Sony's decision to remove force feedback vibration from the SIXAXIS controller for the PLAYSTATION 3 was called a "strategic choice" for which the company has "no regrets." Following Sony's settlement with Immersion on patent disputes, talk of rumble returning to the PlayStation became much more positive.

SCEA president Jack Tretton said the company is "open to changing the SIXAXIS controller." Similarly, Sony Worldwide Studios' Phil Harrison, instead of denying hardware changes to Slashdot readers, simply said "it's a little too early" to date the return of rumble.

Now Inner Bits, who revealed detailed info on SCEE job cuts, say that it's already in the works.

Many have suspected that since the agreement [with Immersion], Sony will have been working on a new controller with rumble support. We can now confirm that this is the case. We've heard from two independent sources at Sony that they have been working on prototypes for several months. Officially, the corporate line is still "no comment". Unofficially, Sony is facing some difficulties with battery life; i.e. Between the rumble and the wireless support, the batteries are draining too fast to be acceptable for consumers.

Bad battery life? Sounds familiar. Hey, Sony, anyone with a Wiimote is familiar with short battery life, so don't let that hold you back. Just pack in a sensibly long USB cable and we'll call it done, okay? Michael McWhertor

PS3 Controller with Rumble in Development [Inner Bits]

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