British Comedian and talk show host Jonathan Ross apparently had the opportunity to play Project Natal recently. Besides telling everyone he enjoyed the experience, via twitter, he might have also spilled the beans on the month we should expect to see the peripheral in stores.
“OK. Before bed. Natal on X Box impressive. Not quite there yet i think but tye have til october and if they get it right…skys the limit.”
October sounds about the right time Microsoft would release the motion cam, just in-time for the holidays. Although, him saying it’s not quite there yet, does make me a tad nervous, and makes me wonder if the ‘lag’ is still prevalent today, as it was back at E3.
Now if you question why Ross was luckily enough to be one of the few people to play with Natal, he has worked with the company in the past. According to IMDB, he actually was uncredited for some voice work for Halo 3. So, the actor does have some ties with Microsoft.
If you wanna watch him play with Natal, click here.
Since Project Natal and Halo: Reach were announced at this past E3, speculation was right away suggesting that both the game and the peripheral would work together. Even Bungie’s studio president Harold Ryan chimed in with the Seattle Times and kept the rumors afloat by saying that ‘Reach’ could “absolutely” be “enabled” with Natal. Today, Bungie has shot-down those rumors.
On Bungie’s weekly update on their site, they teased its fans with a round of “Halo: Reach Mythbusters,” and tried to set the record straight with some of the gossip surrounding the anticipated first-person shooter.
“Truth be told, it’s just a good ole fashioned bug. Bug #15163 to be exact,” Bungie wrote. “Halo: Reach is NOT a Natal title and is being developed expressly with the traditional Xbox 360 controller in mind.”
There you go, the biggest game of the year for the Xbox 360 won’t take advantage of what Microsoft is hoping will be their biggest hardware launch, since they released the Xbox 360 console. It would have been cool to see what a talented developer like Bungie could do with Project Natal and see if they could make a ‘hardcore’ game in-mind with peripheral that has been accused of being a casual game device. With that said, I only think Project Natal games should be made from the ground up, and not be thrown at the last minute just to convince hardcore gamers that should buy it.
Microsoft has just announced that they’re resurrecting their Xbox 360-event, which was last held in 2006 in Barcelona, Spain. This year’s expo will take place in San Francisco, CA and will happen on February 11th at the Terra Event Center.
When gamers think of videogame expos, they think of huge events like E3 or GDC, which lasts for days and days. X10, which is what this Microsoft-only event is called, will only lasts for four-hours. However, even with the short time-span, Microsoft is showing off a number of notable games including: Alan Wake, Fable III, Halo: Reach, Crackdown 2, Splinter Cell Conviction, Final Fantasy XIII and more titles. Not only that, but we should be getting more information on the highly-anticipated — controllerless — motion peripheral, Project Natal.
Even though with the event lasting four hours, a lot of news should be coming out of it. The press in attendance will get a personal look at each of these games and interact at a more personal level, which means questions will be asked and answers will be answered. Some of which will be juicy tidbits.
Time Magazine has released their “Top 50 Best Inventionas of 2009.” This year’s list included Microsoft’s controller-free device Project Natal, which was first shown off to the world at this past E3. Natal was also considered one of the better inventions, coming in at the very respectable number 5, beating out such world changing ideas like teleportation, a cyborg beetle and the AIDS Vaccine.
The reason for the publication to mentioned Natal is because it breaks the “barrier that stood between gamers and ‘Tron’-like immersion.” I’m already seeing some people who complain about Time giving Project Natal such honors because the peripheral has yet to hit stores, and could be a year before we even see it. But if you look at the list that Time has published, you would easily see that most of the inventions have yet to be available, and will take years before any of us will even experience them in our day-to-day lives.
Remember, the press and people inside the industry have already got to swing their arms around and see how well Project Natal works. So if anyone wants to exclude the hands-free device, the reasons above are not valid.
Time Magazine has released their “Top 50 Best Inventions of 2009.” This year’s list included Microsoft’s controller-free device Project Natal, which was first shown off to the world at this past E3. Natal was also considered one of the better inventions, coming in at the very respectable number 5, beating out such world changing ideas like teleportation, a cyborg beetle and the AIDS Vaccine.
The reason for the publication to mentioned Natal is because it breaks the “barrier that stood between gamers and ‘Tron’-like immersion.” I’m already seeing people complain about Time giving Project Natal such honors because the peripheral has yet to hit stores, and could be a year before we even see it. But if you look at the list that Time has published, you would easily see that most of the inventions have yet to be available, and will take years before any of us will even experience them in our day-to-day lives.
Remember, the press and people inside the industry have already got to swing their arms around and see how well Project Natal works. So if anyone wants to exclude the hands-free device, the reasons above are not valid.
It has been heavily rumored that the third installment of the role-playing game Fable, would have ‘Project Natal‘ support. According to the co-founder of Gamesbrief Nicholas Lovell, Peter Molyneux has confirmed it’ll take advantage of the body-motion accessory. “Fable 3 will have Natal support,” Lovell tweeted.
Exactly how this will work is still unknown, but it shouldn’t come to a surprise to anyone. We already know Molyneux is a big fan of the new technology. If you remember correctly, during Microsoft’s E3 press briefing, Molyneux was a presenter for Natal. At the same time, Molyneux introduced his new ambitious game tentatively called Milo, which took full advantage of Natal.
I have a hard time believing that Fable III will require Project Natal and I still think it’ll use a controller. I think if you want to either ‘enhance’ Fable, than you would be require to own Project Natal. But I don’t think it will be a ‘major’ factor to enjoy the anticipated RPG.
It should be noted that Fable III is expected to come out sometime at the end of 2010; meaning Natal should also make a 2010 launch.
The head honcho over at THQBrian Farrell, spoke about Microsoft’s ambitious motion censor “Project Natal.” According to Farrell, the new “platform addition” should be making its way into stores “late next year.” The CEO’s comment were part of a conference call and the company’s first quarter earnings.
Obviously, Microsoft has yet to confirm when they plan to release Natal, although some information has been spilt. CEO Steve Ballmer, revealed some juicy tidbits back in June. Ballmer said that a “natural interface” (Project Natal) Xbox 360 should be available sometime next year. He then later took back his comments and declared he used “poorly chosen words.”
It sounding more like we should be seeing Project Natal hit stores next holiday season.
One of the biggest reasons why the Xbox 360 has sold as many systems as it has done over the last few years, is because of the Halo franchise. The series solidified the console as a legit player in the gaming industry, and it all started with the original Halo which was released back in 2001 for the first Xbox. It proved Microsoft didn’t just have to rely on third-party titles and much like Sony and Nintendo, they could come out with exclusives of their own.
Now Microsoft has another idea and they think this could be just as big as their Halo series — if not bigger. During E3, the company showed-off for the first time, Project Natal. Unlike Halo, this concept is not a game, but a controller-free motion censor. While the unit certainly looks cool, many hardcore gamers have their doubts and it probably stems from the lack of presentable games taking advantage of the accessory. However, it now seems like there is a chance Microsoft might be combining their biggest title with Project Natal.
While speaking with the Seattle Times, Bungie Studio President Harold Ryan teased the idea thatHalo: Reach, the company’s next Halo game after ‘ODST,’ could support Natal.
“I absolutely think ‘Reach’ could be enabled with it,” Ryan said, while asked if if the game could be used with Project Natal.
This could be the perfect storm for Microsoft. As of now, Halo: Reach is expected to be released at the end of 2010. Some are also suggesting that Project Natal will be shipped to stores around the same time. If these dates end up being legit, what better way to promote Natal than saying it will launch with Microsoft’s biggest franchise?
A few days ago, 1up spoke about how their sources were telling them that Microsoft plans on releasing a new system alongside Project Natal, their motion censor cam. Today, Microsoft has responded to the rumors.
Eurogamer gamer got the word from Xbox director of product management Aaron Greenberg, that we won’t ‘need’ a new console to run Natal, which we already knew.
“I think part of the excitement about this announcement is that in many ways we are delivering a next generation experience this generation. With that said, I can confirm that Natal will run on Xbox 360 so no new console investment will be necessary.”
Notice how he didn’t deny a new system? All he did was reconfirm that Natal will run on a current Xbox 360 system, but didn’t speak out against the possibility of an upgraded system. His response was rather vague, if you will.
I do believe we could see another system next year, or whenever Project Natal launches. Although, I do NOT think it will run games any differently nor will the specs have any significant update. If such a system is launched, I expect it to be more like a slim version of the current Xbox 360 and maybe added features like a DVR functionality, though that is even unlikely.
Not to long ago Microsoft’s Shane Kimspoke about how Project Natal, Xbox’s new motion censor, would be as big as a console launch. Kim might have been hinting at something because according to 1U’P’s sources, Microsoft is planning on releasing a ‘new’ Xbox console and maybe as early as next fall.
During their E3 press briefing, the company debuted Natal to the world. They revealed the unit would simply be an add-on and will work with existing Xbox 360s. However, according to these insiders, Microsoft plans on shipping their new console with Natal. When will this all happen? Well, the sources are suggesting that we should see this rumored Xbox system next fall, and the announcement might be happening as early as GDC 2010, which starts on March 9th.
As for the hardware, the new Xbox system will be nothing more than a upgraded system. Meaning, the technology will be largely the same and the visuals we see today will look similar, when compared to today graphics. However, Xbox 360 games will run better than the today’s Xbox, and the new games which take advantage of the new systems specs will also work with the older 360 model. Basically, this sounds a little bit like Nintendo’s philosophy. Create motion controls and make the system attractive to the casual gamer because of the console’s cheap price tag.
Since it was first shown at E3, Xbox’s Project Natal has been getting a lot of media attention and positive buzz. While it certainly looks promising, many people still have their doubts about how well the unit will work once it’s in our living rooms. I personality think it’s looking incredible up to this point, but like many — I still have my ‘doubts.’ However, for me anyway, Natal has just earned a little more creditably.
Johnny Chung Lee is famous for developing hacks that work specifically for the Wiimote. His most well known hack had to do with creating head tracking device that simply works with the Wiimote controller. He’s even developed a tracking finger display and even a computer whiteboard, all using the Wiimote. It’s pretty brilliant stuff.
Today, Lee has announced that he is part of the Microsoft team that is responsible for Project Natal. Although he admits he has nothing to do with the E3 demo we saw last week, him just being involved helps hardcore gamers give the project more creditability.
“The part I am working on has much more to do with making sure this can transition from the E3 stage to your living room – for which there is an even larger team of very smart, very hard working people involved.”
I believe Microsoft has hired the right person. If you look at his previous work and you owned a company that is working on some kind of tracking device, what better man would you want instead of Johnny Chung Lee? Not only that, it is again a great way to market Natal to the hardcore gamer — something Microsoft has yet to accomplish as a whole.
Check out this clip from tonights episode ofLate Night with Jimmy Fallon as Jimmy enthusiastically demoes the in-development videogame hardware with Microsoft’s Kudo Tsunoda.
In an interview with Shane Kim, Microsoft’s corporate VP of strategy and business development, Gamasutra was told that it would be simple to go back into a game and adapt it to work with Project Natal, Microsoft’s upcoming Motion Detecting Controller.
Hopefully publishers will look at it and decide they want to do that… Whether they’ll enhance existing games or use them in games going forward.
To show an example of how a game could be adapted to use Natal, Burnout Paradise was shown. With Project Natal you could simply hold your hands out like you were holding a steering wheel. Kim mentioned how they adapted the functionality into the game,
It’s a great example of just how simple it is to adapt a game… It’s not like we went into the source code (of Burnout Paradise). You can take an existing game, and make it work.
This would defiantly be a huge selling point if developers went back to their games and added Natal support. It would also help companies revitalize past games that may have lost their buzz.
