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Joysticks of the Next Generation

Aired December 13, 2002 - 13:43   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: ... the music?
DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: Oh, yes. Nice, nice.

PHILLIPS: We very much enjoy the music. We're talking Christmas, we are feeling Christmas, the holidays. I guess all of the holidays this time of year.

SIEBERG: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Daniel Sieberg, our tech guru here to show us some cool games.

SIEBERG: This looks like, I think, the living room of every gamer. This is what he would imagine or hope for under the tree.

PHILLIPS: Oh, it is called a gamer. OK.

(CROSSTALK)

SIEBERG: We are going to be talking about accessories for consoles. You know, last year was kind of the year of the consoles, the XBox, the Game Cube, and PlayStation 2 were all competing with each other.

This year, there has actually been a 27 percent increase in accessories for these consoles. We are talking about the evolution of the joystick here, and really far beyond what we are used to seeing in the past. So we are going to start with something over here.

PHILLIPS: Do I get to play?

SIEBERG: Yes. You get to play. You are going to be our demo tester here.

PHILLIPS: Nice.

SIEBERG: We're going to start with this. This is the Namco Gun Con 2.

PHILLIPS: OK.

SIEBERG: It is a light gun...

PHILLIPS: Nothing like a little target practice -- that is my type of thing. All right. SIEBERG: Exactly. We hooked this up to a PlayStation 2. It is running Time Crisis 2.

Now, I am going to start the game up here. If you want to come right over here in front of the TV...

PHILLIPS: All right.

SIEBERG: Basically, we have got a plasma screen hooked up here, but we have to use this monitor, because it doesn't work with a plasma screen. There actually -- you are going to have to start shooting at the targets.

PHILLIPS: Start now?

SIEBERG: There is light that is coming between the gun and the TV that reads exactly where you are aiming the gun.

PHILLIPS: Right.

SIEBERG: Once you are done, it will give you your score.

PHILLIPS: All shots fired. Oh, I see, it's just like being in a range.

SIEBERG: Right. You are in a range. Now, there is, of course, more to the game, Time Crisis 2, but this is sort of the beginning where you would practice your skills using your target practice. You have got 60 seconds. You are doing pretty well.

PHILLIPS: That's pretty good.

SIEBERG: Look at that. OK.

PHILLIPS: Always to the heart and head...

SIEBERG: This would actually give you your score at the end, but maybe we should move on to the next one.

PHILLIPS: All right. Let's go -- sorry, I am getting a little excited.

SIEBERG: That's $45. That's the Namco Gun Con 2. That's the first one we can look at.

PHILLIPS: And it's not violent or gory...

SIEBERG: Well, some of the games are. It does work with some other games too that are a little more violent. But you have to look out for that when you look at the ratings on the games.

Now, we are going to go from that to something that can be considered violent if you are in a car, you are thrashing around a little bit.

PHILLIPS: The way I drive, it could be very violent. SIEBERG: Now, this is from Madcatz. This is called the Universal Racing Wheel. If you can see here, there are actually pedals down at the bottom that allow you to control the gas and the brake, and then we have got the wheel hooked up here. We have actually NASCAR racing hooked up, so if you want to get in here...

PHILLIPS: My husband would love this.

SIEBERG: ... and have your foot on the pedal. And as soon as you are ready, I'm going to hit start.

PHILLIPS: Do have to do gear or anything?

SIEBERG: And just hit the gas. Now, you can also feel some force feedback.

PHILLIPS: I'm Earnhardt Jr.

SIEBERG: This will work with any console. We have got it hooked up to the Nintendo Game Cube right now, and you are playing this racing game. You are actually in the game right now. You are doing pretty well, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: I'm Little E, how can I not do well?

SIEBERG: And you didn't even practice at all before this segment. Now, this goes for $60.

PHILLIPS: OK. That's it?

SIEBERG: Again, it's available now. And as we say, it can be used for all of the consoles, but right now we have got it hooked up to the Nintendo Game Cube.

PHILLIPS: This is like -- OK, we have to stop, I am being told...

SIEBERG: Yes, absolutely.

PHILLIPS: We're having too much fun, sorry.

SIEBERG: It is easy to have fun with these.

PHILLIPS: Look at that, Daytona 500 is just like you're watching NASCAR, and it feels like it, too. It has got the vibration, and...

SIEBERG: You do get the force feedback vibration, yes. Now, we are going to move on to one that is quite a bit bigger than the other ones, and this one is pretty involved, a little more expensive...

PHILLIPS: Looks like you are flying a jet here.

SIEBERG: Yes, you know what? It's a tank. It is called a vertical tank. This is for a game called "Steel Battalion," it sells from Capcom. It goes for $200, and this is beyond the evolution of a joystick. You can see here all these different buttons. We're going to start up our vertical tank that we have got here. There are also some switches you can see here to check all of your different diagnostics. There are about 40 different buttons on it. Once you have done all of that, then you start it up, and of course, you would have to have somewhere to set this up. You wouldn't want to just put this in the living room, on your lap for that matter.

PHILLIPS: Well, how real to life are these, too? Did researchers go in and spend time learning about the inside of a tank...

SIEBERG: Well, not necessarily. This is pretty futuristic. You are actually a gigantic mech warrior. You are sort of a futuristic type -- this is set in the future, and there are pedals, again, for this game.

But it does take a while to get the feel of all these different controls. You can see all the different buttons and the things that you have to learn while you are playing. Once you are in here, you are actually controlling it. You can see me controlling it.

PHILLIPS: Oh, my gosh.

SIEBERG: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Let me hold your papers.

SIEBERG: Thank you. It's a lot to keep your attention on. But again, this goes for about $200. It just recently was released to the market and just available for the XBox right now.

PHILLIPS: So all this stuff we can get at your typical technology-type store?

SIEBERG: Yes, at your typical technology store or retail store. All of this is available, and we can also show some people the evolution of the controller here. One thing you notice is missing with these?

PHILLIPS: What's that?

SIEBERG: Wires.

PHILLIPS: Oh, yes. Wires.

SIEBERG: Exactly. These are wireless controllers. We have got one here from Madcatz, one from Logitech, one for Game Cube. There are ones for all of the controllers. Now, they range in price from about $35, $40, even $70 for the Logitech one. There's a little receiver you plug into your console, and then it communicates between the two.

The same frequency that you have for a cordless phone. You can move away from your console, and eliminate all the wires.

PHILLIPS: Love it.

SIEBERG: And lastly, just the last quick...

PHILLIPS: You got five seconds.

SIEBERG: Five seconds. This is a camera. A digital camera for the Gameboy Advance, which allows you to take digital pictures, and we have got a spy cam set up right here. It takes pictures every minute.

PHILLIPS: Don't put that around our team.

SIEBERG: I won't. I promise. This one goes for $45.

PHILLIPS: Daniel Sieberg. And I know it's so fast.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired December 13, 2002 - 13:43   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: ... the music?
DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: Oh, yes. Nice, nice.

PHILLIPS: We very much enjoy the music. We're talking Christmas, we are feeling Christmas, the holidays. I guess all of the holidays this time of year.

SIEBERG: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Daniel Sieberg, our tech guru here to show us some cool games.

SIEBERG: This looks like, I think, the living room of every gamer. This is what he would imagine or hope for under the tree.

PHILLIPS: Oh, it is called a gamer. OK.

(CROSSTALK)

SIEBERG: We are going to be talking about accessories for consoles. You know, last year was kind of the year of the consoles, the XBox, the Game Cube, and PlayStation 2 were all competing with each other.

This year, there has actually been a 27 percent increase in accessories for these consoles. We are talking about the evolution of the joystick here, and really far beyond what we are used to seeing in the past. So we are going to start with something over here.

PHILLIPS: Do I get to play?

SIEBERG: Yes. You get to play. You are going to be our demo tester here.

PHILLIPS: Nice.

SIEBERG: We're going to start with this. This is the Namco Gun Con 2.

PHILLIPS: OK.

SIEBERG: It is a light gun...

PHILLIPS: Nothing like a little target practice -- that is my type of thing. All right. SIEBERG: Exactly. We hooked this up to a PlayStation 2. It is running Time Crisis 2.

Now, I am going to start the game up here. If you want to come right over here in front of the TV...

PHILLIPS: All right.

SIEBERG: Basically, we have got a plasma screen hooked up here, but we have to use this monitor, because it doesn't work with a plasma screen. There actually -- you are going to have to start shooting at the targets.

PHILLIPS: Start now?

SIEBERG: There is light that is coming between the gun and the TV that reads exactly where you are aiming the gun.

PHILLIPS: Right.

SIEBERG: Once you are done, it will give you your score.

PHILLIPS: All shots fired. Oh, I see, it's just like being in a range.

SIEBERG: Right. You are in a range. Now, there is, of course, more to the game, Time Crisis 2, but this is sort of the beginning where you would practice your skills using your target practice. You have got 60 seconds. You are doing pretty well.

PHILLIPS: That's pretty good.

SIEBERG: Look at that. OK.

PHILLIPS: Always to the heart and head...

SIEBERG: This would actually give you your score at the end, but maybe we should move on to the next one.

PHILLIPS: All right. Let's go -- sorry, I am getting a little excited.

SIEBERG: That's $45. That's the Namco Gun Con 2. That's the first one we can look at.

PHILLIPS: And it's not violent or gory...

SIEBERG: Well, some of the games are. It does work with some other games too that are a little more violent. But you have to look out for that when you look at the ratings on the games.

Now, we are going to go from that to something that can be considered violent if you are in a car, you are thrashing around a little bit.

PHILLIPS: The way I drive, it could be very violent. SIEBERG: Now, this is from Madcatz. This is called the Universal Racing Wheel. If you can see here, there are actually pedals down at the bottom that allow you to control the gas and the brake, and then we have got the wheel hooked up here. We have actually NASCAR racing hooked up, so if you want to get in here...

PHILLIPS: My husband would love this.

SIEBERG: ... and have your foot on the pedal. And as soon as you are ready, I'm going to hit start.

PHILLIPS: Do have to do gear or anything?

SIEBERG: And just hit the gas. Now, you can also feel some force feedback.

PHILLIPS: I'm Earnhardt Jr.

SIEBERG: This will work with any console. We have got it hooked up to the Nintendo Game Cube right now, and you are playing this racing game. You are actually in the game right now. You are doing pretty well, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: I'm Little E, how can I not do well?

SIEBERG: And you didn't even practice at all before this segment. Now, this goes for $60.

PHILLIPS: OK. That's it?

SIEBERG: Again, it's available now. And as we say, it can be used for all of the consoles, but right now we have got it hooked up to the Nintendo Game Cube.

PHILLIPS: This is like -- OK, we have to stop, I am being told...

SIEBERG: Yes, absolutely.

PHILLIPS: We're having too much fun, sorry.

SIEBERG: It is easy to have fun with these.

PHILLIPS: Look at that, Daytona 500 is just like you're watching NASCAR, and it feels like it, too. It has got the vibration, and...

SIEBERG: You do get the force feedback vibration, yes. Now, we are going to move on to one that is quite a bit bigger than the other ones, and this one is pretty involved, a little more expensive...

PHILLIPS: Looks like you are flying a jet here.

SIEBERG: Yes, you know what? It's a tank. It is called a vertical tank. This is for a game called "Steel Battalion," it sells from Capcom. It goes for $200, and this is beyond the evolution of a joystick. You can see here all these different buttons. We're going to start up our vertical tank that we have got here. There are also some switches you can see here to check all of your different diagnostics. There are about 40 different buttons on it. Once you have done all of that, then you start it up, and of course, you would have to have somewhere to set this up. You wouldn't want to just put this in the living room, on your lap for that matter.

PHILLIPS: Well, how real to life are these, too? Did researchers go in and spend time learning about the inside of a tank...

SIEBERG: Well, not necessarily. This is pretty futuristic. You are actually a gigantic mech warrior. You are sort of a futuristic type -- this is set in the future, and there are pedals, again, for this game.

But it does take a while to get the feel of all these different controls. You can see all the different buttons and the things that you have to learn while you are playing. Once you are in here, you are actually controlling it. You can see me controlling it.

PHILLIPS: Oh, my gosh.

SIEBERG: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Let me hold your papers.

SIEBERG: Thank you. It's a lot to keep your attention on. But again, this goes for about $200. It just recently was released to the market and just available for the XBox right now.

PHILLIPS: So all this stuff we can get at your typical technology-type store?

SIEBERG: Yes, at your typical technology store or retail store. All of this is available, and we can also show some people the evolution of the controller here. One thing you notice is missing with these?

PHILLIPS: What's that?

SIEBERG: Wires.

PHILLIPS: Oh, yes. Wires.

SIEBERG: Exactly. These are wireless controllers. We have got one here from Madcatz, one from Logitech, one for Game Cube. There are ones for all of the controllers. Now, they range in price from about $35, $40, even $70 for the Logitech one. There's a little receiver you plug into your console, and then it communicates between the two.

The same frequency that you have for a cordless phone. You can move away from your console, and eliminate all the wires.

PHILLIPS: Love it.

SIEBERG: And lastly, just the last quick...

PHILLIPS: You got five seconds.

SIEBERG: Five seconds. This is a camera. A digital camera for the Gameboy Advance, which allows you to take digital pictures, and we have got a spy cam set up right here. It takes pictures every minute.

PHILLIPS: Don't put that around our team.

SIEBERG: I won't. I promise. This one goes for $45.

PHILLIPS: Daniel Sieberg. And I know it's so fast.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com