Sony previously touted motion sensing technology as the replacement for the rumble force feedback in the SIXAXIS PS3 controller. Now, however, many gamers and developers, including the people at Sony, are no longer convinced. If anything, the Nintendo Wii Remote has proven that both can coexist. Industry insiders often blamed Sony's legal tiff with Immersion, who has patent claim on vibrating controllers, as the main reason for the SIXAXIS omission – but news of a Sony and Immersion truce emerged on March 1.
In an interview with GamePro, SCEA CEO Jack Tretton proclaimed Sony is considering making changes to the Sixaxis controller: "We used to have a narrow approach to controllers. If you really wanted to [move outside the standard controller], we left it up to third party manufacturers. But now we're moving to a regional approach. You will see peripherals coming from SCEA that will address the interests of the U.S. consumer. I don't have anything to tell you specifically, but we're certainly open to changing the Sixaxis controller if it addressed North American gamers."
Immersion CEO Victor Viegas also confirmed the possibility: "Our new business agreement with Sony Computer Entertainment is specifically intended to enable advanced vibration capability for the benefit of the PlayStation gaming community. We are happy to provide our technology in this regard and hope to make technical proposals very soon with respect to use of our technology in the PlayStation products."
News source: DailyTech
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