Move and Natal Will Be "Game Changer or Gimmicks" at E3

Andy Chalk

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Nov 12, 2002
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Move and Natal Will Be "Game Changer or Gimmicks" at E3


Analyst Michael Pachter says the 2010 edition of E3 [http://www.e3expo.com] will be a big one for Microsoft and Sony as the industry decides whether Project Natal and PlayStation Move are "game changers or gimmicks."

It's tough to be judged. You go out into the world and do your very best, only to have people point and laugh and throw beer bottles at you. But judgment is an unavoidable consequence of action and at the upcoming E3, both Move [http://www.microsoft.com] motion controllers - will be closely scrutinized indeed.

"After a difficult year in the videogame industry, next week's E3 Electronic Entertainment Expo has the potential to turn the tide of investor concerns and start a wave of positive momentum for the videogame industry for the rest of 2010," Pachter said. "The much-hyped Natal and Move motion controllers have the potential to drive meaningful incremental hardware and software sales upon their releases, and the entire videogame industry will be anxious to see whether the new devices are game changers or gimmicks."

Cost is one big question mark hanging over the new controllers. In February, Pachter actual price [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/98485-Analyst-Puts-Affordable-Price-on-Project-Natal] would be $149. Despite its proximity, Pachter said carved-in-stone pricing probably wouldn't be revealed at the show. "We do not expect pricing to be resolved at E3, and think that Microsoft continues to weigh the lifetime value of a new Natal customer against the profits that can be made by the initial hardware sale," he added.

I have no doubt that Move and Project Natal will be the big stories at E3, precisely because I have many doubts about their potential for success. They're technologically impressive but balloon-popping party games and one-dimensional sword fighting sims aren't going to cut it, and without major developer support and a price point that puts them within reach of the majority of owners, either or both could very easily become this generation's techno-albatross.

Source: GamesIndustry [http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/e3-to-prove-whether-motion-controller-are-game-changers-or-gimmicks]


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Abedeus

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I think people said things like this about Wii... And we all know how that turned out.

"Super Hyper Beach Volleyball Supreme Special Mega Remixed Edition: Christmas Spirit in Hawaii".
 
Apr 28, 2008
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Abedeus said:
I think people said things like this about Wii... And we all know how that turned out.

"Super Hyper Beach Volleyball Supreme Special Mega Remixed Edition: Christmas Spirit in Hawaii".
And it still sold more copies than anything else...
 

Ontoue

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Alright, screw this, I'm becoming a Pc gamer.

EDIT: But they may actually put good games on these things, however unlikely.
 

Abedeus

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Irridium said:
Abedeus said:
I think people said things like this about Wii... And we all know how that turned out.

"Super Hyper Beach Volleyball Supreme Special Mega Remixed Edition: Christmas Spirit in Hawaii".
And it still sold more copies than anything else...
Just proves that 90% of everything sucks. Including people.
 

Nightfalke

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Sep 10, 2008
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The race to see who will become this console generation's Virtual Boy...
 

Jared

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As far as I am concerned, its just a way for them to try muscle on on the Wii. We have seen mainly casual games for the Wii, and hardcore ones have not really gone over too well.

I just hope they dont plan on making it all hardcore, all the time. I consider myself fairly fit but I still get tired if I need to swing limbs around for several hours on end!
 

uppitycracker

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Hey guys, Michael Pachter here!! Today, using my almighty powers of intuition (because that's what you all believe I have, right?), I predict it will either rain, or it won't! Now pay me the big bucks!!!



Yeah, jokes aside, I forsee these both being nothing but failed gimmicks. I don't think we need E3 to show us that, but in reality it won't even become apparent until the devices get out there, and software developers start trying to put it to use.
 

GonzoGamer

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Andy Chalk said:
I have no doubt that Move and Project Natal will be the big stories at E3, precisely because I have many doubts about their potential for success. They're technologically impressive but balloon-popping party games and one-dimensional sword fighting sims aren't going to cut it, and without major developer support and a price point that puts them within reach of the majority of owners, either or both could very easily become this generation's techno-albatross.
That's the trick isn't it.
These things are already gimmicks. If they can get the devs to give these gimmicks decent support, they can move. Nintendo's mistake is that they couldn't get gamers like us to buy too many accessories and software because the little support we got from our favorite devs were usually old ports and not even from the best titles.
The wii expanded the gamer market but if it's going to expand it's own market it's going to need to hire R*, Bethesda, and Activision make gta, fallout, and modern warfare games on the machine.
Hopefully these things will be more revolutionary but I am skeptical.
 

Spongeguardian

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Kwil said:
Man, I have got to figure out how Patcher got his job.

I mean, I'm pretty sure I could state the blindingly obvious at least as convincingly as he does.
My thoughts exactly.

"Analyst Michael Pachter says the 2010 edition of E3 will be a big one for Microsoft and Sony as the industry decides whether Project Natal and PlayStation Move are "game changers or gimmicks.""

Unless it's going to fry me up some chicken fingers and homemade french fries, I don't see what else it could possibly be.
 

Andy Chalk

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Nov 12, 2002
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As pointed out here [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/100963-Ex-Microsoft-Studio-Manager-Predicts-Failure-for-Natal-UPDATED], Natal and Move face far greater challenges than Wii did because of their lack of integration. There's simply no choice with the Wii, for developers and customers alike, while both the 360 and PS3 face a major transitional period that could very easily fail if all the pieces don't come together properly. It's an entirely different situation.
 

Shoggoth2588

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Irridium said:
Abedeus said:
I think people said things like this about Wii... And we all know how that turned out.

"Super Hyper Beach Volleyball Supreme Special Mega Remixed Edition: Christmas Spirit in Hawaii".
And it still sold more copies than anything else...
Just wait for the special collector's edition and Super-Special Collector's Edition in 3D pre-packaged with a severed finger formerly belonging to the game's producers
 

Chipperz

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GonzoGamer said:
These things are already gimmicks. If they can get the devs to give these gimmicks decent support, they can move. Nintendo's mistake is that they couldn't get gamers like us to buy too many accessories and software because the little support we got from our favorite devs were usually old ports and not even from the best titles.
The wii expanded the gamer market but if it's going to expand it's own market it's going to need to hire R*, Bethesda, and Activision make gta, fallout, and modern warfare games on the machine.
Hopefully these things will be more revolutionary but I am skeptical.
Thing is, Fallout would be great on the Natal. If it's even a tenth as good as the Milo demo, then you could have conversations by talking to the characters instead of picking options. Even if it just recognises key words and tone of voice, that'd be a massive breathrough for RPGs.

Also, because noone ever listens to me, Natal would be GREAT for RTS games - a combination of hand movements and spoken orders would blow the keyboard/mouse interface out of the water.
 

joshthor

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Ontoue said:
Alright, screw this, I'm becoming a Pc gamer.

EDIT: But they may actually put good games on these things, however unlikely.
high five! welcome to the club! we have cookies. stay away from WoW, you could die alone in your mothers basement

OT: i vote gimmick. im not buying it.
 

crotalidian

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Sep 8, 2009
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Anyone else notice what the girl; is doing has no relation to the avatar in that pic?

Anyway. Move is really just Wii motion plus for the PS3, with good 3rd party support it could work as a harcore control system.

Natal is a step in the right direction once you add in 3D or projectors with detailed motion capture we are heading to truly immersive virtual reality. Only issue is I think the controller is too far ahead of the curve and may fail for that reason alone
 

Seatownstriker

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The key to its success is balance. If they can come up with some good games. Ones like Chipperz mentioned with RPG and RTS games. Or possibly come up with an interface like in that movie Minority Report. That integrated with voice commands could do very well. One company is already working on something like the glove for the PC. A company called Peregrine. Saw it at Pax Prime last year. Currently its mostly for MMORPG's like WOW and the like. But I could see it being integrated into something like the Natal.