Widescreen Gaming Forum

Natal, MS' upcoming controller-less motion sensing addon for the 360, is supposedly coming fall of 2010. It's rumored to be targeted at around $200, and that's likely best case scenario. There's also rumors of a new Xbox 360 coming same time Natal releases around fall of 2010, so that $200 may be the price you get it for if you buy the new 360, eg bundle price. I would suspect the main feature of the new 360, if there is one, may be an included Blu-ray player, as Microsoft has been talking about making a BD player for the 360.

I wouldn't doubt there will possibly be some proprietary restriction hardware regarding Natal as well (read below). Then again, some have been confused by Balmer's talk of a "new" 360, and speculate he may just mean an option that bundles the current 360 with a Natal. Too much talk of a "new" 360 could cause a panic in the 360 community, whom might wonder all over again about backwards compatibility and all new hardware.

The In2Game Fusion controller maps 3D space in detail (without the need to stay aimed on screen like the Wii), much like movies do characters with blue/green screen technology. The only thing keeping the Fusion from being a big hit is it's a 3rd party controller and games have to be written for it. In2Games lack the power MS has to fund and support developers with technology like the 1000 SDK kits MS sent out for Natal, along with an already broad customer and title/developer base.

Though the Fusion uses RF AND ultrasonic technology to track motion, whereby Natal uses mere RF like the Wii (from what I've read), Natal may still work for more intricate games unlike the Wii's tendency to be glitchy because all the unit has to do is take a good initial scan like they show the skateboard being scanned. After that, there is no need for it to communicate with a controller device like the Wii and Fusion do, it merely sees or emulates what it already scanned via watching your motion with no need for translating controller inputs. In that respect you eliminate a major cause of the problems encountered in such technology.

My thoughts are still tentative and mixed on this project though. While I see it on the one hand as a boon to opening up the 360 to those like myself whom have a hard time with gamepads, even doing so in a way that promotes a more active and healthy gaming experience (with possible drawbacks), there are also many issues to be worked out in the development and marketing end as far as what the impact will be on how games are made and it's effect on other platforms, specifically PC.

They've yet to show shooters being demonstrated on it. While it's no doubt capable of working with shooters given the right programming at time of game development, will the games be watered down in what nuances they have? Will you still be able to do all the things you can do in current shooters like change fire modes, grenade types, ammo types, etc. Are you going to be able (or have to) run in place, jump, crouch, etc. If so, how is Natal going to be able to differentiate between all the minute variances in player inputs like fire modes, etc? Much of what they show in the demo looks like Wii clone games that are overly simplistic. Not only what you are able to do, but how you can do it seems to be very limited. Note for instance in the first game how slowly that martial arts "master" throws his punches.

It is said that Natal can simultaneously track 48 points on each of 4 players, at a rate of 30 FPS. That's 192 points simultaneously, no wonder it has it's own CPU (or so I've heard). Is that best case scenario though? Even if that's best case scenario, that's not bad, because most users wouldn't have 4 players in front of the screen at once, but still, they could be setting themselves up for consumer angst over lag in many games if people try and use it to it's claimed full potential.

Back to the nuances of the games though. Worst case scenario, this could make lots of games much more simplistic, including the PC ports that come from them. The racer demonstrated only seems to show one simple repeated motion for shifting, no apparent gear specif ability as with H shifters. Then there's the clutch and gas, I would assume from what they show there's no provision for a clutch, or even feathering the gas and brake in increments. We've already seen some PC games lose features their predecessors had, like FEAR 2 having no ability to lean around corners, and that's without even using "It was developed for Natal" as an excuse, which the PC port developers might echo on future titles.

Best case scenario, I can see them possibly adding accessories to the mix like a mock gun stock, so touching certain parts of it to change modes, ammo types, etc, and the mere act of aiming down it's sights will enable intricate, accurate shooter play. What type and shape of gun stock to use that would work well for all shooters might present a problem though. Natal just may become the iPod of console gaming, with a slew of accessories to follow. Seems for consumers, that is both a plus and a minus if it happens, but you'd have to think MS's eyes are lighting up at the po$$ibilities.

I had to laugh when I listened to one of 1Up's Podcasts that included talk of the Natal. How quickly one of them assumed it would work with PC due to it's having it's own CPU and only needing to transfer the data via a USB port. Have they forgotten the 360 was made in such a way that only MS certified peripherals with their proprietary chip in them will work with it? What's to stop them from making that "new" 360 with a chip in it that makes it the only device the Natal will work with? That may be one of the primary features of the 2010 360 if there is one, and possibly not played up in the media to avoid skepticism from the PC players whom fear Natal will ruin PC ports.

In summation, I suppose my greatest reason to be skeptical about Natal is that MS is at the helm and it's a major tech change that could change all of gaming as we know it. That means they would have even more power to change the face of gaming as they see fit, including how it affects PC gaming's success and/or game development. Personally I don't want to see lots of PC ports turning into overly simplistic Wii clones. You have to ask yourself, are there really "no strings attached" as their Natal site suggests? This could start another new era, one of all those PC gamers whom loathe what MS has already done console wise to affect PC gaming rising up and more interactively voicing their opinions by way of boycott.

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/live/projectnatal/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Natal

http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/06/01/microsoft-previews-project-natal/

http://gizmodo.com/5280496/project-natal-won-e3-and-maybe-the-motion-control-wars