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WiiAction is a library I wrote within four days of the UK release of Nintendo’s new Wii console so that I could explore the Wii Remote, and see what sort of opportunities it offers us as games developers, as well as gain some experience in writing for it.
I modelled the interface to the library on Microsoft’s XInput library, since I was familiar with it and it would allow me to add “Wiimote” functionality to any of my projects which already support the X-Box 360 control pad very easily. As a testbed, I used Magna Karter, which supports keyboard, X-Box 360 pad, or – now – Wiimote input. This was fun, but I would like to explore the Wiimote further, and design some games to use it specifically, rather than slotting it into an existing game for which it was not intended.
When the first version was completed, I recorded the above video to demonstrate what WiiAction can do. Since releasing this video, I’ve received a number of emails asking whether I’ll be releasing binaries/source for the project. I skirted around the issue for a long time, as I was unsure where I stood legally. I have now decided against releasing it publicly in any form, however there are many projects which expose the Wii Remote for use on PC or Mac, notably GlovePIE. I would definitely recommend this application to anyone wishing to play with the Wiimote on PC: it emulates a joystick and so can be used with many games already out, as well as your own projects.