Microsoft: Kinect Not For Core Gamers

[Cousin_IT]

...so they're expecting "casuals" to fork out $350-400+ on a 360 + kinect* just so (atm) they can play the same games the Wii already has older, better versions of? Colour me confused

* based on the assumption they consider "casuals" a market they haven't tapped into yet & so would require them to buy the whole bundle unless they can steal their "hardcore" family member's 360 & then fork out the £150 to play said games.

 

[Onyx Oblivion]

Thank the Nine Divines they admitted it. Now I DEFINITELY am not getting one.

 

[irishdude]

At least there being honest about this. Though kind of obvious...

And calling this the biggest year for core games with only 3 games? Don't get me wrong I will play and enjoy them, but I've got a felling they're have been more better years.

but gears of war 3 isnt coming out this year, and COD is on pc ps3 as well

 

[Armored Prayer]

At least there being honest about this. Though kind of obvious...

And calling this the biggest year for core games with only 3 games? Don't get me wrong I will play and enjoy them, but I've got a felling they're have been more better years.

but gears of war 3 isnt coming out this year, and COD is on pc ps3 as well

Which is basically why I thought that statement way completely stupid. All they really have is Reach, and I wouldn't call one single game the greatest year in core games.

 

[Morgan3rd]

I am interested in kinect from a non-gaming perspective.

Having to never rummage around to find remote controls? Hell add a browser and I might need to drag myself off the couch.

I'm a purist though. Mouse/keyboard is the only way to go imo. Unless you are playing a racing game, smash bros, or rockband.

 

[TraderJimmy]

Awesome.

Y'know, I play a lot of 'core' games, from Multiplayer shooters to things like Baldur's Gate, but I also play casual games - Ape Escape series, Pokemon, the Eyetoy. I'm not prejudiced against gimmicky games per se, they can be fun.

That said, "I" (my mum pretty much got this for herself - it's even at THEIR house rather than mine right now!) got a Wii for my birthday and it is dire. I cannot think of a Wii title that makes me excited, other than the Snowboarding/Wii Fit board combo. Using that Shaun Wright game broke the board pretty damn quickly, though, so no more fun from that. On top of the high price of the controllers that came with it, the add-ons were ridiculous. I hated the idea that you had to pay extra to make your Wiimote more sensitive, when this SHOULD HAVE BEEN A FEATURE FROM THE START. I don't care about the Wiil, as it does make Mario Kart easier to play with the Wiimote, and it's entirely optional - you're paying for something that adds functionality but isn't necessary. But many newer Wii games require these extension things to play them, and that is pukingly cynical. I cannot imagine any party boring enough to be enlivened by the 'party' games, whereas even the Eyetoy *Window Washing Game* was much admir'd by all present at its inauguration.

Admitting it's not for 'core' gamers in this case is drawing a false distinction, and attempting to flog poor quality games for more money, and more extensions, just like it was with the Wii. Shovelware ahoy, and I'm calling it now: there will be an additional device you will have to use to make your Kinect able to work properly with later games.

If it is successful, anyway, that is what will happen. I suspect there are few casual gamers who would rather shell out $150 than use the Wii browser to open Kongregate.com and play some of the flash games there - or play them on their iPhone, even. Same gimmicky controls, same poor graphics - but at least the devs actually care about them...mostly.

 

[GotMurf]

I'm honestly more pissed off that they think 'core games' are all frickin' shooters.

 

[DeadlyYellow]

Well worth the laugh.

If I were to make console peripherals, I'd probably target people interested in the console. But then again, I'm not in marketing.

 

[antipunt]

Oh well...at least they're -honest- about this amirite?

Wait a second. But if this is mainly for casual audiences, why the heck wouldn't they just get a Wii?

 

[TobintheGnome]

Who in their right mind thinks these games are 'Hardcore'?

"Halo: Reach, Gears of War 3 and Call of Duty: Black Ops"

Casual shit for 12 year olds.

 

[SenorFuzzeh]

Nice to see Microsoft acknowledging the obvious, right? Yeah...

The only way I can see Kinect succeeding is if they bundle with the 360 at a hefty discount. They won't be making a single dent in the Wii's casual-appeal armor with that enormous price difference.

Considering microsoft wouldnt hesitate to rip off everysingle one of its customers.

 

[Neuromaster]

Oh thank god, I thought my reputation might have been in jeopardy for wanting one. Now I'll never have to suffer the retribution from the friends I don't have.

Don't worry. Those with more money than sense have always enjoyed indulging in trivialities that those of lesser means cannot afford. It's part of what makes you superior. Or in gamerspeak, "hardcore*".



*I think this might be the first time I've implied that motion controllers are hardcore, even ironically.

I dunno, to me it just seems like people are willing to sacrifice any fun they could potentially have on the off chance 'someone' (don't know what kind of high traffic these people have in their living rooms) may think lesser of them? Economical means aside (although $150, my goodness), if I was given the chance to try one for free, I wouldn't object on the basis that I was too hardcore for it . Don't worry, I'm now off to play a miscellaneous war game so that my life has merit.

I'm uninterested in peer pressure or whatever the hardcore community deems cool. Motion controllers are overpriced and underfeatured. If Microsoft cut the price by a factor of ten, I might be interested. Maybe then developers would be as well, and actually create games that took advantage of the new tech.

I don't see that happening.

 

[SpaceCop]

I wonder what other shocking revelations Microsoft has for us. "Driving a car is not for dogs."

 

[demoman_chaos]

Didn't Sony have something just like this on the PS2 called the Eyetoy? And wasn't it a major flop? Doesn't the PS3 also have a version of the Eyetoy?
So saying Kinect/Natal is new and innovative isn't saying the truth. And saying it has a chance is also not saying the truth.
The truth is webcam gaming has been done before, and has failed everytime. M$ is really stupid for thinking a $150 add-on for a $200 console will sell well. $350 for a 360 and Natal vs $200 for a wii that has more and better games that aren't rip-offs or ports of games that weren't great even with a controller (Kinect Sports=WIi Sports, Kinectimals=Eyepet, Sonic Free Riders=That crappy Sonic board racing game which only sold well the first time around because it was Sonic and didn't sell the 2nd time around because people knew it was poo).
Move has a chance since it has buttons, but I won't get either. As Yahtzee said, motion controls will never work because they lack physical feedback.

I hope they do a version for PC like they were making noises about, I never wanted to play games with it but it could be fun to muck around with.

They already have them for PC, they are called webcams.

 

[irishdude]

At least there being honest about this. Though kind of obvious...

And calling this the biggest year for core games with only 3 games? Don't get me wrong I will play and enjoy them, but I've got a felling they're have been more better years.

but gears of war 3 isnt coming out this year, and COD is on pc ps3 as well

Which is basically why I thought that statement way completely stupid. All they really have is Reach, and I wouldn't call one single game the greatest year in core games.

and i dont think reach is system seller as much as halo 3 was, and sony lineup for the holiday: GT5, socom 4 and LBP2 are alot better and GT5 is going to be a system seller i hope

 

[Silver Patriot]

Well, it's good to know that I am not going to be missing anything if I don't buy this.

 

[hurfdurp]

Oh thank god, I thought my reputation might have been in jeopardy for wanting one. Now I'll never have to suffer the retribution from the friends I don't have.

Don't worry. Those with more money than sense have always enjoyed indulging in trivialities that those of lesser means cannot afford. It's part of what makes you superior. Or in gamerspeak, "hardcore*".



*I think this might be the first time I've implied that motion controllers are hardcore, even ironically.

I dunno, to me it just seems like people are willing to sacrifice any fun they could potentially have on the off chance 'someone' (don't know what kind of high traffic these people have in their living rooms) may think lesser of them? Economical means aside (although $150, my goodness), if I was given the chance to try one for free, I wouldn't object on the basis that I was too hardcore for it . Don't worry, I'm now off to play a miscellaneous war game so that my life has merit.

I'm uninterested in peer pressure or whatever the hardcore community deems cool. Motion controllers are overpriced and underfeatured. If Microsoft cut the price by a factor of ten, I might be interested. Maybe then developers would be as well, and actually create games that took advantage of the new tech.

I don't see that happening.

Well they seem to be encroaching on the Wii's territory and upsetting their own haaaardcore fan base in the process. Also as you say, developers aren't 100% behind the Kinect, and then they slap you in the face with an outrageous price tag. Anyone who is interested in motion control probably already has a Wii by now, so to make a Kinect so expensive, without the promise of many games for it is kind of absurd. Apparently the new Fable won't be compatible with Kinect now either? That was the only slightly tantalizing game for Kinect to me, so now there's doubly no reason to get one.

 

[Tom Phoenix]

Microsoft: Kinect Not For Core Gamers

Not finding Kinect all that appealing? Don't worry, you're not supposed to.

Kinect isn't aimed at the core Xbox 360 audience, says Microsoft. The platform holder says that the control pad will be the input of choice for any hardcore titles going forward, and the motion controller is for a more casual demographic.

"With Halo: Reach, Gears of War 3 and Call of Duty: Black Ops, this is the biggest year for core games on Xbox 360," said a Microsoft representative. "In addition to these controller-based games, Kinect is a new way to play, using your full body and voice ... At Xbox, we're developing controller-based games for the core and Kinect titles that appeal to everyone."

These comments are a distinct change in policy from this time last year, when project director Alex Kipman was assuring us that Natal would have "real, hardcore, triple-A titles," [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/92270-Natal-Will-Have-Real-Hardcore-Games] and with Sony clearly trying to appeal to its core audience with Move, it's going to be interesting to see which strategy ultimately proves more successful. Microsoft clearly sees Kinect as part of a long term plan [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/101511-Microsoft-Looks-to-Kinect-to-Extend-360-Lifespan] however, so we might not be able to answer that question for some time.

Source: MCV [http://www.mcvuk.com/news/39717/MS-plays-down-Kinects-hardcore-appeal]









Permalink

I think the problem Microsoft doesn't seem to understand is that even if Kinetic is dedicated to the more casual gaming crowd, it's not appropriately priced for such a purpose. Nintendo always enjoyed popularity with a wider audience simply beacuse their consoles were more affordable compared to those of their competitors. If Kinetic remains priced as it is currently predicted to be, it's going to get nowhere fast.

To be honest, I think Sony's strategy of marketing to the core audience makes more sense. Sure, some might think that core gamers have absolutely no interest in motion controllers. However, I think Sony realises that they cannot compete with Nintendo in the casual-gaming department and their efforts are better spent making motion controllers appealing to their already existing market. At least they actually have the means to purchase Move, considering they could afford a PS3 in the first place.

Obviously, nothing will be certain until Kinetic is actually released. Who knows? Maybe it will sell like hotcakes in spite of everything, just like the iPad. But from the information we know so far, it's hard not to think that Microsoft is setting themselves up for a failure.

 

[Fox242]

Of course that thing is not for core gamers. We're used to using actual controlers, not spazzing about the place. I don't think that Microsoft made a good decision when they released this damn thing. It costs $150 and it comes with gimmicky games that probably won't even work correctly. In the words of the Angry Video Game Nerd: "What were they thinking?!"