No one will buy Natal and here's why

Microsoft's project Natal has quickly become one the most talked about new devices on the videogame horizon for some time with analysts predicting that within two years Natal will reach a 56 percent attach rate. That's right. It's been predicted that more than half of new and old 360 owners will rush out and spend $50-85 for Microsoft's attempt at adding motion control to the Xbox 360 according to Goldman Sachs.

To put it simply, these analysts are living in a world of make believe and here's why.

[GR8 1]

And this get's approvals another reason why this site is run by ps3 fanboys.

[Mr_Bun]

That's right, for every positive Sony article there are about 4 negative Sony ones...but you're right...it is run by PS3 fanboys. Just last week N4G posted the article claiming Heavy Rain was destined to fail...Guess you have selective amnesia.

*FACEPALM*

[FaSeCeX]

read the article...its actually funny haha

u're guarantee'd to lulz, even with its valid points

gee, cant wait to pick up my gears of milo! haha..i just dont see natal cutting into the wii either..sure 360 owners will buy it but it wont move more consoles than what it alrdy is doing now..unless u alrdy own a 360 this isnt gonna create a wii-like craze

[Cold 2000]

I would love to have that crystal ball of his.

[ape007]

great precise 3D scanning that can provide great experiences in my favorite games, I might give it a try, like opening locked doors in conviction, punching scene in manhunt, these kind of things lol

to be honest, Im not too sure about natal, on the other hand if sony got a nun-check like extension to the gem, it could be very very interesting, Imagine free hand control in a game that have full destructible environments like red faction

I hope sony does thing and if they did, it gonna be a day 1 buy for me

[TheDudeAbides]

they suck and they don't know sh!t, they're fanboys, their articles are bs

[Biggest]

Instead of a crystal ball, let's use logic. Can you give an opposite outcome based off of his thoughts? Can you come up with actual thoughts of your own? He asserts that Natal was once proclaimed failed hardware by Nintendo. You can prove that to be true or false? He says that Natal is bogged down by a serious and inherent lag. Can you prove that false? He says that Microsoft is targeting casual players with the Natal. Can you prove that to be wrong? He feels that casual players will pick the Wii over the Natal/360 bundle. Do you not feel that is the case? He believes that the core 360 audience prefers games like Gears of War and Halo over games like Dance Dance Ball Kick. Do you disagree? I feel that his points are valid and encompass most of the doubts gamers have with Natal. You can't say it failed yet. But he most certainly explained why he feels it is destined to do so.

[MmaFanQc]

your first day on N4G?

for every good ps3 article theres is at least 10 others ps3 bashing blogs approved on this site.

you are clearly new on this web site

[Anon1974]

Exactly. If you don't agree, that's what these forums are for. Explain why you don't agree, or talk about the faults you see in the logic of the points brought up.

Edit @ Idle below: Just a note, the article doesn't claim Natal is laggy. We don't know if it is or not. The article mentioned that Nintendo was worried about Natal tech being laggy, and it mentioned that the buzz among internet forums is one of concern regarding lag issues.

[Cold 2000]

Natal is planned for this fall and we are 8/9 months from release.

Can you prove that false ? No.

Till then let Natal be the work in progress that it is until D-Day.

edit:@below. I just proved you wrong with a couple of words.
If I'm living in a dream world and that Natal isnt a work in progress then maybe all you points above have some value.

Since natal isnt out yet and is being improved on, until the day it launches everything you said right there is completely worthless.

If you want to waste your time righting paragraphs based on assumptions well go ahead.

I have better stuff to do.

[Biggest]

Good job in countering those points. I know your comment wallet is thin and you don't want to waste your words on an actual conversation. But you have 1 left. Try to be the smart guy and counter with reason. Dumb guys have a tendency to get beat down on public buses by old men wearing fanny packs. Don't be that guy.

[IdleLeeSiuLung]

This article doesn't even discuss the opposite side i.e. the positive side. All the article does is construct a negative criticism based on a bunch of assumptions on assumptions.

Sounds like fanboy drivel to me.

[sikbeta]

Gear of milo? What a Mess!!! lol

Wait for the Final Product, don't jump in the Motion-hype-wagon...

Gamers FTW!!!

[iFLOWLIKEWATER]

Am I reading this article right? "No one will...", I'm sorry but if anyone believes that then they should go get checked out for some slight mental instability...

[IdleLeeSiuLung]

"He asserts that Natal was once proclaimed failed hardware by Nintendo. You can prove that to be true or false? "

What reason Nintendo didn't pursue it is unknown. Instead it is made into believe that something is wrong with the technology, instead it has been reported that it was a cost issue during a time when Nintendo was about to release their new console.

Besides, when Verizion turned down the iPhone guess who is laughing all the way to the bank now? AT&T or verizion?

"He says that Natal is bogged down by a serious and inherent lag. Can you prove that false? "

Can he prove that the final product has inherent lag? Did he do a full out technical analysis? Is he even qualified to discuss the technical merits of the technology?

"He says that Microsoft is targeting casual players with the Natal. Can you prove that to be wrong?"

Why is that even significant to why Natal will be a failure? Besides I thought casuals is the ones interested in motion control in the first place? Seems like MS are targeting the correct audience.

On the flip side, I can prove that people are genuinely excited about this technology by both celebrities and the reaction of the general public. The only people hating on Natal are fanboys and to some smaller extent core gamers.

Everyone else is happy with a choice and the possibilities of Natal.

Also, no need to call names when people hadn't had a chance to respond to you.

[velcry]

"your first day on N4G? for every good ps3 article theres is at least 10 others ps3 bashing blogs approved on this site. you are clearly new on this web site "

Honestly, I think that anyone who manages to comment FIRST on a story usually has been waiting patiently in the Pending Tips section.

By inference, that person is NOT NEW to N4G, and KNOWS what he is doing.

Furthermore, by looking at his bubbles, you can also tell it's not his first day here.

Trust me, he KNOWS EXACTLY what N4G is like, and he's playing up to it.

[MmaFanQc]

no, that wasnt the article but simply the title....

next time try to actually read the article before posting a reply instead than focusing on the title....

[Biggest]

I don't believe I called anyone names. If I did. . . Oops! The points he makes are not of a finished product. He points out that the 360 supporters are of the tech savvy brand. Everything he shows to be a problem is made so because the current 360 supporters know about the problems leading up to release. Casual gamers probably don't know what Natal is, minus the few that saw it on Late Night. Natal was announced and given the promise of hardcore gamers in mind. Yes, casual gameplay was a focus. But games were to also be a focus. So far, nothing has been shown to support that claim. Yes, Natal is a few months away from being released. But there has been a lot of coverage at the behest of Microsoft and their advertising campaign. You shouldn't judge Natal just yet, but they have it so visible right now that human nature can't control that urge. To say that what we see now is not indicative of the final product seems like a stretch. Preparation breeds success. And the prep stages of the Natal are not doing very well. They may pull it together before the clock strikes release time. But that doesn't change the fact that the target audience already has a toy, and the Halo audience won't play it. It's being set up for a big let down.

[King_of _the_Casuals]

This guy is saying that since Nintendo turned down Natal in 07 it's a failed technology. You do realize 2007 was 3 YEARS AGO!!! Technology is ever changing so any issues it had back then have probably already been corrected. And according to the people who actually work with videogames for a living, it works Great!!! (I think I'll take there word over a blogging fanboy)
Plus Nintendo has already said cost was one of the major reasons. Back in 2007, it would have been A LOT more expensive to do then what it wall cost now.

But I can't wait till Natal comes out!!!! I'll be inline the first day buying it when it comes out. But since I don't count....I guess No one will be buying Natal. (Sarcasm)

[Blaze929]

I'm buying Natal sooooo...

[Pennywise]

Yeah, like Cold said: waste your time RIGHTING paragraphs on assumptions.

What a smart comment!

EDIT: Cold I am glad to see that you live up to your 3 bubble reputation. Carry on.

[iFLOWLIKEWATER]

Why waste my time unless you're telling me he contradicts himself, because thats the only thing left to be seen. He says no one will buy it in the title, but says people will buy it inside of the article?

[Cold 2000]

Glad to see you are so butthurt you came in just to say that :D

Great to know I have so much effect on you :)

EDIT: Im glad to see you live up to your butthurt Sony slave reputation. Carry on. They might just fix that crippled PS3 of yours :)

Back to my 360 in perfect working condition :D

[Eamon]

Mr. Bun, that argument of yours represents your age. Yes. It's a 1 digit number.

If you want less "hate" articles like "7 reasons why Heavy Rain will fail" or "Natal set to flop?" then don't go approving them.

It's fact that fanboys are running N4G. The approval process of these articles needs to be seriously relooked by the admins.

Oh wait, I just remembered that the admins and mods have abandoned this site and have lost interest and enthusiasm. As we saw by the new user called N4G Jewbot and sad strange little nerdy kids (Bungie), the N4G comments section has been plagued by lowlives.

Here are an example of the minority (the mature gamers): http://www.n4g.com/gaming/N...

Why are there no trolls in this comments section? Because Braid was an arcade game made by an indie developer. Not a blockbuster shooter with a multi-million dollar marketing budget.

In my opinion, Braid is a masterpiece and will be more original and innovative than most released AND unreleased blockbusters. I will boldly say that I feel Braid is a better game than Heavy Rain. Insult me all you want or feel free to rape my disagree button but until you understand that every person has their own unique opinion then you will have truly grown up.

[rroded]

"Three things need to happen for Natal to have a market sufficient enough for the success Microsoft is planning for. The hardcore gamers that made the 360 what it is will suddenly have to ditch call of duty and develop a sudden love of party games, existing Wii owners need to suddenly dump their Wiis, their Wii-Fits, their Mario Kart and march down to pick up a 360 and Natal and all potential Wii owners need to suddenly forget what made the Wii appealing in the first place in favor of playing unfamiliar games on unproven technology running on proven bad hardware. None of these three things is going to happen."

as for the omg how could ng4 approve this LOLZ expect a flood more all us ps3 fat owners got not much else ta do now ;)

[we won]

Pretty dead on to PS3 fanboys lol. Still don't understand why PS3 fanboys pretend to know the minds of 360 users. 360 gamers are big spenders on anything game related.

Does the *Biggest* ever comment in non Natal articles? The *Biggest* does nothing but troll Natal articles.

[Bigpappy]

I am 100% sure I am getting Natal and I agree with the analyst on this one. If sell between $50-100, more than half the 360 owners will buy it and a shyt load of non gamers to boot.

[Anon1974]

You really believe that half of 360 owners - the same owners that buy Gears of War/Halo/CallofDuty...etc in the millions and shun games like Banjo Kazooie/I'm in the movies...pretty much anything that isn't a shooter or action game, you really believe they're going to rush out and plunk down $50-$85 bucks on Natal in the millions? To play Ricochet, Paint Party, Milo or the exercise game we know is right around the corner? Did these same owners rush out and buy a camera to play Uno?
In what world is this demographic suddenly going to want to throw down their controllers to leap around their living rooms? I have not once heard a fellow 360 gamer say "You know what's really holding back my enjoyment of Call of Duty? Having to use a controller. I wish I could jump around my living room."

[Bigpappy]

Where did I say anything about preferring natal over a controller? I said I will be getting Natal at launch if it is under $100, and that I believe more than half the current users will eventually do the same. Natal is not a replacement for the controller. It is not the wand or Wiimote. Natal is useful for more than games. It can also be used while you have both hands on the controller. But yeah, I like the idea of also playing some of those casual game where a controller is not needed. I love puzzles, strategy games and board games. So having to just point at a piece then point to where I want it to go is attractive to me. It is better than having to drag a curser across a large screen every time I want to make a move. There are applications when natal just makes more sense than using the controller. FPS are not the games that come to mind when I think of buying Natal, but Natal + the controller can and will enhance the FPS Genre.

360 owners, that I know in the US, are mostly grown men. They are not into games like Mario, Banjo, Little Big Planet and Sonic. That is why those game do not sell on the console. Any good mature game sells well on the console because that is the demographic on the console. Just the names of the games put off grown ups like myself. Natal is great tech. It allows for a different, fun way to interact.

[feelintheflow]

Just as I couldn't stand the ps3 is doomed articles I will hate all the 360/natal doomed articles. Nobody knows until it comes out. I know it makes for great arguments, but please can we just talk games. There are so many good ones out there and so many good ones coming its ridiculous to flood n4g with natal doomed, or natal the second coming articles.

[raztad]

@Eignub

I like your style man.

[freediro]

us used the word 'like' 5 times with in that sentence, wtf? seriously work on some vocabulary skills and get off Halo. don't want to be a grammar nazi but damn.

"I like yours too, I like it like I like my Forza games, which is a lot but not as much as I like Halo 2"
^ your idea of a sentence and this is what a sentence with out 5 "likes" sounds LIKE! (lol)
I have a similar opinion and also like games such as Forza, which happens to be close to my appreciation of Halo 2.

glad you enjoy your games, good thing we don't have to shove it down each others face and then fight about it.

[ClownBelt]

That picture is fricking hilarious. Haha

[JoelR]

it's just that an opinion piece. It has some interesting points and some stupid ones. all in all it's interesting - not great but always interesting to hear differing opinions.

[Anon1974]

Just out of curiosity, which ones didn't you agree with?

[JoelR]

I feel the author is selling both the hardcore and the casual crowd short. Sure some people in both groups will react as he is suggesting but on the whole people are harder to group than that. for the hardcore group they just need a application or game that appeals to them and they will plunk down the money - same with the casuals (though they may be harder to get to buy as they would likely have to buy 360 in the first place)

[bjornbear]

well i'm sure someone will buy natal...

but no one i know will...thats all that i need to know =P...

[omegaheat]

Why do these stupid articles get approved? Please people, have some common sense, and stop reading all of these negatives articles that are meant not to prove an argument, but instead used to get free hits from fanboys. This type of journalism is tasteless.

[Dev8 ing]

Most of the points made seem to be well though out. The article isn't horribly written like most on this site. If you disagree with the points why not try and refute the article instead of proclaiming it flame bate.

[Dance]

How did this flambait blog get approvals?

[ape007]

N4G.com

[freediro]

because fanboys, like yourself, have the need to validate their purchases with biased hate.

[OmarJA-N4G]

Says the account that belongs to the worst fanboy in this site.

[BreakNeckSpeed]

Classic Damage control from the droids!

Why don't you guys go play online? Oh..wait you can't.

http://i46.tinypic.com/15qp...

[Mo0eY]

Awwww, how cute. The bots admire us so much that they had to go out of their game playing time to create a gif of the PS3 adverts.

[kevinx1000]

You do realise that making a GIF like that is done in like 5 minutes, right?

[Mo0eY]

- 1.5 seconds of lag (not including online lag that plagues the Betabox PleaseFixMe).
- Casual games are the primary reason.
- I have seen no hardcore games announced for Natal
- The price
- It takes up CPU resources of an already maxed out console.

I could go on, but you get the point.

Edit:
ROFL, Milo as Marcus Felix. Classic.

[skeletonss]

Ps3 still broken ?

[JeffGUNZ]

Just making a list doesn't mean your points are accurate. The natal kit tested by the media last week was the original E3 tech and the new launch natal is past the prototype stage and set to release this fall (and probably be shown off at E3). Do your research, they already said the lag and latency has been fixed in the new tech. Don't expect to see any games, especially hardcore games till E3.

Who am I kidding, why would a PS3 fanboy get their facts straight before they post a nonsense comment.

[KiLLUMiNATi_89]

People will buy natal no matter what. Wii for example is terrible and it manage to get into people houses.

[Allowen]

After I red a few rumors that Ubisoft and Bungie forgot the idea to make a FPS to use Natal I guess this thing will be even more ocasional then the Nintendo Wii.

It will still be fun through but way too much ocasional to my taste :(

[BungieJR]

the picture made me rofl but this is just dumb like who actually approved of this.

[WetN00dle69]

OF corse its not gonna sell MUCH thanks to these BS articles and propaganda people love to shove out of their @$$! According to them Natal= BAD,
Black vib**** with Blue ball on top=Good +pleasurable even though its a clear Wiimote rip off!
Some of these peeps need to STFU and wait till the dang this releases before giving the product a proper judgment.

[Dev8 ing]

Articles like this will have zero impact on Natal. When you consider the hype machine that is MS marketing this article will be but a drop in an ocean of hype. The people who will be buying this won't be the ones frequenting this site. Natal is for casuals and most people on N4G are hard core gamers.

[user858621]

That pic is frikin hilarious!!!!!

[king123]

I will buy it
just for milo and the interface control
I guess that alone sold me out

[dkgshiz]

I mean look. The 360 is a shooter console. Majority of the games on the 360 are shooters. This thing just doesn't really have a purpose for the 360.

[SEM-ONE]

the 360 has shown to be more than just a "shooter console" since its been an rpg beast this gen so far, just look at the facts my friend

[Dance]

Fable 2 and Forza 2 arent FPS and those games have sold well over the 3 million mark

[Dev8 ing]

It hasn't been an RPG beast. The RPGs don't do nearly as well as the shooters, even forza hasn't been able to do better than the shooters. The fact is that shooters will always be the most popular type of game on the 360 and Natal is not catering to that audience.

[Gamer7l]

Just more flamebait BS aimed at getting hits. If the title read something like "Natal might be a tough sell, and here's why" or "Natal isn't a guaranteed success, and here's why"...then I might have gone along with it.

Of course I'll get disagrees from the same morons who approved this.

[PtRoLLFacE]

wow this website is garbage, i come here once in while cuz some times there are some news worth checking but crap like this is like spam

[SEM-ONE]

everyone and their mother is going to by natal, you cant fight the truth
especially if its under $100

[The real Colombian]

Agreed...if it's at a reasonable price point i'll get natal.This article is funny at least but it's still flamebait.

[doa766]

you're overestimating the xbots, you make them sound as intelligent people capable of making adult decisions, and they're anything but

look at Halo ODST, it's a 4 hour expansion sold full price with graphics that look from like a 360 launch game and yet it sold 5 million

they don't care about quality, so they'll buy Natal anyway and it will probably be a couple of years before they realize their mistake, by then MS pockets will be full

xbots idiocy makes logic arguments irrelevant

[Roper316]

the fact that they are gonna be advertising in womens magazines tells you what they are aiming for with Natal. While that does not say it will fail, noone knows that until a year or 2 after release but it does tell you they are not going after the core gamer with Natal.

[AKS]

Natal had a very cool demonstration, but I also am having a hard time figuring out how this is going to mesh with franchises like Call of Duty, Halo, and Gears of War. The type of games I usually associate with the biggest titles in the 360's library tend to require a high level of precision, speed, and accuracy, at least as far as you can get those things from a standard controller. How would those games work with Natal? It seems like the Wiimote and whatever that wand thing is that Sony is working on would offer more precision than Natal for first-person shooters and whatnot. I hope I'm wrong, though. And maybe Natal could open the door for new types of franchises and experiences. It should be interesting to see what happens with this tech. I'm looking forward to trying it out for myself.

[Fragger2k8]

That is a great question, and here is your answer.

They won't.

Ok, that might not be 100% true, but for the most part, it is. You won't be playing real games in the way you are thinking, except for a select few. Mostly you'll just be using Natal to do simple actions. So FPS style games just won't work out, it would require way too much effort and time just to do something like walking around.

Playing a FPS on Natal hands-free makes you extremely limited, (or it would just be too frustrating/tiring trying to do everything), but playing a game with a controller limits what you can do with Natal.

I think that made sense..

[proximately]

Please... stop... approving... articles... like... these...

[Fragger2k8]

Gears of Milo, lmao.. That picture is so stupid, I love it.

Natal could sell pretty well, we'll just have to wait and see. I just know I'm interested in seeing how it plays out, since Nintendo already sucked in all of those casual players with the Wii.

[The Maxx]

I'm buying Natal so right there the article is wrong.

[MikeNH]

I know that Natal is all about not requiring a controller... but there isn't any reason to think that hardcore games won't be able to use Natal in conjunction with a controller. Why not have a FPS that uses traditional controls, but adds in some more features w/ Natal - like leaning using your head? In theory, Natal could probably do anything that Sony's Gem could do.

[strickers]

Problem with that is only games not using the full hardware will be able to use it.Most graphics intensive games will not have 15-33% of CPU power free to run Natal.I think it will sell but end up like many Wiis and Eyetoys,a novelty that gets boring fast.Probably same for Gem but that does have more obvious game uses.I think Natal will sell more thanks to MS cash/celebs/press bull but it will disappoint more than Gem(which Sony will undersell/push and not advertise enough).

[Biggest]

In theory you're wrong. The expected precision from the Gem/Arc/whatevercrap is at or above the Wii Motion+ whereas the Natal, using only a camera, isn't expected to be the same. There is every reason to think that Natal won't be efficient enough to play FPS games. Everything they've shown up to now says that it won't work for those games. What we've seen so far isn't even good enough for the crap mini-games we've seen. Milo's foot came out of his hip! I know I am about to ask this question to the same people that feel paying for online service is cool. How many people will pay money to play a game as usual, but tilt their head to peek around a corner once in a while? In theory and in current plain view, this is crazy.

I do wish we could stop talking about the Sony waste-of-time until they are foolish enough to show it prematurely. Natal is talked about right now because Microsoft wants us to talk. They show us glimpses of it good or bad because they know that if people are talking, people know. Sony is keeping quiet for now and thank goodness for that. I don't need another crappy add-on to make fun of yet.

[NotSoSilentBob]

Problem is that Microsoft is Touting Natal as Controller Free Gaming, thus completely making it useless to have a controller with the camera.

[stridershoge]

I'm not going to read the article because its a pretty bold but stupid heading.

[tunaks1]

Natal has casual appeal, thats why it will outsell the Wand/Arc
The Natal commercial was screaming Wii Fit.
As for the Wand, I don't see it being successful because it just isn't necessary.

[NotSoSilentBob]

Natal isn't Necessary either. But Microsoft is Betting all of its marbles on it.

[OnlyOnN4G]

It'll all depend on software and both will have to show some real games working with these controllers, Sony already demoed LBP and RE5 at TGS and I'm personally looking forward to RE5 with Arc, if you've played RE4 wii edition you'll know its hard to go back to dual analogue sticks with RE4, once you've experienced it with pointer controls. The vid below of RE5 with Arc shows its very responsive and accurate as you can see he's aiming for the knee caps, the demo starts at the 3.00 mark.

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[Kashadoo]

Because we will have our people near every shop to KILL all of the potential customers! MUAHA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! MUUUUU-A-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!

[NotSoSilentBob]

No one should have high hopes for sales of either Natal or Gem/Arc.

The people who want the casual games with the motion control have already bought a Wii.

[donscrillinger]

this guy doesnt know wat the uck hes talking bout ..heres 5 reason y 90% of 360 owners will get NATAL ,1 is the shyt,2 its PHENOMENAL,3 its fresh ,4 ITS COLD,5 ITS OFF THE CHAIN !!!!!!!!!!!... damn haters wow

[Biggest]

I seriously laughed at that comment. That is the best comment I have seen on this topic yet.

[tudors]

I would get it just for the non game features.

[cmrbe]

what any sane person would say. The wii already has the casual and motion market. The hardcore x360 fanbase are not going to like Natal much more than current controllers. This is nothing new.

[kickerz]

LOL this article is so lame.. Im definataly buying natal when it comes out..so theres one person.. and im a fairly serious gamer.. I just love the idea of the new tech..and its not goin to be that expense.. like come on.. even if its $100 thats only a few hours pay for me :) I think it will be awsume fun getin a few mates over, have a few drinks, play a bit of Natal.... SH11TYEAH!!!!!!! ^_^

so many negative natal articles... wish everyone would stop being so NEGATIVE and welcome the new technology.. lets just wait till we see some more tech demos at E3 before writing anymore lame articles like this..
laterz dudes!!

[DelbertGrady]

It's from darkride66's site. What did you expect? Can't wait for his "Why everyone will buy the arc/gem" article.

[Biggest]

And that one will be just as funny as this one. If he finds a way to paint the Gem/Arc in a good light then he should become a lawyer.

[Halo3 MLG Pro]

LMAO! Darkride66???? That guy has a serious addiction to all 360 products.

[Halo3 MLG Pro]

Another juvenile sony fanboy site. Respected mags, developers, gamers are all excited about NATAL and this fanboy site tries to say the opposite? That's just plain laughable journalism.

[air1]

omg!

a fake analyst trying to debunk a real analyst.

only in the sony world.. talk about damage control.

[keysy420]

some fanboys i know are living the dream its going to be great

[jack who]

but i already per ordered mine

[Anon1974]

If that's the case, I've also got some swampland I'd love to sell ya.