Last week I talked about the implications Sony’s new Playstation Eye controller might have on sports games based on a video of the presentation Sony held at E3. Two nights ago a different kind of presentation was held on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Some creepy looking Microsoft representative presented Project Natal to Jimmy and his guests (John Krazinsky and the main vampire dude from True Blood).
It was cool to get a look at people who weren’t Microsoft employees try Natal out because they have not been taught all the perfect ways to stand and move to hide any possible problems with the prototype. The result was a surprisingly insightful and funny segment.
The video shows them playing a game that can best be described as opposite-dodgeball meets Breakout and then trying out Burnout Paradise with no controllers, which looked to work surprisingly well.
So far Natal seems great for sports games. It's not difficult to imagine how goalie minigames, or any sport where your body is the primary tool could easily take advantage of Project Natal’s unique tech.
One problem I noticed is the area in which you can move is relatively limited. You can see a taped box on the floor showing where the guys could move and remain detected. Also it appears to take a little bit of scanning for the system to "find" you, although considering how the idiot actors were jumping in and out of the box, the system responded surprisingly well.
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Another problem is that, well, it sorta seems like they’re playing charades. The Burnout 2 demonstration is an impressive exhibition of Project Natal’s tech, but honestly I don’t see hardcore racing fans wanting to mime driving a car, when they can just use a wheel and pedal controller. Also, what about multiplayer? It seems pretty impossible with the current layout. I suppose they implement multiplayer through online matchmaking but I don’t know if these are going to be the online type of games. I mean, would anyone play Wii Sports online if they could? In some ways it seems like a step backwards.
Overall I see Project Natal as something a bit like the Wii where simple Wii Sports-like games will probably be what are most successful. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. The creepy Microsoft dude tried to show how "core gamers" can use Natal as a controller substitute with Burnout but frankly, I don’t see it catching on even if it does technically work.
(What a douche)
On a side note, Jimmy Fallon is growing on me as a talk show host. It is nice to have a true gamer on a Network program, even if it is on at 12:35 AM. I can almost forgive him for Fever Pitch, which is the most offensive and insensitive film ever created. Go Yankees.
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