Can Natal Win the Console War?

Think about it; if Microsoft were to really deliver on their promises for Natal and capture the imagination of their intended audience, Natal could very well become the golden goose of the videogame industry.

[Major_Tom]

Two words, three syllables:

Haha, no. The Sony Arc has a really good chance though, basically becoming an HD version of the Wii where as Natal could potentially frustrate the user to the point where it actually hurts Microsoft.

Natal is an overshot promise, time and time again we've seen tech demos of it being used and being let down.

Where as the Arc/Gem has been tried, tested and true, delivering 1:1 motion capabilities with less input lag than the Wiimote and Natal.

Sure the tech may seem unimpressive but at least Sony knows it works 100% of the time, every time. Where as Natal well, let the video do the talking.

[GreenRingOfLife]

Xbox 360 can't beat the Wii, no console can. But I think Natal will help secure 360's dominance above PS3

[captain-obvious]

its a 50/50 chance
natal is cool but its just way to much of a promise

Sony on the other hand played it safe and simple and did what the wii did

still its a 50/50 chance to sony too

[LordMarius]

haha the same video
+ bubbles

[darthv72]

they can showcase old people and soccer moms having fun with it. If not then it becomes as useful as the 32x.

PS...I already have the current live vision. Why can't MS just have made something like sony did that used the existing camera?

They just give a big middle finger to those who got the live vision. Funny thing though, it works for the PS3 as a standard webcam. LOL

[randomwiz]

Arc looks cool, but knowing Sony's past history, I think it'll be the same thing as Eyetoy. Sony won't push it to the extent that Microsoft is pushing natal.

Natal looks cool too, but we haven't seen anything about it(live demos) other than ricochet, so I'll hold with my opinion on that.

Personally, i'm not excited for any of the motion controllers.

[TheLastLevel]

I like this one though.

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

[ape007]

casual gamers will go crazy, it may help xbox brand in japan but in the end I hate casual games and I really don't understand how natal gonna work in my games

let's wait and see

[Hisiru]

*facepalm*

[Cold 2000]

If Natal is a success and MS manage to suck in the casuals then yeah, Sony might as well kiss this gen goodbye.

[we won]

Natal will make Wii adoption and popularity seem like warm-ups. The casual masses/casual bulk will see Natal as the next-generation Wii tech/console.

Every kid on the planet will want one and every casual will be excited for one. Hardcore gamers will buy it for hands free MIC/Headset alone.

MSFT will have trouble keeping 360s in stalk at retail this holiday. Families will be fighting over them at retail.

This is why so many developers support Natal and why Natal attracts so many haters.

I'm more interested in what the Japanese developers do with it because it sounds like they're going to poor their hearts and souls into the tech. This is why Sony delayed their wand because they're going to try and feed off some of Natal's hype, hoping to steal some of it's thunder by making PS3 wand appear on the same plain and a on par alternative choice. Consumers will know the difference and in the future it will be only Wii vs 360.

[Bigpappy]

The mechanics of the wand are the same as that of the Wiimote. Natal is completely different. The no controller option is major for M$. The concept is fascinating to most people that see it. I want to reserve mine as soon as it is possible to do so, because I know M$ will not be able to stock enough for the holidays and I will be showing off my Natal to all comers this holiday season. I'll be flipping through my Dash with nothing but a flick of the wrist. Can't F'ing wait.

[Saaking]

No, the Wii is already too far ahead.

[captain-obvious]

@ cold
actually thats good for sony
they'll have more hardcore gamers to take care off

[Cold 2000]

Yeah but then Sony will make the PS4 a SuperWii.

jk.

(but that could actually turn out true)

[qface64]

why did saaking get all those disagrees? what he said is true though
the wii is already too far ahead of the the rest?

[darthv72]

I feel they should beyond the current level of motion control. I would like to see some type of force feedback oversuit to give reactionary response to when you miss a ball in that dodgeball type of demo.

I know it sounds corny but force feedback was just one step towards interactive gaming. Motion is another. Combine the two and you are getting closer to really feeling like you are in the game.

Funny thing is sony could do this sooner than ms. Taking the arc idea and making it into a pair of gloves or arm sleeves that would provide stimulation accordingly. I know some may think next gen power glove but why would it be bad to wear a pair of gloves that may resemble training gloves. You could then have a more realistic approach to boxing game or hand ball or .....?

I think it will happen. Just not today.

[Serjikal_Strike]

has no chance of winning any console war IMO

[Neo604]

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

[Anon1974]

First off, when you make an add on, you have to have a target for the add on.

Because it's an add on, that means it's targeted first and foremost at existing 360 owners. In order to use Natal, you need a 360. Now, game sales tell us that existing 360 owners love Gears of War, Halo, Call of Duty, Mass Effect 2, etc. They don't need Natal for any of those and they aren't lining up to buy the party games Natal caters to. So cross out existing 360 owners. They won't buy this.

Ok. What about the casuals? They can try to sell Natal with a 360 to the casuals. Now the problem there is look at what the casuals are buying.

Strike one. One word. Mario. Casuals are gobbling up everything Mario related. Microsoft doesn't have a single franchise that can draw in the casuals like Mario does.

Strike two - price. Why the hell would someone pay more for a 360 and Natal then they can grab a Wii off the shelf and hey! There's a Mario game right beside it! I love Mario!

Strike three - what the hell's a Natal? Casuals don't know what Natal is. They don't read online game sites. They don't buy magazines. They may have heard of an Xbox but they probably think Master Chef and Halo is some religious cooking show. I asked a friend who bought a Wii for Christmas why he bought Wii instead of a 360 or PS3. He looked at me and said "All my wife's friends have a Wii. Everyone in her office has a Wii. It's what she wanted." Microsoft is too late to the game to combat the word of mouth that Nintendo has going for it at the moment. It's that simple. Slapping Natal on a 360 and having us write love notes to Milo won't even make the casuals glance curiously at the 360 on their way to buy a Wii.

So who exactly does Microsoft think they can sell Natal to?

[4pocalyps3]

i agree with you man. to be honest the wii has won this gen in terms of motion controls. i don't know what natal will do as a software product now that they've removed the cpu. If it was an entirely new console and advertised it as one, then yeah it would sell well, just like the wii has.

[eagle21]

The Wii and PS3 will sell more than 360 this gen. I don't care about delusional people. Who is really that excited about natal? Really? :)

[paradigmfellow]

With both I feel that there will be a huge crowd for the natal and arc and then people will see how much a disapointment both of them are. The Wii crowd will not convert as they will see how much more money that have to put in to get it considering they spent a fortune already on the Wii. Both will stay in the end but hardcore gamming will still be the basis for either console as you can't produce a Final Fantasy with motion and expect not to get tired and fustrasted as it progresses.

[commodore64]

Can Natal win the console war?

Well, it probably won't beat the wii, but it sure as heck has a fabulous chance of keeping the ps3 in third place.

Let's face it, the ps3 is a hardcore gamer platform, as is the 360.

Both MS and Sony have had to acknowledge that the 'casual' market of the wii is, as yet, relatively untapped and lucrative.

Thus, for both Sony and MS, the battle is on for the casual market.
Going by what I have seen of Natal and arc, the 360 is extremely well positioned to capture the majority of the casual market-share that is available to them both.

Let's face it. The ps3 has no more price cuts, no more slim skus.
It has only got 2010 exclusives and the 'arc'.
PS3 exclusives look awesome and will surely sell some ps3 skus.
However, they will not address the casual market - for that they need the arc.

Realistically, however, the arc could, at best, be described as a wii-mote copy.
I ask myself, why would the casual market buy a ps3-arc, when said casual market already has a wii-mote?
It really is nonsensical and makes the 'arc' seem like a lazy afterthought.

The 360 on the other hand, is about to release Natal - an undeniably innovative new feature that looks to make the 360 hardware very fun and accessible to a new casual market.
By all reputable accounts, Natal will improve the casual experience in a new and unique way - an essential requirement for any noteworthy and successful product.

What's more, the Natal is being launched with the full support of a major MS hardware launch.
This means that MS will go out of their way to make sure that the casuals know about it.
In light of all the above, my money is on Natal. No brainer.

Even the ps3 fanboys can't help but talk about it all the time.
I wonder if they realise that everytime they diss Natal, they are drawing the casual user's attention to it, which can only increase Natal's notoriety and viral meme?

[RememberThe357]

I'm not sure that it will, but I think that it will be harder for Microsoft to capture the audience that Nintendo has, since the Xbox 360 has an image of being the console for teens an college students. I think it's defiantly has a possibility though.

[Omega4]

It could, by making potential Wii owners get a 360 instead and cause Wii sales to decrease.

It marketed right MS could win the generation but it should certainly come in a solid 2nd place.

[paradigmfellow]

because guess what, all Nintendo has to do is drop the price and say "Hey it is now even cheaper to get a Wii!" and people will go crazy

[MetalGearBear]

umm no?
Natal has laggy. that all. :)

[Major_Tom]

Lol silly bots and their monkey jumping antics

[Wii360BeatsPS3]

You people are sheep and slaves. Once upon a time you laughed at motion controls, you said they were **** and for casuals. Now you have them infiltrating your beloved PS3 and 360 and you surrender your gaming heritage to welcome these lame waggle devices with open arms. You are sell outs to real gamers and sheep and slaves of your puppet masters Sony and MS. Use your own mind for once it's sickening to watch the dumbing down of a generation of gamers into zombie sheep in a trance who just accept anything and everything as long as it's exclusive on their little video game console. You're getting played like a violin b*tches

[Megaton]

100% agree.

[Mr_Showtime1]

If people are interested in seeing what is on the bottom of their avatar's shoe, then its got a good chance.

[unchartedgoty]

i dont care if the 360 (200 dollars) sells more than ps3, but when you act like the hardware is better and software because of sales then i get aggrevated, please stop refering the word DOMINANCE. be a gamer, not a hater. ON TOPIC. I THINK THEY WILL BOTH DO WELL, in my personal opinion, i will use the ark. oh and a little extra.....the ps3 has been outselling the 360 percentage wise for a while now, see sales dont matter its the games. thx.

[Atelierrorona9]

how is this stupid piece of garbage gonna win the console wars when nintendo is ripping ms apart by a huge mergin forget it its game over ms not even sony will catch nintendo Natal is just toy that lets you swing your arms around like a idiot..

[Ronster316]

Keep the majority of your games hardcore.

As for end of gen positions, they are already set in stone.

1. Nintendo

2. Microsoft

3. Sony

[GameOn]

The only thing set in stone is Splinter Cell: Convictions release date.

[Christopher]

Honestly, who gives a rats arse on who wins other than Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony? Wouldn't you rather no one ever win so they keep competing eagerly for our interest with newer and better games and hardware?

[Dance]

There is no console war

[GeoramA]

360 isn't winning crap with the EyeToy 1.5

[dtrain21]

360 is winning aleady against Sony and will demolish them with Natal...mark my words droids. Sony better come up a with a PS4 or another price cuts

[Conando]

I didn't know that the EyeToy could do trillions of calculations in three dimensions, thirty times a second.

[hybridtheory12]

no one mentioned the ps3 dtrain. take your fanboyism somewhere else. and like the last console "war" there wont be a winner. and sony never gives up on their console, see the PS2? still strong for a console at 11 years. there will be no winner at all. who won the 6th gen console war? no one they all were good. just like this generation.

[Dance]

Natal will help MS move more systems

[GeoramA]

Nintendo won the console war, Sony won the format war.

MS is banking their hopes on Natal?

Can you say 0-3?

[MetalProxy]

Sorry but Natal will be to little to late. Ask anybody that isnt on the internet. I did ask a few people that are gamers and they thought it was a VD, lol.

[xg-ei8ht]

pseye can be used as a normal webcam if you hook it up to your pc, the same way the ps3 controller can as well.

Free software for hooking up ps3controller to pc.

http://www.motioninjoy.com/...

Works perfectly with rumble.

Just follow readme.

[emk2004]

i realy doubt hardcore gamers are gona be satisfied with this. in all honesty everything they showed so far was stupid just like wii shovelware.

[Atelierrorona9]

with Natal the only thing Natal will have is people swing there arms and playing halo with there hands if they can lmfao and another thing the xbox is not beating the ps3 worldwide-end of story..

[cervantes99]

If Microsoft "wins" does my PS3 just stop working? Or, if PS3 "wins" does my 360 stop working?

I didn't think so. Silly little fanboys that are just bitter because they cannot afford both systems.

[Aphe]

They won't win it, but they might be second. They probably won't be third though.

[hybridtheory12]

Natal will fail, sonys arc will fail and the best motion sensing console is the wii, nothing will change that. motion controllers are pointless and natal is basically eyetoy and the arc is basically a wiimote. its a huge chain of stealing ideas and nintendo has the original idea. therefore its the best motion sensing console

EDIT: i didnt say the best console is the wii, just for motion sensing.

[UltraBlu]

You kids are too much WHO CARES just enjoy the great games we have this gen on whatever system you have!

On natal:
im sure it will be awesome for those that it appeals to but ill stick with my dualshock for now, same goes for the sony wand or whatever the f*** its called its cool but not for me.

[Atelierrorona9]

at least someones smart and i agree ms needs to get rid of the overhyped Natal s*** and sony needs to get rid of the arc and stick with the duel shock3 nintendo is already the champion of motion sensers and no idiot will ever change that now xbots go play halo with you're fat controllers..

[supraman21]

No. Motion control is stupid as hell. A controller with buttons is always better than no controller or something you just point. Neither Arc or Natal will be a big success. Yea both will move a few consoles but thats it. Natal is just a version of the PS eye http://www.youtube.com/watc... and Arc is just a wii remote with better accuracy. Both suck in my opinion. Ohh and look at all the disagrees with the people saying it wont. You MS fangirls are just like Apple fanboys. You think anything MS comes out with is revolutionary and nothing competes with it when infact the hardware is actually inferior and nothing that comes out of it ( Natal is revolutionary or created by MS) Get off MS's deak. Both Arc and Natal suck. Down with motion control

[Akagi]

No, seriously.

No.

[CliffyB]

as the hype continues to build for the revolution that is Microsofts Project Natal, Sonys "arc" just can't get any attention. Oh, how the once mighty japanese Giant has so spectacularly fallen on it's face. First, the disastrous launch of an over-priced PS3 console desperately lacking in software that to this day is still in last place, and losing money. second the humiliating PSPgo that has been brutalized by the Nintendo DS, and finally this fall it's greatest failure yet: the launch of the Playstation Dildo Wand. Face it guys
Sony will never recover.

[MajesticBeast]

You act like a bigger moron then the real cliffyB if thats even possible.

[ZombieStalker]

The Arc and Natal are destined to fail. Sony and MS are trying to ride the coat tails of Nintendo and in the process will fall flat on their faces. Why would someone buy another console just for some weird controller? Not gonna happen. Hardcore games just aren't candidates for these type of controllers. Look at the quality and accuracy of some of the FPS games for Nintendo. Horrible controls. All the more hardcore games on the Wii have failed. Almost all developers for the Wii are focusing on the casual gamer, which is the only real candidate for these types of controller. Another similar failure, webcams. Look at the 360 and PS3 webcams....failures.

Cut you loses MS and Sony and let the Wii dominate the motion controller market.

[RELAX]

cervantes99 you say somthing real

[Atelierrorona9]

for your infomation sony is doing just fine in the long run i think the only console that needs to worry is that plastic piece of crap that gets the RROD i agree with you about the pspgo but i do not agree with you about the ps3 please go get your facts right..

[thebudgetgamer]

you give a good old fashion controller with two analog sticks and im happy.

[chriski333]

we dont need a wii 360 we need a new xbox that doesn't have a 53% fail rate fix the hardware first then move onto add-ons

[Demarco156]

it will fail, both the natal and arc, just like dj hero and tony hawk ride, the wii market will not buy another console

developers will complain about the no button scene of natal and ms also will release a wiimote

[MajesticBeast]

So the natal hype wagon is back already. It wont win the console war, why because the casual crowd has a wii, why pay 300$ or more for the same experience but without the wiimote. And without the chip hardcore games look out of the question. Wow the multi accounts are back in full force cant expect any less from n4g.

[Shendow]

Natal lacks alot of things, one of them being a controller, Natal will be good for simple family games, but Microsoft saying it will work for Halo and Fable -_-.

Yeah I don't see that working out well, so far from what I heard, natal won't be able to do more then 30fps an anything higher then 720p, which just means it has notthing on the PS3's PS Eye.

Plus it doesn't help that Sony has already shown how their controller with the PS Eye, will work with FPS games, RPG games, Sports game an many more. An all will really seen Natal do is a Brickbrake game an talking to alittle kid (Which Sony has already came out with EyePet an that is pretty much the same).

[Hot_tea]

It won't even make a dent, nor will the ps3 motion control dildo.
The simple fact is if you look at console history, console hardware ad-dons have never made a dent in console sales.
The wii does well with motion ctrl because it comes with it.
Remember the sega CD?
None of them will alter their respective sales in any significant way.

[The_Truth_2009]

PUH-LEEEEAASSSEEE! THAT'S MICROSOFT AND 360 FANBOYS DREAM! THEIR DREAM FAILED!

[hazardman]

It's the Xbox 360 and PS3 so I think that's what the contributor was trying to get at. IMO I think Natal, if indeed it does what we see in the videos will help Xbox 360 stay ahead of PS3. I understand that the PS3 has the ARC or whatever but Natal seems more ahead of the curve. I mean come on real motion control with no use of controllers. Better than swinging the ARC or Wiimote and breaking your LCDs..but I do see a big spike in Domestic Abuse cases after playing with wifey and you accidentally hit her with a 1-2 combo..hahaha!!!

[MrMacabre]

Both the PS3 and Xbox are aimed at gamers (i believe that there are NO gamers that only own a Wii, just kids and middle aged, over-weight women) so to market Natal or Arc/Gem/Sphere/Wand/dildo (make up your minds already) to a casual audience would be a huge mistake and could possibly be seen as a middle finger raised to current players. Neither console NEEDS these motion control devices but if they stopped trying to put their fingers into nintendos cash pie and focused on creating a true, non-gimmicky, gaming device that allowed for greater interaction in most if not all 'gamers games' then they would have something special.

So far there is no evidence that either Microsoft OR Sony have took this into consideration. I have heard rumor and speculation surrounding Natal that it will cut into processing power and reduce frame rates, if this is true then there's little hope of the Xbox producing the experience that I, as a true gamer, am looking for. Couple this with the inevitable slight lag and thats probably the final nail in the coffin... of course we haven't seen it running any kind of actual full game yet so you never know. While i'm not holding my breath either way theres a small chance Sony could try and achieve something that nintendo could never do, which is sell one decent mature game with full motion control. Hell, if they slap a dual shock stick into their sex toy they might have a chance of coming close to my vision of what motion control should be for gamers... and even should it fail as a controller, if positioned correctly could add to the already slightly seedy design choice ;P

All in all motion control fails to impress so far but has some potential that probably won't be fulfilled. Tech demos and weird hanging about with little boys don't count as anything in my eyes, show us some proper games you idiots and don't spend all your time and money on gimmicks, which would be better spent bringing us gears 3 and Killzone 3... motionless!

[giovonni]

I am going to wait, The same thing was said about XBOX360.."The Xbox360, ha! it's only going to last 6months tops after the PS3 release"
"Nintendo Wii, Motion Controls? I don't want my neighbors to think I look stupid playing a video game its not going to last" "Oh, Bluray its going to flop". Who truly knows what effect the two devices will have on gaming, I would love to play a game like Heavy Rain with a Natal type device, and Madden with the Arc device

[prettyboy1]

but if ms think they can take the concole war with natal then they must be smokin the same sh!t aaron smokin.and lets face it dat ganja he puffin got him thinkin they have better exclusives when half of his so called exclusives i play on my brand new pc.so lets all be adults here and just except reality that project natal isnt goin to stop sony jus like thier precious arc thingy isnt goin stop nintendo.p.s im a motha f##kin realist

[GiantEnemyCrab]

It's all about the games and I just haven't seen enough Natal stuff to be able to make much of anything out of it.

However, hypothetically if MS market it and it catches on it could definitely propel the 360 even further ahead of Sony and bring it into reaching distance of the Wii. Natal has good buzz among the mainstream but it could easily be killed if the games are bad and the peripheral doesn't work as advertised.

[GMWPS3]

Microsoft has a few hurdles to make this a success:

1) Price: Will it be free, $50, $100??? So will it cost more than a Wii?

2) Wii: We already all (almost everyone) bought Wiis and to be frank it was a fun experience in the beginning then reality dawned and it's still fun but less so and only when playing with friends at your house. It gets tiring moving your hands about in games like tennis that you end up playing it less than games that don't need you moving about so much. Some of us do work and workout so the last thing we want to do is more excerise once we get home late in the evenings.

3) PS2 Eyetoy: Any one remember that. It was an awesome experience at first with the way you could 'move your hands and body' to control the experience or game on the screen. Like the Wii, I got tired of it after a while. It was cool playing with 1 or 2 friends but then the physical exertion became a bit tiring and the graphics weren't really as good as the best of the controller games.

4) Target audience: I feel this will be attractive to a small selection of the existing Xbox owners therefore they will have to attract other people, maybe Wii owners. However, like I said the experience has already been watered down by the Wii and or PS2 eyetoy. I for one will not buy Natal as it is currently setup. I know there is no way it will be as accurate as they are setting it up to be.

5) Add-ons have never done well: Amiga 32 CD, Sega Mega Drive 16GFX??, etc. Maybe Natal will prove to be the exception.

In conclusion, unless Natal acquires the processing power of the Star Trek Holodeck, I really don't see how this will work out well.

[Tron_Rocks]

I will buy this day one. I am a huge fan of hardcore games as well as casual games as I think many are. This will really add to the already great experience offers. If Sony does the same then I would most likely buy it for my PS3 as well.

[keysy420]

there is a reason people dont buy casual games

[Slinger420]

LOL @ NATAL AND HALO, WTF IS THIS CRAP?? LOLOLOL WHERE"S ODION THE HALO FANBOY

[Marty8370]

Not a chance.

Jump Out, Play B3yond

[strickers]

The thing that gets me is with Arc/Gem you can see the gaming application.It's like the Wii but more accurate with Eye abilites and microphone array.Most PS3 fans(me included.I hate my Wii mostly) still seem to have a healthy scepticism but MS fans seem to think Natal is the 2nd coming(MS told them it was)despite some recent public dev criticism.I'm yet to see anything worthwhile that hasn't been done before on Eyetoy 1,or hear an idea on a forum discussion that has justified it's exsistence.So come on,if Natal is so good what gameplay are you going to be enjoying that is so different or new?

[MrMacabre]

Theres too much hype around Natal at the minute, which is suspect as nobody has really had a proper go, leading me to believe that a lot of Xbox fanatics have 'jumped in' without looking. I think because Sony delivered a few good exlusives last year (including GOTY) maybe the Xbox zealots are feeling a tad green and need something to look forward to? Maybe not though, they did get mass effect 2 as an exclusive... for now ;P

[hazardman]

Let me see Mass Effect2,SC:Conviction,Fable3,C rackdown2,Halo Reach,Alan Wake plus many more..I don't think Xbox zealots need Natal. The games coming out on Xbox this yr are good enough..Natal if (SUCCESSFUL)will just be the cherry on top.

[Gimped Hardware]

The 360 has already Won the console war - with it's unmatched online service and a huge raft of AAA exclusives the other companies are still playing catch up.......

The sad truth is that Sony and Ninty will NEVER catch up - MS will leave them further and further behind with the release of such games as Alan Wake, ME2, Crackdown2, Halo:Reach and Fable3........

Sony and Nintendo have lost this gen of the gaming battle but i expect next gen them to regroup and come out with some decent games between them.

Xbox360 - AAA games that no other company delivers.

[fooltheman]

Sorry but I don't think you're right with your words waving all around...

[redneck_smith]

ROLF HAHAHAAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH AHAHAHAHH

[Lightel0s]

BOTH ARC & NATAL WILL FAIL