The Project Natal. The Revolution has Come!

Posts Tagged ‘natal’

Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick discussed the current state of the game industry and Activision's position within it. Regarding Microsoft's Kinect and Sony's Move motion controllers, Kotick believes they will "excite" consumers, though he doesn't expect them to "rush out and buy millions of Xboxes just for Natal." Still, the novelty of the hardware combined with the impending marketing barrage will "generate new excitement for a whole new set of video games" according to Kotick.

Concerning other sectors of the industry, Kotick didn't seem afraid of social and mobile games eating into Activision's business. "I honestly don't think FarmVille or Tap Tap Revenge is having any impact on Guitar Hero," When confronted with the fact that Guitar Hero sales have seen a massive decline in the last year, however, Kotick admitted that Activision "misjudged opportunities" and noted that the company is "doing a better job now of accessing what's important to the audience in terms of features of the games, music and design of the instruments."

Kotick also brushed off the possibility that gamers may start shying away from physical retail titles in favor of cheap (or free) downloadable games. "We could go either way on Call of Duty but we can't download guitars for Guitar Hero anytime soon," said Kotick, adding that he is "not worried in the near term" about cheap iPhone games competing with retail.

The CEO isn't worried about Activision "missing the boat" on any impending downloadable transition. "In 20 years, we haven't missed the boat," said Kotick, "In fact what's made us so successful is that we know when to get on the boat." So take that, boats.

Activision's Kotick knows when to get on the boat originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tonight we stood in a stadium wearing polyester ponchos (made in Canada) with LED shoulderpads. What did you do tonight? Below you'll find our account of tonight's "'Project Natal Experience,' imagined by Cirque du Soleil." As the event was a "technology free" show, we had to depend on our notes and exceptionally detailed (for a two-year-old) artistic sketches to convey the experience. If you'd actually like to see what we saw tonight in moving pictures, you'll have the chance on Tuesday, June 15, at 3:30PM on MTV and at 9PM on Nick at Nite, MTVu, MTV Hits, and Logo.

And here are our notes on the Project Natal Experience:

7:15PM - Entered into dark room, given big white poncho with pointy shoulderpads. Terror sets in. A massive amount of people adjust each others' shoulder pads. See, we're kinect-ing.

7:20PM - Standing around in waiting area. Ponchos are white 100% polyester and are made in Canada. These things are going to get hot.

7:23PM - We're escorted down a dark hall and step through a rectangular box into an African American family's living room. They smile and wave at this home invasion. We pass by them into what appears to be a rainforest.

7:24PM - The "rainforest" is a converted sports arena, roamed by dancing Cirque du Soleil performers. They are dressed like wood nymphs.

7:40PM - Still standing around. Poncho heat increasing. Almost accosted by gyrating wood nymph. If you don't look it in the eyes it won't approach.

Continue reading Kinect debut event recap (featuring Cirque du Soleil and LED ponchos)

Kinect debut event recap (featuring Cirque du Soleil and LED ponchos) originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 05:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Can you tell us about the decision to have these two separate events and what the Natal event is really supposed to accomplish from a media perspective, that tomorrow's press conference won't be able to do?

For us, this is a really special year. It was ten years ago that we unveiled the original Xbox and this is actually my tenth, and our tenth, E3. It's the beauty of our business. This will be the biggest year in the history of Xbox and really as we thought about E3, we've never had this much to share at one E3 as we do this year. We've taken a very non-traditional approach to E3. I think with what we're doing with Natal and working with Cirque du Soleil to bring that to life is a whole new way to tell a story.

Continue reading Interview: Aaron Greenberg, on Kinect core games, flailing

Interview: Aaron Greenberg, on Kinect core games, flailing originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 00:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We've got either good or bad news depending on how you felt about the rumored name change for Microsoft's motion-sensing Project Natal. The new brand "Kinect" has just been confirmed by USA Today. The story, which includes no pricing or timing info, seems to have been slated to run tomorrow, though we imagine it might have been rushed out when the name started circulating after appearing in an Italian ad.

There's even a list of games!

[Huge thanks to Jake for the heads up.]

Kinect is in, 'Project Natal' is out originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 13 Jun 2010 20:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Stop worrying! We're here in Los Angeles, corralled in the usual E3 Joystiq War Room, preparing fierce lines of questioning and sharpening our newswriting hands for a week sure to be full of sweltering hot scoops. Aside from tonight's Project Natal ... spectacle, we'll be live from Microsoft's other press conference tomorrow, as well as Nintendo, Sony, and the many, many other events being held over the next seven days.

Looking to filter out our normal, every day news for just E3 stuffs? Head to the E3 2010 hub and go nuts! Now, if you'll excuse us, we've got a week of madness to prepare for.

E3 2010: We've arrived! originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 13 Jun 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Nielsen Company has released the results of a recent survey designed to gauge gamer awareness of Microsoft's Project Natal and Sony's PlayStation Move. Among the 2,400 gamers surveyed, 21 percent are currently aware of Natal, while 23 percent are aware of the Move. Things look a little better when restricting the results to those who actually own and play the 360 or PS3, with 39 percent of 360 gamers aware of Natal and 42 percent of PS3 gamers aware of the Move.

Of the gamers aware of the Move and Natal, those who actually own the respective console show more intent to purchase. 42 percent of 360 owners plan to purchase Natal, compared to only 35 percent of total gamers aware of the device. PS3 owners show a nearly identical 41 percent with intent to purchase, compared to 28 percent of all those aware. Strangely, even though both Natal and Move have publicly known launch windows, a surprisingly high number of respondents -- nearly 40 percent -- don't know when the products will be available.

Also noteworthy, respondents show a wide disparity as to what they believe the hardware prices will be. To the 6 percent who think Natal will be less than $25: you're going to be disappointed.

Nielsen: Majority of gamers in the dark on Natal, Move originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 11 Jun 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In just a couple short days, we'll be soaking in the Vitamin D provided by the blaring Los Angeles sun, digging for stories at the Electronic Entertainment Expo. One of the first events we'll be attending is a preview of Project Natal -- an occasion which could bring about some major announcements for the peripheral. Before that, though, the LA Times has published a hands-on report on the device that's worth checking out, as it reveals a pair of heretofore unannounced Natal applications.

The first is "Obstacle Course" (which was briefly hinted at in Parade's wildly flailing Natal preview), in which players will have to navigate a "summer camp"-esque row of hazards. As dangerous as that sounds, it's pretty tame compared to the other unveiled application: "Living Statue," which lets players record and send video messages using their Avatars. Which is great, because we were just talking about how awesome it would be to be bombarded with videos of our friends' Avatars doing pelvic thrusts and other suggestive maneuvers every time we turn on our Xbox 360.

We look forward to learning about these applications (and more) during Microsoft's Natal sneak preview this Sunday.

More Natal applications revealed in LA Times preview originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 11 Jun 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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On Sunday, June 13, Microsoft will host its Project Natal event -- you know, the gala event with Cirque du Soleil? We're betting we'll get details on launch price and date for Project Natal (not to mention its real name) there, but ahead of that event we've got some interesting news on an upcoming Natal title, care of our Joystiq Superspy[TM].

We're told that Sega is preparing an Xbox Live Arcade game for Project Natal, titled Sonic Free Riders. As you may have guessed, it's a motion-compatible entry in Sega's racing series. Players will supposedly steer an on-screen avatar via bodily movement, and will acquire weapons by reaching out toward the screen, and attack other racers by motioning towards them.

It all sounds very intuitive, but will it be fun? We'll let you know in a few weeks when we touch down in L.A. for E3 2010.

Rumor: Natal-compatible 'Sonic Free Riders' coming to XBLA originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If a report by Edge proves accurate (wait till E3), then Pachter's estimation that Project Natal will cost less than an average game is off. Instead, a source backed by Edge has alleged a $150 price point (with plenty of room to drop) for the forthcoming Xbox 360 motion tech camera -- or $300 when bundled with the Xbox 360 Arcade console. Additionally, the source has suggested an October 26 worldwide release -- give or take "a few weeks."

Of course, both the rumored pricing and release date remain uncorroborated (we repeat: wait till E3). But, hey, that doesn't mean we can't have a bit of fun with the supposed intel. And by "fun," we mean, "host an online poll asking if you'd spend $150 on Project Natal" ...

View Poll

Rumor: Project Natal priced at $150; bundled with Arcade SKU for $300 originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 26 May 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ubisoft today released its financial earnings report to investors for fiscal year 2009-10 (ending March 31), reporting sales of €871 million ($1.1 billion) with an operating loss of €60 million ($76.2 million). CEO Yves Guillemot softened investor reaction by saying: "The global economic crisis had a pronounced impact on the video game industry in 2009, which contracted by nearly 10 percent year-on-year. Ubisoft's sales were hit particularly hard, falling 18 percent over the full year despite a stabilization in the second half of the year."

Ubi's Q4 sales were up 1.9 percent year-over-year to €210 million ($266.7 million), outpacing internal guidance by €10 million ($12.7 million). The company says the inflated numbers are due partially to "a strong increase in sales of Just Dance," the "ongoing exceptional performance delivered by Assassin's Creed 2 which sold-in nearly 9 million units during the year," and higher-than-expected sales of both Red Steel 2 and Avatar.

And Guillemot predicts a sunnier 2010-11. "We forecast a return to profitable growth in 2010-11 with positive cash flow generation, driven by a games line-up that is more closely tailored to growth segments based on strong franchises." He also notes his excitement for new technology driving increased sales, saying, "Lastly, the upcoming launches of new consoles, including Natal and Sony Move, should enable us to capitalize on the technology investments that we have undertaken in recent years and re-energize the casual games segment."

Source -- Ubisoft FY2009-10 Sales & Earnings Report (warning: PDF link)

Ubisoft reports $76.2 million operating loss in fiscal year 2009-10 originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 18 May 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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