Top 10 Reasons Why Natal is a Horrible Idea

Jason Wong • Sep 28, 2009 • Comments ()

With a number of Japanese developers at the Tokyo Game Show pondering how they should utilize Project Natal in their games, it occurs to us they're looking at it all wrong. Instead, developers should make a tally of all the reasons why Natal will be a hopeless failure in comparison to Sony's motion control wand. Heck, we'll even help them out by compiling our own Top 10 list why Project Natal will fail.

So here goes:

Number 10
No one wants to sweat after five minutes of full body boxing in the next Natal-enabled Fight Night game. Total Punch Control got punched in the neck for being not noob-friendly. Are Natal controls any better? Doubtful. They'll insert face button controls just like they did in Fight Night Round 4.

Number 09
The Natal camera is not going to be sensitive enough to pick up small subtle movements of regular gamers needed for precision gaming. Therefore, accuracy will suffer.

Number 08
Button presses are so much easier to perform than the actual movement.

Number 07
The price of Xbox 360 has finally lowered to sub $200 on the low end arcade units. The bad economy makes it very difficult to get consumers to invest in another hefty piece of hardware -- either as a standalone unit, but especially if bundled in a $300-350 SKU. The casual market will view Natal 360 and Wii as comparable products, making Wii the more attractive choice because in their minds both offer virtually the same experience. And the Wii will soon price-drop to the $199 sweet spot. Of course, core gamers understand the difference.

Number 06
Good Games. The launch of any platform requires strong titles. If Natal has none, consumers won't buy it. There hasn't been any game announcements that will be greatly enriched by the Natal experience. Fable 3 will support Natal but doesn't outright require it. In the end, gamers won't plop down good money for gimmicky "Flail Control." Traditional controls will be preferred over flail controls, just like in Lair.

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Number 05
Waggle Control (Sony and Nintendo) > Flail Control (Microsoft)

Number 05 Redux
Seriously though. It's too late in the console cycle to introduce an entirely different control scheme -- one that's so radically different. This will definitely fracture the user base. Natal is best served as a launch product alongside Xbox 720.

Number 04
You've done it. I've done it. We've all played games drunk. Try that shh with Natal playing Madden? I promise you'll be flat on your ass before you even realize.

Number 03
Let's be honest. Peter Molyneux's "Milo" is kinda creepy.

It's an interesting tech demo but can't possibly be translated to compelling gameplay.

Number 02
Natal = the next Eye Toy. Expect a bunch of kiddie games.

Number 01
Who looks stupider? The guy waving a Wii-mote around in Wii Bowling? Or the schmo mimicking a real bowling swing, 4-step shuffle and all, in front of Natal? You-tube here we come.

Let the spastic below be a warning. And remember to close your blinds.

01a cool.jpg
01b cool.jpg

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\n\nNumber 10\nNo one wants to sweat after five minutes of full body boxing in the next Natal-enabled Fight Night game. Total Punch Control got punched in the neck for being not noob-friendly. Are Natal controls any better? Doubtful. They'll insert face button controls just like they did in Fight Night Round 4.\n\nNumber 09\nThe Natal camera is not going to be sensitive enough to pick up small subtle movements of regular gamers needed for precision gaming. Therefore, accuracy will suffer.\n\nNumber 08\nButton presses are so much easier to perform than the actual movement.\n\nNumber 07 \nThe price of Xbox 360 has finally lowered to sub \$200 on the low end arcade units. The bad economy makes it very difficult to get consumers to invest in another hefty piece of hardware -- either as a standalone unit, but especially if bundled in a \$300-350 SKU. The casual market will view Natal 360 and Wii as comparable products, making Wii the more attractive choice because in their minds both offer virtually the same experience. And the Wii will soon price-drop to the \$199 sweet spot. Of course, core gamers understand the difference.\n\nNumber 06\nGood Games. The launch of any platform requires strong titles. If Natal has none, consumers won't buy it. There hasn't been any game announcements that will be greatly enriched by the Natal experience. Fable 3 will support Natal but doesn't outright require it. In the end, gamers won't plop down good money for gimmicky \"Flail Control.\" Traditional controls will be preferred over flail controls, just like in Lair.\n
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