Ex-Microsoft Studio Manager Predicts Failure for Natal - UPDATED
Former Microsoft studio manager Scot Bayless predicts that Project Natal [http://www.xbox.com/en-ca/live/projectnatal/] is doomed to failure because Microsoft refused to integrate the motion-sensing device into the Xbox 360.
Scot Bayless is an industry veteran with an impressive 32X [http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,7384/] add-on for the Sega Genesis was released. In other words, he probably has a certain amount of insight into how things work (and don't work) in the videogame industry, and he doesn't appear too overly optimistic about the chances of Project Natal.
"When I met with Retro Gamer [http://www.microsoft.com] magazine. "Their response was, 'We're probably going to wait and see on that.' To which I said, 'Then you're going to fail.'"
"Plays like this always fragment and the disincentive to developers is powerful," he added. "When I'm spending tens of millions on a game, the last thing I want to do is lose 90 per cent of my market."
Bayless' pessimism could be deepened if Elite bundle [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/100957-Natal-Expected-to-Stab-Gamers-in-the-Wallet-at-149] and take my chances with good old-fashioned button-mashing.
Source: NowGamer [http://xbox-360.nowgamer.com/news/3276/ex-microsoft-studio-boss-natal-will-fail]
UPDATE: I received an email from Scot Bayless saying that his comments about Project Natal had been taken out of context in the NowGamer report. The original Retro Gamer article was about the 32X and his point "was about how difficult it is to succeed with console peripherals, not about the intrinsic merits of Natal."
Bayless also clarified that despite the tone of the quote, he's not by any means a disgruntled former employee. He left Microsoft in 2002, six years before the Natal meeting, under good circumstances.
"My comment was actually offered as constructive feedback. I was very impressed by the potential of Natal, but my experience at Sega taught me that splintering your target market with peripherals is an extremely risky proposition at best," he said. "Most console peripherals don't succeed. A path to either bundling or integration for Natal technology, however, could be transformative."
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Former Microsoft studio manager Scot Bayless predicts that Project Natal [http://www.xbox.com/en-ca/live/projectnatal/] is doomed to failure because Microsoft refused to integrate the motion-sensing device into the Xbox 360.
Scot Bayless is an industry veteran with an impressive 32X [http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,7384/] add-on for the Sega Genesis was released. In other words, he probably has a certain amount of insight into how things work (and don't work) in the videogame industry, and he doesn't appear too overly optimistic about the chances of Project Natal.
"When I met with Retro Gamer [http://www.microsoft.com] magazine. "Their response was, 'We're probably going to wait and see on that.' To which I said, 'Then you're going to fail.'"
"Plays like this always fragment and the disincentive to developers is powerful," he added. "When I'm spending tens of millions on a game, the last thing I want to do is lose 90 per cent of my market."
Bayless' pessimism could be deepened if Elite bundle [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/100957-Natal-Expected-to-Stab-Gamers-in-the-Wallet-at-149] and take my chances with good old-fashioned button-mashing.
Source: NowGamer [http://xbox-360.nowgamer.com/news/3276/ex-microsoft-studio-boss-natal-will-fail]
UPDATE: I received an email from Scot Bayless saying that his comments about Project Natal had been taken out of context in the NowGamer report. The original Retro Gamer article was about the 32X and his point "was about how difficult it is to succeed with console peripherals, not about the intrinsic merits of Natal."
Bayless also clarified that despite the tone of the quote, he's not by any means a disgruntled former employee. He left Microsoft in 2002, six years before the Natal meeting, under good circumstances.
"My comment was actually offered as constructive feedback. I was very impressed by the potential of Natal, but my experience at Sega taught me that splintering your target market with peripherals is an extremely risky proposition at best," he said. "Most console peripherals don't succeed. A path to either bundling or integration for Natal technology, however, could be transformative."
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