some kind of special bundle with the balance board.. or at least Nintendo could sell it separately.. I don't want to buy Wiifit just for that..
CockroachMan
Dayvie
Posted 12:21 AM 25/6/08
It'll be great if this came with grip tape.
I can see all the scrapped knees now.
Dayvie
NeoStarr
Posted 12:13 AM 25/6/08
Do they mean like a top for it that has grip tape or an actual skateboard design? I'd be interested to see if any actual skate companies get the honour of designing it.
NeoStarr
trelantana
Posted 12:11 AM 25/6/08
@Mr.DuckSauce: Actually, yeah.
I thought I might see how emo I could get just now. I don't think I could have passed off as one though...
On another note, have you ever smoked a cigar while taking a bubble bath (that's composed of dish soap) while drunk?
I imagine that using this accessory will feel similar to that.
trelantana
Mr.DuckSauce
Posted 12:07 AM 25/6/08
@trelantana: Dip into a emo drink some?
Mr.DuckSauce
trelantana
Posted 12:05 AM 25/6/08
Sounds like a pointless accessory for a pointless system that I somehow still manage to pointlessly love, even though it is quite obvious that it will pointlessly die before it's old age as it's two most recent pointless predecessors pointlessly did.
Life is pointless, because there is no point to living.
trelantana
mattstockton12
Posted 12:04 AM 25/6/08
I'm glad it doesn't suck!
mattstockton12
GMC
Posted 1:40 AM 25/6/08
oforfuxake - the wii peripherals should be (i.e are) jacks-of-all-trades.
We dont need a gun shell - the wii-mote handles it
we dont need some bullshit glove/baseballbat/golf club add on - the wii-mote handles it.
We dont need a skateboard attachment - the balance board handles it.
Teacher, leave our kids alone!
GMC
WiglyWorm
Posted 1:22 AM 25/6/08
@broomperson: Rockbandlolwut?
WiglyWorm
suburbancowboy
Posted 1:18 AM 25/6/08
"Trelantana doesn't care about anything. He's a Nihilist" - Bunny Lebowski
suburbancowboy
EndwaterAngry
Posted 1:10 AM 25/6/08
I don't understand everyones hatred for peripherals. Whats wrong with enhancing the game experience?
BrandtRock: "i hope [Nintendo] make[s] a "skate or die 3" then"
EndwaterAngry
cyr3n
Posted 1:08 AM 25/6/08
skateboarding without the road rash? eeeh yea I might consider it.
cyr3n
jp182
Posted 12:58 AM 25/6/08
first people shit on the Wii because nothing uses it. Now there's a game coming out that seems like a no-brainer for the Wii Fit and everyone is still Emo about it (except for trelantana; I see what you are doing there).
What will it take to get people to stop being so negative about the Wii Fit?
jp182
Aethyr
Posted 12:47 AM 25/6/08
@trelantana: What the hell. Are you talking about.
I love pointless accessories! *waves around Master Sword*
Aethyr
nastysquared
Posted 2:50 AM 25/6/08
@RomieYO: Your statement is akin to saying that real life shooting a person in the head (a la resident evil) is going to translate into being good at the game or the game being almost exactly the same as it's real life counterpart.
I can guarantee Skate It will not equal true skateboarding feel.
Plus, you won't be able to put the king of force onto the balance board that you would a skateboard. It would probably break eventually doing ollies with it.
nastysquared
BrotherNick
Posted 2:08 AM 25/6/08
@RomieYO: lol prolly not :\
BrotherNick
RomieYO
Posted 2:02 AM 25/6/08
Wait, are you saying they will make it so that you can skate a game with a real deck? I am really good at skateboarding, so that would be so unbelievably awesome and I would pwn everybody online with constant tres. Lol.
Will I actually be able to ollie and it would recognize it on the game?
RomieYO
nastysquared
Posted 2:51 AM 25/6/08
@nastysquared: "kind of force" my bad...
nastysquared
Talleh
Posted 4:27 AM 25/6/08
And so the peripherals for peripherals begin...
Talleh
JokesJokes
Posted 7:04 AM 25/6/08
that's "...real skateboard deck on top of the..."
JokesJokes
JokesJokes
Posted 7:02 AM 25/6/08
Sounds good to me if it's cheap, but then I like my peripherals to feel more real-life than nerf. For example, I recently modded my rockband kit (immitating a youtube video) to work with a real drum pedal. The real pedal is so much better than the rockband one, (more fun to use, a more authentic "look ma, Im a rockstar!" feel, and more responsive to boot) so a real skateboard top of the ballance board sounds much better than just standing on the textured plastic surface...once again provided it's not too expensive.
JokesJokes
NeVeRMoRe666
Posted 6:24 PM 25/6/08
Funny thought...I find it kind of ironic how the wii (wii fit included) was designed to encourage people to exercise. Yet, it seems to me that this will only draw people inside to play these games. Why go outside and skate when you can do it inside, in the comfort of your living room? @RomieYO: Trade in your deck Romie, this will be all you ever need!
NeVeRMoRe666