Rumble-enabled Sixaxis, God of War III confirmed?

  • By thorsen-ink, GameSpot
  • Posted Mar 13, 2007 9:01 pm GMT

Source: See below. What we heard: Last night at the Metreon, Sony held a San Francisco event for the God of War II launch. Presiding over the event was the game's director, Cory Barlog, one of the leading lights of Sony Computer Entertainment America's Santa Monica studio. Following a brief video...


Source: See below.

What we heard: Last night at the Metreon, Sony held a San Francisco event for the God of War II launch. Presiding over the event was the game's director, Cory Barlog, one of the leading lights of Sony Computer Entertainment America's Santa Monica studio.


Following a brief video interview with GameSpot News, in which he confirmed the PSP God of War game would be an all-new adventure, Barlog gave a presentation at the PlayStation Store in the formerly Sony-owned Metreon complex. After bringing the God of War II design team onstage, he delivered a few tantalizing hints about a possible PlayStation 3 sequel.


"If we were to do a God of War III on Wii--I mean PS3," Barlog told the enthusiastic crowd. "We're excited about the potential--maybe, no commitment, no announcement or anything like that--to maybe have [God of War II hero] Kratos in 1080p with the Sixaxis and the vibration. Vibration [is] coming back to the PS3, that's pretty cool, huh?" (Emphasis added.)

Later, in an one-on-one interview with GameSpot, Barlog expanded on his previous comments...sort of. "If we were to do a God of War III, it would absolutely be on the PS3 with the [tilt-sensitive] Sixaxis, and maybe a little rumble as well. That's pretty badass, but we'll wait and see."

The official story: Barlog's careful couching of his comments makes it abundantly clear that he was speaking only about the possibility of God of War III. The hypothetical nature of his comments was underlined by SCEA PR director Dave Karraker. "We are excited to be working with Immersion to investigate ways to incorporate haptics (rumble) technology into our products," he told GameSpot. "At this time, however, we have no further announcement about future peripherals utilizing this technology." Sony recently settled a long-running lawsuit with Immersion over rumble functionality in the PlayStation 2's Dual Shock controller, paying the peripheral tech company nearly $120 million.


As for God of War III, the game remains only a probability--officially, anyway. "There has been no official announcement regarding the God of War franchise on any platform beyond PS2 and PSP," was all Sony would say on the subject.

Bogus or not bogus?: Bogus that anything is official. However, a rumble-enabled Sixaxis seems pretty likely, given the hefty price Sony was willing to pay to settle the Immersion suit. As for GOWIII, its chances depend on sales of the glowingly reviewed God of War II. Sony certainly seems confident they will be high, as it has already shipped 1 million copies of the game to retailers. Combined with the dearth of high-profile PlayStation 3 exclusives, GOWIII would seem a near lock, as well.

That said, Barlog's comments do represent some major hints from someone inside the Sony studio system. As such, they can't be completely dismissed as bogus--but they can't be taken as set in concrete either.

406 Comments

  • steeringfiend

    Posted Oct 14, 2009 5:34 pm GMT

    Slightly off-topic, but am I the only one who really prefers using the tilt control in racing games?
    Using the left stick to steer the cars is illogical to me and is incredibly awkward. Burnout is great in this respect.
    I downloaded the Dirt 2 demo and was disappointed by the apparent lack of tilt support.

  • moatez

    Posted Oct 22, 2007 5:46 am GMT

    GOW3 should be on PS2 and PS3

    It will be great...... Ha

  • kratos_karmakar

    Posted Aug 12, 2007 8:50 am GMT

    EVERY 1 NOS GAMESPOT GUYS R ALL MICROSOFT BUTT KISSERS ALL OVER WHILST ALWAYS TRYING TO PUT DIRT ON SONY WHICH OBVIOUSLY THESE LAMOES REALIZE IS A FAR BETTER MACHINE THAN THOSE MORONS OVER AT MICROSOFT ,HAVING NO VISION ,CAN EVER MUSTER, REMEMBERING THAT INNOVATION TECHNOLOGY WISE IS NOT MICROSFT'S STRONG POINT AND SONY'S FORT. PS3 WAS ACTUALLY MADE WITH THE 10TO 15 YEARS OF FUTURE IN MIND WHEN ALL MICROSOFT, KNOWING THEY HAD NO CHANCE WITH COMPETING AGAINST SONY WHO HAV BEEN IN THIS BUSINESS OF GAMES LONG BEFORE WHEN BILL GATES WAS SWIMMING IN HIS DADDIES BALLS, CAN HAV EVEN HALF A CHANCE IF THEY MET HEAD ON COLLISION SO THEY WANTED TO EARN ALL THAT THEY CAN AS QUICKLY AS THEY CAN RELEASING THEIR NOT SO POWERFUL MACHINE(IN COMPARISON WITH PS3) EARLIER. THOSE BABY LUVVIN NINTENDO GUYS HAV MORE BALLS THAN MICROSOFT.THAT BEIN SAID I DIDNT NEED TO READ THIS LAME ARTICLE TO NO GOW 3 IS GONNA B OUT ON PS3 COZ FROM THE LOOX OF HOW IT ENDED IN GOW 2"THE END BEGINS" ITS OBVIOS AND ITS ALSO OBVIOUS FROM HOW MUSCH IMPROVE MENT WAS MADE GRAPHICS WISE THAT THERE IS NO MORE ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT CONSIDERING THE POWER OF THE PS2 THUS A MORON WITH HALF A BRAIN CAN FIGURE OUT THAT SUCH A SUCCESSFUL FRANCHISE IS GONNA END WITH A BANG ON PS3. WAT AMAZED AND JOYED ME IS THE RUMBLE COMING BACK. I CANT IMAGINE SONY EATING THEIR OWN WORDS BUT IT WILL SOON TURN OUT TRU. I CANT WAIT TO C KRATOS ON NEXT GEN GRPAHICS AT 1O8OP .

  • vicalva

    Posted Jul 10, 2007 3:17 am GMT

    When announcing the PS3, Sony originally said that the rumble technology wasn't compatible with the six-axis, and they would therefore stop doing it. Or was this due to the lawsuit with Immersion? They've got to make GOW III for the PS3. GOW really stands out from other adventure games. Go Sony, show us what you're big heavy console is capable of !!

  • bamaman92

    Posted Jul 1, 2007 12:30 pm GMT

    All of these games look awsome... too bad my mom won't let me play them.

    PARENTS!!! They just don't get what makes a great game.

  • hajjuxl

    Posted Jun 28, 2007 6:23 am GMT

    God of War III must ALSO come out for Playstation 2 as the Kratos's Journey actually begins from PS2...

  • Cruentuslacrima

    Posted May 27, 2007 2:33 pm GMT

    God of War III , drooling already... I just hope it's not the last though because i heard it's a trilogy, not too excited for the rumble , i have a feeling it would cause trouble to the sixaxis and think about it , rumble + motion sensors = ????

  • elguino3

    Posted May 19, 2007 11:04 am GMT

    if they put rumble back in ps3 we would have to buy new controllers

  • dancingdudesean

    Posted Apr 27, 2007 9:03 pm GMT

    Why would Sony make a game for Nintendo, it's market competitor (I mean BESIDES Wipeout for N64)?

  • Shank_Town

    Posted Apr 27, 2007 1:09 am GMT

    To johndmes Dude,
    It's not like the WHOLE game will use motion sensor control, it will just add another dimension to the experience.... like when you're turned to stone by a medusa, instead of waggling the analog sticjk, you'll shake the controller!

    Similarly, if it was an fps, the SIXAXIS conroll would add more depth, maybe for melee or, like resistance, to shake off a tag or put out a fire!

  • rocky2k32000

    Posted Apr 25, 2007 5:39 pm GMT

    yes SONY. eat your words and add the good stuff to your elite console. i will be getting the new "rumble-axis" whenever it comes out!

  • denicola_a_god

    Posted Apr 22, 2007 10:09 am GMT

    hope these theories are true and if they are i will buy a ps3 and be waiting by my front door with eager eyes waiting for gow 3 to be mailed to me haha

  • blancobo

    Posted Apr 15, 2007 5:33 pm GMT

    It would be more than suicide if GOWar III was not in the future... if that was the case then GOW II would only be an inconclusive conclusion to the franchise. I think it would be a HUGE plus in the marketing strategy if Sony announced that God of War III was a plan, and it was a defined project for the PS3... The only reason why they would be hectic not to announce it was if they were thinking of pulling the plug on the PS3 earlier than a 2009 GOW III launch... which would also mean crap style news for us enthusiasts.

  • _Sam_

    Posted Apr 14, 2007 6:30 pm GMT

    rumble would have to be an either or feature (either motion censor or rumble)

  • XaK2

    Posted Apr 11, 2007 3:36 pm GMT

    on the wii comment. he might have had a script and was reading it and instead o writing out god of war 3 they wrote gowiii, then he saw the wii part and thought go wii. yea we get a rumble

  • StOcKoHeArTs

    Posted Apr 9, 2007 12:58 am GMT

    AND EVERY1 SAYING SONY RUBBISH!!!!! GOW3 is the best game in the world with : wicked funny deaths,cruel combos and get to go on a pegaus!!!! DMC is NOT better than this!!!

  • StOcKoHeArTs

    Posted Apr 9, 2007 12:49 am GMT

    Sick GOW on PS3 Sony will be the best yet!!!! and GOW on PSP (im in heaven,no hades im not going hell.)

  • xboxps2god

    Posted Apr 5, 2007 12:39 pm GMT

    After seeing the GOW 2 ending, it was made clear that they would need to do a third one. DAMN THOSE CLIFFHANGER ENDINGS!!!!

  • yajnus

    Posted Mar 24, 2007 8:16 am GMT

    i think it should stay with the ps2 and psp consoles. some people cannot offord the overpriced ps3. it would definetly look great on ps3 but if gowIII was made for ps2 or psp, it would sell more and therefore get more money to sony

  • protek_0813

    Posted Mar 21, 2007 6:40 pm GMT

    IF YOU BUILD IT, WE WILLBUY!!...........sounds great, good for sony, cant wait for GoW for ps3 and psp.

  • mikeyo1979

    Posted Mar 20, 2007 11:28 am GMT

    I have been playing GOW2 on my PS3 because I have that hooked up to my surround sound, I would rather have good sound quality than a rumble feature. I think rumble is a cool feature but to me it just isn't too important, not like it was 6 or 7 years ago. I can't wait for the PSP and PS3 GOW's!

  • Kartel101

    Posted Mar 19, 2007 6:18 am GMT

    Has anyone thought that if this turns out to be true that it will shorten the battery life of the controller(remember that the batteries cant be changed), so when it inevitibly dies you'll have to get a new one. Just hope that they last long.

  • Someguyinavan

    Posted Mar 18, 2007 9:06 am GMT

    Cory probably just wanned to see the reactions when he said Wii

  • DerekLStinson

    Posted Mar 16, 2007 10:17 am GMT

    the rumble with GOW3 and MGS4 will probably push me to buy a PS3. . . Just maybe

  • Thanos_of_MW

    Posted Mar 16, 2007 10:04 am GMT

    I don't care for rumble, but force feedback is necessary. Playing Gran Turismo HD with a force feedback Logitech wheel and not having a different feel on every vehicle degrades the game to the point of not wanting to play it. Every car feels the same and you can't feel when the car is about to lose control. I'm glad they settled with Immersion.

    As for GOW3, that's a given. It will be made and most likely will be in PS3.

  • Testament

    Posted Mar 16, 2007 9:21 am GMT

    just beacause a lot of people dont like the rumble controller dont mean everbody else will. personally i think rumble is a good thing, and i sure there will be option to turn it off. so stop crying!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • TTDog

    Posted Mar 15, 2007 10:49 am GMT

    GonLee30, not heard of Project Gotham Racing, the one which Sony stole a screenshot of to promote Gran Turismo HD.

    I hope Sony manage to get some decent PS3 games that aren't just PC or 360 ports, might make me rethink on buying one, although they'd have to knock the price down to a sensible level.

  • blackace

    Posted Mar 15, 2007 10:32 am GMT

    Yeah, Sony did say that "Rumble" was last gen. Now that they have paid Immersion over 120 million, they are going to eat their words and make a Dual Shock 3 controller with rumble. There's no doubt about it. This is a good thing, but I feel bad for all those gamers who bought extra $49 wireless controller with no 'rumble' in them. Glad I'm waiting to get my PS3. Next year is going to be a great year to own a PS3.

  • blackace

    Posted Mar 15, 2007 10:31 am GMT

    Yeah, Sony did say that "Rumble" was last gen. Now that they have paid Immersion over 120 million, they are going to eat their words and make a Dual Shock 3 controller with rumble. There's no doubt about it. This is a good thing, but I feel bad for all those gamers who bought extra $49 wireless controller with no 'rumble' in them. Glad I'm waiting to get my PS3. Next year is going to be a great year to own a PS3.

  • GonLee30

    Posted Mar 15, 2007 10:13 am GMT

    The thing I like about xbox fanboys the most is that when ever sony dose something good they freak out and say the most off the wall things like,"ha ha ps3 sux cuz it don`t have rumble",or the 360 is better (but can`t explain how".they bash sony`s Home online plains for no reason,think its funny that sony is putting rumble back and still try to belive that the 360 is the better system.Long story short is this,with rumble the ps3 controller is the best again and they know it because till this day most people still love the ps2 controller over any other.Home is a good idea weather you like it or not,and Motorstorm while not the greatest game shows what the ps3 can do, looks better than any 360 first 4 month driving title easy.Give the ps3 the time it needs.Sony dose what it says and the ps3 is gold and there is nothing MS can do about it.

  • GonLee30

    Posted Mar 15, 2007 10:13 am GMT

    The thing I like about xbox fanboys the most is that when ever sony dose something good they freak out and say the most off the wall things like,"ha ha ps3 sux cuz it don`t have rumble",or the 360 is better (but can`t explain how".they bash sony`s Home online plains for no reason,think its funny that sony is putting rumble back and still try to belive that the 360 is the better system.Long story short is this,with rumble the ps3 controller is the best again and they know it because till this day most people still love the ps2 controller over any other.Home is a good idea weather you like it or not,and Motorstorm while not the greatest game shows what the ps3 can do, looks better than any 360 first 4 month driving title easy.Give the ps3 the time it needs.Sony dose what it says and the ps3 is gold and there is nothing MS can do about it.

  • GonLee30

    Posted Mar 15, 2007 10:12 am GMT

    The thing I like about xbox fanboys the most is that when ever sony dose something good they freak out and say the most off the wall things like,"ha ha ps3 sux cuz it don`t have rumble",or the 360 is better (but can`t explain how".they bash sony`s Home online plains for no reason,think its funny that sony is putting rumble back and still try to belive that the 360 is the better system.Long story short is this,with rumble the ps3 controller is the best again and they know it because till this day most people still love the ps2 controller over any other.Home is a good idea weather you like it or not,and Motorstorm while not the greatest game shows what the ps3 can do, looks better than any 360 first 4 month driving title easy.Give the ps3 the time it needs.Sony dose what it says and the ps3 is gold and there is nothing MS can do about it.

  • puppiemaster

    Posted Mar 15, 2007 7:32 am GMT

    there will be a GOW III but it wont be around any time soon.

  • RetroGameFanCom

    Posted Mar 15, 2007 6:39 am GMT

    Sony: What about the 2 Non-Rumble Sixaxis Controllers I already own? Seems like if you add rumble now, you need to send me the new Rumble Enabled controllers free because of your initial mistake of not including it in the 1st place. Especially since I purchased your system when no one else would. Just look at em all out there on shelves not selling... You need to keep the early adopters happy too...

  • theKSMM

    Posted Mar 15, 2007 4:52 am GMT

    I think Sony missed a great opportunity to sell PS3s by not having God of War II appear on that system. I can certainly understand why they would want to have GoW2 as a PS2 title, but the lack of plans to put it on the PS3--even if months later--was puzzling. Having more exclusive titles on your previous-gen console than your flagship console is puzzling to me.

    I certainly hope the rumble feature finds its way back into the PlayStation controller. The Sixaxis feels too light for my taste and I suspect the missing rumble controls are the reason. Plus, I find myself missing the feature in certain games (e.g. racing, fighting) when it's turned off.

  • GonLee30

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 9:56 pm GMT

    You know its true,its all true because sony would have to be on crack to not do it.

  • seasponge2004

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 5:12 pm GMT

    If they do have a the controller rumble, how are they going to do it? Is it going to be an accessory you plug into the controller?

  • snykol

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 4:32 pm GMT

    Sounds good... Although necessary. I can't imagine playing a game that required good use of the sixaxis, without there being a rumble... It would have a 'lifeless' feel, tilting the controller around and having no physical feedback.

  • jknight5422

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 3:44 pm GMT

    More money to sink into the PS3. Rumble has been a feature for years
    & now being reintroduced as if it were new. That's a great gimmick.

  • bcolter

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 3:39 pm GMT

    Rumble back into the controller is a good plan... Give the consumer what they want.

  • furqan2006

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 1:47 pm GMT

    if this all is true then say goodbye to Wii and Xbox 360.

  • RiceCake

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 1:06 pm GMT

    sounds great! I'm not a huge GOW fan, and I'm content with my sixaxis, but rumble would be welcomed!

  • DK3410

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 12:41 pm GMT

    Yes. If GoWII made it to the PS3, things MIGHT have been a little different.

    I don't know if I'm experiencing deja-vu.

    Last gen, the PS2 launched first, having a great library of games. The Xbox and the GameCube launched later, falling behind in terms of their game libraries and ultimately losing out despite having better hardware.

    Now I see it being repeated, only that this time M$ has the headstart, better hardware (Xenos > RSX) AND a much less inflated head.

  • juangomezhijo

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 11:56 am GMT

    Sony already made a mistake not convincing bralog to launch GOW2 on both Ps2 and Ps3 but if they launch GOW3 exclusively for the Ps3 Then GOW3 combined with FF13 MGS4 and Killzone and maybe HOME could bring the Ps3 back on track and give at least 5million people 4 or 5 reasons to buy a Ps3 how about that Sony try not to waste this oportunity

  • DK3410

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 11:47 am GMT

    Sony once said "Rumble interferes with the motion-sensing capabilities of the Sixaxis"

    They conveniently forgot to refer to the Mii controller, which successfully blended the 2 and more together.

    Sounds like Nintendo managed to break the laws of physics

    With regards to games. Yeah yeah, your "Wait till the good games like MGS4, DMC2, FFXIII and GoWIII come out and the PS3 will beat the Trashbox 360!" has gotten so old that I don't know whether to laugh or to just go out and buy a Xbox 360.

    If I'm going to have to leave my PS3 to collect dust till Spring 2008, I might as well go and get myself an Xbox 360 and its currently reasonably good library of games.

    The reason why I stuck with my PS2 was because of the great games I CAN play on it NOW.

  • TTDog

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 11:33 am GMT

    I can't see Sony offering any sort of exchange or price reduction deal on the old controllers, even at $50 per controller they'd have to sell 450,000 per year to pay off the settlement figure to Immersion.

  • rkruss

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 11:32 am GMT

    Does this mean that Sony will give me a free rumble-enabled six-axis? (LOL - yea right). They owe people who bought this *cough* crap system something for being early adopters.

  • ChaosXeno

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 11:24 am GMT

    Spider freeak God of War is a first party title. Its called a joke.

  • Phazevariance

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 11:21 am GMT

    Rumble back on the PS3 is pretty much certain. Now if only Ninty would have a freakin hardware upgrade to match the power of the other two systems...

  • StanAce

    Posted Mar 14, 2007 10:34 am GMT

    Since Sony settled that multi-million dollar lawsuit with Immersion, I won't be surprised to see rumble tech back into controllers. =)
    Better to have a rumble feature possible than to not have it at all, and even better if implemented properly.

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