Getting in to console development

[Fat Tone]

What would it cost for the tools and hardware to get started programming for a console?

In particular, I can see uses for the Wii controllers for some areas of my research and would be keen to evaluate them.

T.

[Wulfman]

might not even be necessary - people are working on hooking up the controller to pcs/macs. and they seem to be successful.

mfg
wulfman

[Fat Tone]

That would be interesting. I also need the sensor bar to work...

[az]

The sensor bar is just a bunch of LEDs, AFAIK. The controller sees them and thus knows where it is.

Console development systems are expensive, and developing for consoles is said to be quite difficult. Also note how even large software developers have problems getting the wiimote to work the way they want to.

[Wulfman]

if you google, you'll find some information:

http://blogs.zdnet.com/Burnette/?p=213

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iBaKsh5z_o

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_ytdW6Ys2A

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Use-The-Nintendo-WiiMote-For-PC-Games-41643.shtml

good luck!

mfg
wulfman

[Sasq]

http://wiihacks.blogspot.com/

the force is strong with this one

[Fat Tone]

Cheers guys, v. helpful

Looks like I don't need the sensory bar...just a pair of candles will do if pushed http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Wii+candle

[az]

Sii. Told yuu soo.

[Fat Tone]

iindeed yuu diid .

Looks like there's enough info out there to just buy the remotes, which is great as we already have a lot (time, experience, codebase) invested in other platforms.

I think there's a publication or two just in evaluating its potential across a range of paradigms.

[Gurm]

You don't want to get into console development. Seriously.

(Been there, done that...)

[Sasq]

sensor bar is just two IR leds so the remote can fine tune its location.

Gurm, I suspect Tony is thinking about the Wiimotes in terms of his line of work at the uni, i think they would be a great extra dimension to the testing he does now in studies

[Fat Tone]

Theres a vid on YouTube taken with a cam sensitive to IR and it shows a cluster of leds at each end of the bar. Slightly safer than a candle

Yes, the features of the remote offer all sorts of possibilities. Pointing in a natural way will be a big boon (yes I know of the gyration mice). Also I suspect that the location tracking, with more than one sensor used on orthoganal axes, will be easier and cheaper to use than some of the electromagnetic sensors which cost thousands and are very sensitive to their environment. The end of the remote has a 1024*768 pixel camera and object tracking hardware which can track up to 4 objects. There is an IR pass filter in front of the camera - if this is removed then any bright object can be used.

I posed the question without researching (which I should have done), assuming I'd need a full scale developers kit. Heh, all I need is a BT dongle

Something else not to be underestimated is the accessibility of the remote. For testing on children if you can give them a game controller to play with (that works how they expect it to) rather than a keyboard or a square metal button-box, they are going to be far keener to engage.

[Gurm]

I know what he was talking about.

You don't even want to pay the price for the development kit.

*sigh*