The Wiimote gets accurate

Its press conference isn't until tomorrow, but the first notable news of E3 actually comes from Nintendo.

The Japanese gaming giant has addressed one of the top concerns of many Wii players -- that the Wii-mote just isn't very accurate. That makes it impossible to have an awesome swordfighting or even cooking (yes, I love my "Cooking Mama") game where your movements are exactly tracked on screen. Instead, the Wii just gets the gist of your movements... sometimes, which can cause a lot of frustration.

Not anymore, Nintendo is promising. It just posted a sneak preview on its website of the "Wii MotionPlus," a plug-in (pictured left) for the Wiimote that, well, let's let Nintendo say what it does:

The Wii MotionPlus       accessory attaches to the end of the Wii Remote and, combined with the       accelerometer and the sensor bar, allows for more comprehensive tracking       of a player’s arm position and orientation, providing players with an       unmatched level of precision and immersion. Every slight movement       players make with their wrist or arm is rendered identically in real       time on the screen, providing a true 1:1 response in their game play.

No information yet on whether this will be standard on all Wii's sold going forward or how much it will cost. But this could enable some awesome new games, especially the type that we avid gamers have been demanding. Here's the big question in my mind: Has this been in the works long enough for LucasArts to enable it on "The Force Unleashed?" Because I think we all really want a precise Wii lightsaber experience.