project natal
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Microsoft shows how Natal recognizes players, gender
Have you ever wondered what Project Natal actually sees through its beady, robotic eyes? A direct feed of the Natal's point-of-view was recently revealed to the audience of Microsoft Israel R&D's "Think Next" convention yesterday afternoon. Just past the jump, you can check out NextGen-News' video of a live demonstration from Microsoft VP of Hardware and Technology Dr. Ilan Spillinger and a female participant, both of whose genders and movements were successfully identified and Avatar-ified by Natal. Watch the video after the jump to see Spillinger get more excited by this technology than anyone has ever been excited for anything else on the planet, ever. [Via Engadget]
Side-Kick founded to work on motion-based games for 'next-gen' consoles
Israel-based company Side-Kick is a new studio "focused on the creation of motion control games for next-generation game consoles and digital living rooms." We're not quite sure what a digital living room is (The Matrix?), but the rest seems fairly self-explanatory. Led by Guy Bendov, co-founder of Double Fusion, the new company also includes former Eidos and PrimeSense alums, the latter being responsible for the tech behind Microsoft's upcoming Project Natal. So, the studio definitely has built-in familiarity with Microsoft's new motion-sensing device and, based on that next-gen line above, we assume the company will also produce PlayStation Move content. Side-Kick has a few games in development right now -- Mini Demons is only briefly shown via its website -- and will be on-hand to display its new wares at Microsoft's ThinkNext2010 event and E3. We've contacted the company for clarification on which platforms it's currently targeting. Update: A Side-Kick representative got back to us, stating that "Natal and Move are the targets for now since they use camera systems to track movement." Well, we're glad that's cleared up!
Microsoft gives us a look through Project Natal's eyes (video)
Ilan Spillinger, Microsoft's Xbox 360 VP, was on hand in Tel Aviv yesterday for a showcase of Project Natal. Although there wasn't much in the way of groundbreaking stuff, the resulting video does show off the motion control system's gender recognition (done through Natal's facial recognition ... you filthy child) and ability to track two players within the frame at the same time. A tipster from the audience tells us that earlier lag issues have been eradicated, although some jitter was indeed apparent when the second person stepped into Natal's field of vision. Either way, it's looking like Microsoft's Xbox 360 peripheral is progressing well toward its release near the end of this year. Go past the break to see for yourself. [Thanks, Roy]
Hudson's Lost in Shadow may come to PS3, 360; dev team 'brainstorming' Move, Natal titles
Speaking with Joystiq at yesterday's Konami Gamers Night event, Hudson producer Shinichi Kasahara told us that he hopes his upcoming Wii title Lost in Shadow will someday see release on both PS3 and Xbox 360. When asked whether or not his team has any interest in developing for the HD consoles and their motion controllers, Kasahara said, "In addition to hopefully transferring [Lost in Shadow] to those consoles, we are also actually already brainstorming a couple of different ideas that we're probably going to develop for Natal and Move." Look for our hands-on with the Wii version of Lost in Shadow and our full interview with Kasahara-san coming soon.
THQ planning big for Natal, but waiting for install base to grow
Speaking to CVG, THQ core games exec Danny Bilson revealed that he's got quite an ambitious idea for Microsoft's upcoming Project Natal peripheral; specifically, he cites plans for a "core game" that leverages Natal's motion-sensing tech "in a really, really cool way." That said, Bilson intimates that the budget for such a game -- which he estimates to be from $30-40 million -- would prevent the game from being released before the Natal install base is large enough to support it. Still, he adds, "The concept I have uses every corner of that tech and maybe in a couple of years we'll do it." Whatever Bilson's mystery project is, he certainly seems excited by the technology. Just last week, Bilson was talking up another project that THQ plans to announce at E3, which may or may not be the "super awesome" and "physically active" Natal project he told Joystiq about during GDC. THQ was also one of the first companies to reveal it had been working on Natal dev kits when Microsoft first announced the peripheral last year.
Mega64 works up a sweat with motion controls
Mega64's latest video (past the break) highlights some very real concerns about motion-based gaming, albeit in a very ham-fisted way. Gamers looking to veg out in front of the TV and blow some junk up really aren't the target demographic for motion-controlled games, but will likely get pressured into playing by their friends and family -- "motion enablers," if you will. Sure, crushing a calorie or two is good for the old body, but sweating and being out of breath sucks. Out-of-shape, poor displays of humanity aside, not everyone is so put off by the idea of, like, moving around and junk. Which camp do you fall in with? Pumped for the next wave of motion gaming or are you already taking a nap on the couch? [Via Go Nintendo]
2K Sports is planning to support motion controls
An interesting landscape is starting to take shape out there, thanks to the fresh wave of motion-control technology coming to gaming this year: the PlayStation Move and Microsoft's Project Natal. And there's no other genre that calls for an immediate association to motion-control gaming than sports, right? 2K Sports' VP of Marketing Jason Argent recently talked with the[a]listdaily about the new tech and its potential for sports games. Argent confirmed that 2K Sports would in fact be employing the tech, though there's no time-line as of yet. Argent only offered that we all should "stay tuned" for more info. For certain games -- hockey, baseball and boxing -- we'd say utilizing the tech makes sense, but how could it make for a fun football or basketball experience? Well, 2K Sports, forgive the pun but the ball's in your court. [Via Industry Gamers]
Greenberg promises surprises from first-year Natal games
Aaron Greenberg, product manager for Xbox Live and Xbox 360, told Edge magazine (excerpted by CVG) to expect a wide variety of games in Project Natal's lineup. Well, actually, the way he puts it, you can't expect it: "I think people will be surprised even in the first year by the variety of experiences you'll get," he said, also noting that the company has "thought out the portfolio years in advance." We'll be able to evaluate the variety of that early lineup at Microsoft's E3 Natal event, according to previous statements made by the company. Seemingly transforming into Bizarro Reggie, Greenberg went on to channel the Nintendo promoter's gift of gab as he espoused the wonders of the Natal platform. "The beauty of Natal is that it brings you, male or female, young or old, an experience that everyone can enjoy," he said. "Whether it's gaming experiences or lifestyle experiences, everything we're doing in the design is about thinking of a way anyone can step in front of it and be able to use it in a matter of seconds."
THQ Core Games VP teases fighting game and motion game for E3
Danny Bilson – executive vice president of "Core Games" at rebounding publisher THQ – recently told CVG that his "fighting group is actually taking on the management of another game that we're going to announce at E3 that has a certain amount of melee combat in it ... ." Before spilling all the beans, Bilson added, "It's a major developer and you'll get exactly what I'm talking about when I'm able to talk about it. It's really cool, it's another one of the things I'm doing to rebuild everything around the core division of THQ." This reminded us of something Bilson told Joystiq when we spoke with him at the Game Developer's Conference earlier this month. "We have one active product that we're going to announce pretty soon and it's on Move, it's on Wii, and it's on Natal," Bilson said. When asked if "active product" meant "physically active" Bilson replied, "It's physically active. On a big brand. And it's super awesome, we'll definitely show it at E3. I'm very proud of it." Whether or not these two projects are one and the same remains to be seen, but there are some parallels worth pointing out: A "certain amount of melee combat" could allude to a "physically active" product and this unnamed fighting game is "really cool" while the unnamed motion game is "super awesome."
PrimeSense 3D-sensing tech licensed for Project Natal [update]
digg_url = 'http://www.joystiq.com/2010/03/31/primesense-3d-sensing-technology-licensed-for-project-natal/'; In February of 2009, it was revealed that Microsoft had purchased a 3D motion-sensing camera company called 3DV. In June, the company showed off Project Natal, leading most to assume the two were connected, though Microsoft countered, saying "we built [Natal] in house." That brings us to today, as (a company you probably haven't heard of) PrimeSense has announced that its 3D motion-sensing tech is being utilized for Project Natal. "Xbox 360 Hardware Engineering teams developed the 'Project Natal' sensor based on the PrimeSensor reference design to support the special requirements of Project Natal," said Aviad Maizels, PrimeSense president and founder. What we don't know at the moment is just how much Microsoft's baby relies on PrimeSense. As you can see in the video after the jump (which had to have been directed by Tommy Wiseau) and in Engadget's demonstration, the company's focus has been on gesture control for UI navigation, so it's possible PrimeSense could just be supplying a way for users to interact with the Xbox Dashboard and Guide with motion commands. We'll let you know what we can find out. Update: Microsoft's product manager for Xbox 360 and Xbox Live, Aaron Greenberg, dropped us a line to further explain the Microsoft-PrimeSense partnership where Project Natal is concerned. "Regarding your question, this was primarily a hardware partner announce," Greenberg said. "Bottom line, we've worked closely with PrimeSense to design the best 3D-sensing technology component for 'Project Natal.' Microsoft is fully responsible for the design and development of the 'Project Natal' sensor, including its depth sensor, RGB camera, multi-array microphone and software."
PrimeSense fesses up: it's the magic behind Microsoft's Project Natal
Up until now, we haven't actually been able to find out too much about the ins and outs of Project Natal. For all we knew, it's a technology designed in the back stall of a unicorn barn, and the final name will somehow involve diphthongs from both "lasers" and "Robot Apocalypse." All jesting aside, this really does mark the first bona fide announcement about the nuts and bolts behind Microsoft's forthcoming motion sensing add-on for its Xbox 360, and lo and behold, the revealing is being done by the same company we sat down with earlier this month at GDC. Quite a few of you assumed that PrimeSense's webcam was indeed Project Natal in camouflage when we posted up our original hands-on, and while we couldn't confirm or deny those suspicions at the time, we can today. So, what's this mean for you? It probably means that PrimeSense is actively looking to get its 3D-sensing technology (which has obviously been tweaked quite a bit by Microsoft, to its credit) into as many living room scenarios as possible, so what you're seeing in Natal might just appear elsewhere in the very near future. Did your imagination just run wild? No? Have a look back at our GDC experience and try again.
Rare: There 'isn't a need' to go back to classic series
[Error Macro] If you're waiting for sequels to your favorite Rare games, like Battletoads, Killer Instinct, or Taboo: The Sixth Sense, you should probably shut down your vigil now. Studio head Mark Betteridge told Develop that the company isn't especially keen on returning to old franchises. Rare "would only go back to older franchises if we saw an opportunity to make the product in a different way that would do justice to [them]," said the head of the studio behind this month's Perfect Dark remake, adding that there "isn't a need" to return to Rare's classics. Betteridge goes on to classify the role of Rare and other first-parties as "to define the Xbox 360 platform," something he says Rare is also working to do for Project Natal. As for the camera-based control system, it's "the biggest change in how you interact with software... ever, really," he said, "because we've moved to a clean sheet of paper on the user input – it's a huge change creatively in how you build a game."
Yoga Natal game appears on GAME retailer's Xbox 360 release schedule (update: Amazon UK too!)
Time for some more salacious prognostications about the future, courtesy of the wily folks over at vg247. The team there claims to have obtained internal documents from UK video game retailer GAME that lists the release dates for forthcoming Xbox 360 titles. The listing is headlined by new iterations of Crysis, Call of Duty and Metal Gear Solid, but the highlight for us gadget junkies is at the very end: Yoga Natal, scheduled for an October release. Now, even if this doc comes straight from the horse's mouth, game release dates are notoriously prone to fluctuation, so let's not read too much into that October date. What's intriguing is that Microsoft does indeed seem intent on creating specialist games for its Natal experience, and it may be that they'll all include Natal in their titles to make compatibility abundantly clear. Or this may be just a big bad April 1-related hoax, we'll live either way. [Thanks, Matt R.] Update: We've now also discovered a pulled Amazon listing for Yoga Natal, and we've stashed a screenshot of its Google Cache version just after the break [Thanks, Ian].
Microsoft to host E3 Natal event June 13, media briefing June 14
Microsoft has sent out a "save the date" email announcing its major events leading up to E3 2010 (June 15–17). The first event, the "World Premiere 'Project Natal' for Xbox 360 Experience," is open to all ages and will be held on Sunday, June 13 at the Galen Center in Los Angeles. No further details have been provided, though Microsoft announced earlier this month that it's bringing "the full lineup" of Natal titles to E3. The following morning, on Monday, June 14, Microsoft will hold its annual E3 media briefing at the Wiltern Theater. The event will be restricted to ages 18 and older. With the media getting a taste of Natal the night before, it should be interesting to see what Microsoft has up its sleeve for the actual briefing. Expect more details on both events in the near future.
Project Natal 'experience' to premiere at E3 on June 13th
No big surprise here, but Microsoft is bringing its full Project Natal setup to the E3 games show in LA this year, with a "world premiere" event on Sunday, June 13th, followed by a media briefing on Monday the 14th. It's good to know they're on track for showing this off, after a no-show at the PlayStation Move-dominated GDC, and we'll of course be there in force, waving our arms around like we just don't care. From the looks of our invite, which puts the name "Project Natal" in quotes, we're not convinced that's even the final name for the device, but we suppose we'll find out for sure in June. Microsoft promises this will be our "first look at the future of fun," and we imagine some near-final hardware and beta game experiences will be on display as well. No word in the invite, but we imagine a Fall launch is still in the cards, with Jonathan Ross's "October" tweet as the most recent morsel on that front.
Molyneux says Natal focus testing is 'almost impossible'
Peter Molyneux says that the biggest problem with Project Natal isn't the difficulty in programming for a new technology, but the potential users themselves. Speaking with the Times Online, Molyneux says that the Natal tech is "so different and new that trying to get a focus group to look at it and respond is almost impossible." Perhaps it's not just that people aren't responding to the likes of Milo, it's that they don't realize he will respond to them. Molyneux clarifies that his team is still working on the to-be-announced project, which we saw "glimpses" of at E3, and that they've increased "emotional engagement" since then. "The only way I see you at the moment is through your thumbs," he says. But Natal lets a virtual character see everything from body movement to facial expression, and that, says Molyneux, allows his team to "design experiences that truly resonate with you as an individual, rather than with a mass of people." While its an intriguing concept, such an open-ended design makes for a lot of pressure on the developer to ensure accessible to all kinds of individuals. Good thing there's plenty of time to pencil in more focus groups before Natal's holiday launch. [Via TVGB]
Miyamoto wants to get DS into classrooms (with permission)
[Brandy Shaul] Ahhh, grammar school -- there was nothing quite like trying to hide that GBA under the desk in fear of Mrs. Rosencrantz confiscating our portal into Pokémon Fire Red. Back then, handheld games were little more than an obvious distraction in the eyes of our ruler-equipped teachers, but Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto plans on changing all of that. Speaking with the Associated Press in an interview recently, the legendary game developer explained his latest devotion: bringing the Nintendo DS and Wii into schools. He said that the DS would be making its way into "junior high and elementary schools in Japan starting in the new school year" (beginning this April). Miyamoto didn't get too specific on how his company's consoles would help Japanese students with their education, only detailing it as part of Nintendo's initiative to expand the audience for gaming consoles. We have to imagine that the kids won't be using them to decide whether or not Resident Evil 4 on Wii is the best version (besides, we all already know that it is). Thankfully for our unborn children, Miyamoto didn't mention any amorphous plans to bring gaming consoles into North American schools just yet. Presumably they'll have to play it fast and loose like we did -- keeps 'em sharp!
Sega does what Nintendon't: make prototypes for Project Natal games
Sega Super Stars (PS2) Sega is hard at work on software for both Project Natal and PlayStation Move. And to prove it (at least the first one), Sega America/Europe president Mike Hayes told Eurogamer that a "prototype" Natal game will be on display at E3. "We asked our Japanese studio to create something for [Natal] which we'll show off at E3," Hayes said. "They had a brilliant prototype up and running within six weeks. I mean a genuinely entertaining prototype you could just play." Of course, Sonic Team created what could be seen as a prototype Move/Natal game in 2004. Sega Super Stars was a minigame collection that paired modified "lite" versions of classic Sega games like Space Channel 5, Virtua Fighter and Samba de Amigo with motion sensing from the EyeToy, which happens to be a direct ancestor of the Move's PlayStation Eye camera. Our guess is that this "prototype" will bear some resemblance to Sega Super Stars. Not that that will necessarily translate directly into a new retail product, of course. The fact that Hayes sees these motion controllers as best-served by "things that are more about multi, party gaming" only reinforces the idea that Sega plans to revisit Super Stars.
PlayStation Move ad pulls no motion-controlled punches against Wii, Project Natal
Sony's VP of Realistic Movements Kevin Butler (boy, does that guy have a large business card) is at it again, this time in a video ad for the PlayStation Move. He's back from the future to thank us all for the success of the motion control device, and make a few jabs towards Nintendo and Microsoft for their efforts. Here's a few choice quotes. "Because real boxers don't hit like this [flails arms exasperatingly]" "It's also got what we in the future call buttons, which turn out to be pretty important to those handful of millions of people who enjoy playing shooters, platformers, well, anything that doesn't involve catching a big red ball." "C'mon, who wants to pretend their hand is a gun. What is this, third grade? Pew, pew, pew." Check out the futuristic -- or now-eristic, rather -- commercial after the break. And if you ask, sorry, we still wouldn't bet on Kansas City in six.
Molyneux: Motion gaming is making devs 'sweat'
You hear that, developers? You should be shakin' in yer boots -- motion-based gaming is going to force you to throw away everything you've ever learned about game design and start anew. At least that's what Lionhead's Peter Molyneux (not so exaggeratedly) had to say when quizzed on the subject of the "arms race" between the big three for waggle supremacy. "All of this stuff is making all the designers sweat -- I've met lots of designers at GDC, and we're all very bleary-eyed at the moment because every rule we've got, we're having to throw away," Molyneux told Eurogamer. And understandably so. Between WIi's established console dominance (not to mention last year's MotionPlus add-on), this week's unveiling of PlayStation Move, and Microsoft's Project Natal this holiday, there's a lot to work with. It's this problem, though, that Molyneux believes will forge new types of game experiences in the years to come. "I don't think the first wave of these motion-control titles will be what you expect .... just as with every hardware chain, it's the second wave where they usually come up with stuff that's interesting ... so the second wave could be really cool." And as far as Natal in Fable 3 goes, the eccentric developer kept mum on the specifics, only offering, "You can expect us to use Natal to make you laugh and to surprise you and to give you this feeling of power -- there are some very obvious things we could do, like controlling the GUI in Natal, and it doesn't really excite me." Tom Cruise will be so disappointed.
