EyeToy: Play Review

EyeToy: Play is part game and part new peripheral. The peripheral in question is the EyeToy, a video camera that plugs into the USB port on the front of the PlayStation 2 console. The EyeToy is used as a unique controller that puts you in the game and responds to your motion and actions, and it definitely makes for a gameplay experience different from most anything that you’ve played before.

Set-up and installation of the EyeToy is pretty simple. All that you need to do is plug the camera in, put it on top of your TV, and insert the game disk and you’re ready to play. You don’t even need a controller. Depending on the room in which you’re playing, you may need to make a few minor adjustments. There’s a focus wheel that may have be turned depending on your distance from the camera, and an indicator light will flash if there is not enough light in the room. The camera works within a good range of lighting conditions from bright daylight to soft lighting at night, so you don’t need to worry about closing all the curtains or turning on every light in the house to play.

The video quality is fine for gaming, but don’t expect a crystal clear image of you on the screen. The camera and TV resolutions conspire to make things slightly grainy, so don’t expect to get a studio quality image. The image fuzziness is not too noticeable during play so it is not really an issue.

You may be wondering how you control the games, or even select them, without a controller. Well you, my friend, are the controller. When the game starts up the first thing that you’ll see is yourself standing in front of your TV. Navigation icons appear on the screen and to use them you simply move your hand until it appears over one of the icons and then shake your hand or wiggle your fingers to select it. It feels like something right out of the movie Minority Report. The camera is very responsive to your actions and it’s very easy to select icons and navigate the menus. The layout on the screen is well-designed, so you do not have to worry about unintentionally selecting nearby icons.

Before you start play, the game takes some snapshots of your face with different expressions to use as icons to represent things like score standings and who’s up next. An onscreen guide shows you where to place your head for each picture, and in a nice touch will allow you to retake any snapshot that you don’t like.

Once you have snapshots of all of the players you’re ready to select a game and begin play. EyeToy Play comes with 12 games to choose from and you can play as many rounds of the games in any order that you would like. You can keep playing a favorite over and over or let the game pick at random, it’s up to you. The games run the gamut from Simon Says style pattern following to faster paced reaction-testing games. The games include:

• Beat Freak: Point to the speakers in the corners of the screen as CDs fly past them. Your score is based on how close to the center of the speaker a CD is when you hit it.
• Boxing Chump: Punch a robotic boxer and knock him out before he can knock you out. This game is the weakest of the group – it requires an awkward sideways stance and the punches are hard to aim. Just swing your arms until you win.
• Disco stars: Simon Says to the beat of disco tunes as you must point to the same areas of the screen as an onscreen dancer and in time to the music. This one’s fun for parties.
• Ghost Eliminator: Ghosts periodically appear on screen and you must wave your hand over them to make them pop. There’s not much challenge to this one and thus the fun factor suffers.
• Kung Foo: Use karate chops to stop attackers coming from your sides before they can hit you. This one can be a lot of fun and will get you working up a sweat.
• Mirror Time: You must hit the designated corners of the screen. The trouble is that the screen flips, rotates, and reverses between each round at random. This is fun to play in groups and watch people lose their sense of direction.
• Plate spinner: Keep plates spinning on top of poles. Spin them too fast or slow and they fly off the pole. This one is harder than you would think, but not necessarily in a good (fun) way.
• Rocket Rumble: This is a pretty cool fireworks game in which you must grab fireworks of the same color and then hit a plunger to make them explode. Sounds easier than it is, as different colored fireworks can be crossing paths across the screen at once. The puzzle element in this game makes it one of the more enjoyable ones.
• Slap Stream: Dancing characters appear on the screen and you need to slap the bad ones without hitting the good ones.
• Soccer Craze: Use your head and shoulders to keep a soccer ball from hitting the ground. Characters at the side of the screen can be hit for points or to drop more balls onto the screen. Since this game uses your whole body to hit the ball, you can sometimes bounce the ball off unintended spots. This game is fun for short spells, but can get boring.
• UFO Juggler: You must spin UFOs to cause them to fly off the top of the screen. Spin too fast and they explode.
• Wishi Washi: Clean all of the soap off of windows that cover the TV screen. The faster you wipe and the more windows you clean, the better the score. Where big and loose fitting clothing and you’ll have an advantage. Put on some music and use it for a workout.

Overall the games are more geared for a gaming party than for individual play. You can certainly play the games alone, but the games are all too simplistic to keep your interest up for extended play sessions. As a group exercise, though, EyeToy Play can be a lot of fun and is a great way to involve people who don’t normally play video games. If you’re looking for something a little different to liven up your next party or to simply help break the ice, then you should definitely consider EyeToy Play.

Speaking of parties, EyeToy provides a feature called the Play Room that can add some ambience to your next shindig. The camera will show a live picture on your TV screen and add optional effects to the screen. Throwing a sixties party? Use the rainbow effect to have guests trial a tie-dye rainbow of color as they walk past the camera. Want to add a little creepiness to a Halloween party? The spider effect will have spiders jumping all over your guests.

The last feature of EyeToy Play is a video message recorder. The game will record a short video message to your memory card for playback later. This feature is really a novelty more than anything else, as you’ll need to give the memory card to someone else with an EyeToy before they can play your message. There are more efficient means of communication out there.

EyeToy Play is a novelty that works well and is probably different than any other type of game that you’ve played before. It’s a good party game and does a good job of making it easy for non-gamers to join in on the fun. Future games are planned to make use of the camera, so you are in essence buying a new controller that happens to come with a collection of party mini-games.

In The End, This Game Hath Been Rated: 84%.  A great party toy and novelty, but not enough depth for long-term single-player gaming.