Mind putting that gif in spoiler tags? It's bringing my browswer to its knees.

First I limp to the side like my leg was broken
Shakin' and twitchin' kinda like I was smokin'...it's supposed to look like a fit or a convulsion.
Anyone can play this game

I most likely WILL NOT be buying Project Natal.

I do think it'll do well with the "Wii fans" who happen to have a 360; especially those with kids. I mean look at it....kids are gonna eat that spazzy gameplay up.

I hate to admit it but Sony's new Move motion system, which is closer to the Wii's system, looks a lot more interesting and I'm not a huge Sony PS fan. But I'll admit that I have a feeling the Move system will also be better than the Wii's. Frankly, I don't think I'm ready to give up holding something as I play games and I wonder if other gamers will feel the same....


You'll notice in the video below they're even showing some FPS and 3rd PS games. THAT is what we need to see in the Project Natal videos.

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Do you need to buy two of those things or are they going to be packaged together? That will be bullshit if some games required two move controllers.

Yeah, that's a concern for me as well. Having to buy two move controllers would suck. I'm not sure about this yet since none of those video clips showed use of the nunchuck subcontroller, so maybe that will fill the place of the second controller. There's no way they could require you to use a second move for something simple like the shield in that gladiatior game. You might need one for that boxing one though.

Boxing, table tennis, golf, archery, sword fighting, ummm... welcome to 2006?

Yeah, at least the Natal is something a bit different. The Move looks like it just offers the same capability as the Wii.

Precisely. I already have a Wii, why would I even consider Move? My interest in Natal is pretty low, but it's definitely a notch above Wii 1.5 Move just because it is different and the possibilities are still pretty wide open.

But, it's in HD, dude. In HD!

I totally disagree. The Move would, at least in theory, allow you to play true "next gen" games like Call Of Duty with motion control. You don't have to (and thank God for that; as a lefty, I can't play FPS games comfortably on a Wii), but you'd have that option. In fact pretty much any game could have Move integration built into it. The Natal on the other hand is really limited by the absence of a physical controller and the buttons associated with it. That driving demo looked cool, but think about all the inputs you actually use in a driving game -- there's a lot more than left, right, gas, brake and that's pretty much all you've got access to with Natal, unless you're using voice commands. We'll see more at E3, but I expect a lot of "madly flailing around" type games. And I wasn't at all that excited about Milo when I thought he was really working and not a pre-rendered set up.

And the Wii has proven that outside of Metroid and RE4 (which are slower FPS type games), no one wants this. In fact, the entire basis of the Wii has pretty much been cast aside by core gamers. Anecdotal, but look at the Wii thread here, it goes 2-3 weeks without posts. Tumbleweeds roll across the screen when you venture into that thread.

Outside of mini-games, there isn't a single genre that has proven to be better with motion controls in the 4 years the system has been around. That isn't going to magically change overnight because Move is in HD.

MOTS. More Of The Same... just prettier.

What are these complicated racing controls are you talking about? Other than left, right, gas, break and an occasional item what are you missing?

Handbrake, Change view, Look back, Boost, Drift. Racing with such minimal controls as Natal provides would be difficult. I know -- using a Logitech steering wheel peripheral takes some getting used to because of having to reach for the buttons in unfamiliar positions. But at least they're there. Plus don't underestimate the usefullenss of resistance (and force feedback as well). It's very hard to get accurate small changes in direction without physical resistance -- you tend to overcorrect a lot.

In either case, this is a little bit silly to discuss this week. I'm reserving judgement until after E3. That's when the truth is likely to be revealed about these systems. I wish Tiger Woods 10 were coming out after E3 instead of next week. I have it preordered on Amazon for the PS3 mostly due to its Move integration, but would have liked to see the Move in action first (though of course getting TW 10 doesn't lock you into buying the Move).

Out of curiousity Corvin, what are these innovations the Natal provides that you're excited by? I agree the UI would potentially be cool, but that's more of a novelty and it's not like the dashboard is hard to navigate now. Gameplay-wise, I can see why the Natal would appeal to my four-year-old son who doesn't really understand how to use even a waggle-stick correctl -- in fact he might be the main reason I get one. But what new improved gameplay features will it be offering that have you intrigued?

I kinda wish they would just do games specifically for gamepad or motion control. I have a feeling that one or the other isn't going to be fun, or it will make the game too easy or too hard, etc. I think they'd get best results by designing a game with one control scheme in mind instead of trying to support both.

I understand they do that now to some extent with steering wheel support in a racing game, but that seems like more of an immersion factor than an advantage.

DUDE, WTF has Project Natal shown that's so Innovative? It's the same shit Wii puts out. They(Motion sensor systems) ALL have that going for them. As you put it MOTS.

But at least Move has shown some games other than the usual "Motion Sensor Shovel Ware".

Maybe I am starting to get old, but after well over 30 years of playing games, buying new systems, upgrading computers and always getting exited with each new advancement, I just can't find myself excited by the natal...it just seems pointless to me. I also have to say the above video of the playstation move just seemed lame.

I don't think being 40 has anything to do with it, because I am still as excited as my 10 year old son when ever a new games comes out...but I already have a wii, and while I can see the brilliance of what they did with it, if not for Mario Galaxy, it would stay in my daughters rooms for their friends to play with when they come over....

I agree...It's all lame. But the Wii has forced the hands of MS and Sony so here we are talking about the latest crappy motion sensor systems with shit games.

Too true. I have to laugh when I hear people criticise Sony and MS for making motion controllers. If you worked for either company and saw how the console sales numbers looked, especially two years ago, what would you have suggested?

I'll give you boost. Drift is usually done with the brake. The others I rarely if ever use.

Go back and read my post. That's basically what I said.

I thought this was pretty clear. At least Natal is attempting something different which may, in theory, actually provide a new type of experience given the right developer. The potential is greater than the alternative (cough, Wii ports: Boom Blox anyone?), especially since they haven't shown squat so far.

I am NOT on board for either as it stands.

I haven't been following Natal at all really, have they flat out said they will not ever release it with some sort of controllers as well? Golf on Move is the only thing that looks like something I'd want to even try at this point. Then again, I'd much prefer if any of them would just put out a good Golden Tee game with a track ball.

I have zero interest in this, and it kinda pisses me off that Sony and Microsoft are putting so much money and resources into this stuff instead of making great games. I want to relax and play games, not wave my arms around.

They will try to push this thing has a more realistic experience. But if I want a more realistic table tennis game, I'll go freaking play a real life table tennis game. Waving an imaginary paddle does not make a more engaging experience for me. The standard controller is plenty tactile for me.

Cagcast raised an interesting question. Has there ever been ANY peripheral that didn't bomb on consoles??

And I forgot Shift.

They weren't the first ones to bring that up...check back a couple weeks ago in this very thread:

The problem with motion controls, and I'm not a Nintendo hater at all, is that motion controls don't seem to make the games that much more immersive.

In a party atmosphere, I agree, the Wii can make for some multiplayer stuff. It's more fun to play your friends in bowling by actually making the bowling motion. However, for the most part, it seems like a hindrance in the games I have played. I spend a lot of time fighting because I had my hands too low, and then some object blocks the signal and my controls go haywire. That's annoying.

I just always hope this is getting us closer to high quality virtual reality games at home. And then maybe, one day, a holodeck.

Then I can scream "fucking campers" with some cool looking VR shades on.

IMO----> No buttons= No Sale

Natal simply cannot produce, as it is, the speed and precision required for modern shooters (my favorite games), especially while including all of the other functions we've become accustomed to. This is a list of a standard set of functionality within a FPS/TPS game:
- walking
- running
- turning
- crouching
- jumping
- taking cover
- switching weapons
- zooming in
- shooting
- reloading
- throwing grenades / Alternate fire
- using melee attacks
- interacting with the environment (buttons, doors, etc)
- accessing your inventory
- using items (health packs, etc)
- talking on the mic (if it's a push-to-talk, rather than open mic)

*IF* they can show me a game where you can do ALL of that stuff, using Natal, without a controller, then I MIGHT start to reconsider. But until then, Natal will remain as nothing more than a Wii/Eye gimmick that won't take off with the typical 360 user base.