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Xbox boss Robbie Bach’s told an audience at a Microsoft’s Open House event in New York yesterday that Natal will get cheaper as it moves on in life.
“Relative to Natal, we’ll see how the pricing cost works out,” he said.
“But people should except that it will go through the usual price curve.”
In addition, Bach refused to be drawn on whether or not Natal will be the motion-sensing system’s final name.
Asked when we’ll be able to stop referring to the device by its code name, Bach said, “When we tell you to call it something else.”
Natal’s expected towards the end of next year. Thanks, Variety.
Viewing 49 responses
Gamoc said:
WOAH. You gotta be shitting me. It’s going to be expensive and get cheaper like every other hardware ever?
Well slap my arse and call me Sally.
Blerk said:
They should call it the ‘Gizmo’. Then the wider audience they’re targeting will automatically call it the right name without even realising it.
Quiiick said:
If Natal will cost more than a regular extra controller very few people will buy it.
Best way to sell this add-on anyway is by bundling it with a game that perfectly showcases the benefits of Natal.
But this/these bundle(s) should not be sold for more than € 80.
Roybott said:
I’d expect it to be added as standard to the Arcade bundle (which is really the main target audience), what effect it has on the price of the Arcade bundle though depends. Ideally they will add it at no extra cost but they will probably add the device and a game for an extra $20-$40, is my guess.
bobbymington said:
they have to compete with the wii’s pricing, but when you have to buy a xbox console and a natal, its gonna be pretty costly
I think they will release a stripped down no hard-disk 360/natal buddle like the low cost ‘arcade xbox’
bobbymington said:
I like the name Natal, i don’t think they’ll change it.
How much can a Natal cost to make, its just a couple of cameras and a microphone on a stand, and the Natal software.
the kit probably costs the same as a high megapixal camera
bobbymington said:
I can’t wait until after release when the stories of people falling over and putting there faces through there LCD TV’s.
Then Microsoft will have to give everyone a giant elastic safety strap, so you can attach yourself to the nearest wall.
Remember how many people hurt them self’s using the wii, and they were only moving their arms. When Tony Hawks Natal comes out the hospitals will be flooded!
Psychotext said:
Massive human condom style body suits.
No_PUDding said:
“When we tell you to call it something else.”
Fuck you bitch. Gonna call it piece of shit from now on. Not that I didn’t already this it was.
runningman said:
Mm, the original ZCam (the 3d camera tech) was going to retail at $69, along with the other processors, microphone and stuff, this aint gonna be cheap.
JonFE said:
This isn’t a product where early adopters eventually drive the price down; this is a product that needs to be instantly attractive to the millions who already own the console (in order to get a respectable install base, that will in turn breathe confidence in funding development for it) and for that you need a killer application and a sensible price.
Price it higher than 69.99-99.99(€/$) with a showcasing game and you may as well not bother at all.
If you wish to expand your console install base as well, you introduce a Natal SKU, priced competitively to the Wii, thus selling the Natal device itself at a loss.
Of course, all of the above could be moot, because this is Microsoft and their pricing policy can be the mutt’s nuts (see Wireless adapter for example).
scuz said:
“Price it higher than 69.99-99.99(€/$) with a showcasing game and you may as well not bother at all.”
i expect it 99 or just above. 120…
theevilaires said:
LOL that’s the PUD I want to see. The arrogance of M$ I swear.
When are you going to fix the RROD issue?
“When we want to finish it aka things break”
No_PUDding said:
You’ll see that PUD whenever there’s a statement that does not improve public ‘relations’.
Tonka said:
My friends at MS HQ told me it will track the price curve of the WiFi dongle to a tee.
pleasant_cabbage said:
Any higher than about £100 for it and that takes it out of the ‘launch day purchase/sucker am me’ bracket.
Blerk said:
If they want anyone to actually buy it then it’ll have to cost no more than the price of a game.
freedoms_stain said:
If they really want to sell it in droves at any price they want they just have to release a Halo tie-in that requires it.
That’s about 10 million sales right off the bat.
JonFE said:
…such as Halo: Reach perhaps (”reach” being the subtle but rather obvious keyword here)?
Gekidami said:
‘Reach’ is the name of the planet the game is based on… Seeing as the beta will be out before Natal i doubt it’ll use it…
JonFE said:
Gekidami, my comment was purely tongue in cheek (should have added a smiley).
However, if Halo: Reach and Project Natal have (or are forced to get) the same release windows, it would be very silly of Microsoft not to tie them somehow. Surely, they are not stupid enough to force Natal-only controls, but they could be adding head-tracking for optionally camera control.
BeastModeYMOB said:
I read from another site that Natal will be starting @ $299.99
Then later that week I read it will be released for $199.99 so either way it goes it will be pretty high to play on something halfass.
freedoms_stain said:
@22, is that for a Natal 360 SKU or for the Natal alone?
Psychotext said:
That’ll be the new model. The natal tech will easily come in at under 100 dollars.
Gadzooks! said:
“it will be pretty high to play on something halfass”
Halfass? I’ll tell you what a halfass solution is: Bolting a stupid glowing ball on a stick, making you buy a separate peripheral to go with it (EyeToy) and then draining system memory and CPU cycles to perform the image processing necessary to do exactly what the Wii already does.
You only need 1 Natal, even with 4 players, so in fact it’s likely to work out cheaper than both the Wii and PS3 motion controllers if you game with friends.
Also, Natal does the necessary image processing in hardware so there is no memory or CPU overhead.
How are games going to look on the PS3 when it’s already underpowered GPU fails at textures, framerates and AA and the CPU and memory are being compromised by having to go through the expensive business of image processing.
Yep, there’s a halfass solution out there. It just isnt Natal.
reask said:
it would need to be special to attract a high price range.
I will not be forking out over the odds for something like this if it is just a glorified wii controller.
rrod360lol said:
Be interesting how the ps3 one affects Natal as sony seem to think theirs will be out first.
If it’s shite then it may well put people off ‘that sort of thing’ regardless of how good Natal is and if it’s great then microsoft better make their cheaper by the time it comes out or people won’t give a monkeys…
Filofax said:
Bloody hell Gadzooks calm down, you’re gonna end up having some kind of fanboy related seizure if you keep ranting like that.
Gadzooks! said:
Filo, I’m touched that you care so much about my health!
Flattered though I am, I’m sorry to tell you that I’m straight. I still want us to be friends though.
BeastModeYMOB said:
@ Gadzooks: I have both systems dude so don’t call me a “fanboy”(didn’t say u did) or anything stupid like that. I just have to say my views on it. I already have the PS3EyE and games…they are played the same way Natal games will be. I know Natal is coming @ it different, hear me out ok. PS3 has already tried that idea of “controller free” gaming and it didn’t work too well. You have to have on bright lights and shades open etc just to play the games on it. Now when the SoMo(sony motion) is being used a person won’t have to do all that extra to use it. The glowing sphere @ the top will track you better than the wii can. Now Natal has to come @ this whole “controller free” gaming PERFECT or else it will fail like Sony did with the first idea of EyeToy. Please correct me if i’m wrong…I didn’t see any vids on Natal being used in a pitch black room. Oh yea tell me just how can we use Natal with shooting games(halo) w/o a controller? I just don’t see it going too well. How will Natal be perfect for a person like me that ONLY plays FPS or 3rdPS?
BTW…My kids and I can use the PS3EyE @ the sametime w/o any issues.
zoopdeloop said:
Some people either need to calm down or do their homework and then post their thoughts based on facts.
I too really wonder how an underpowered GPU which fails at textures,framerate and AA can handle titles like Killzone 2,Uncharted2,Heavy Rain and the 360 can’t.We haven’t see this kinda quality on 360 yet. I’m waiting to see something similar to these on the 360 without worrying with all the noise it’s producing that it will either explode or RROD.
As for Natal…we’re talking about Microsoft here.
windows full of bugs,360 with RROD…you know what to expect.a lot of BUGS.
In simple words:Waste of money.
Blerk said:
Does someone have a cloth? There’s froth on the thread.
pleasant_cabbage said:
@30
I’m pretty sure light levels won’t impede the functionality of natal. I am interested in how it’ll work for fpses etc like you say though.
Gadzooks! said:
@BeastMode
You mention that EyeToy won’t work in the dark (correctly) and assume that Natal also won’t, when if you had read even a bullet point list of the Natal spec you would know that it uses an infrared camera for object tracking so doesnt rely on bright lighting.
As for ‘controller-free’ gaming, it’s a sales pitch to publisher execs, plain and simple. It may well apply to a very small percentage of fitness and throwaway EyeToy-like games, but the real use of Natal will be in standard controller augmentation.
Minority report style menus and inventory systems, Endwar style voice commands, hand gestures for squad controls alongside the standard controller and headtracking in FPS and racing games.
I’d suggest doing a bit of reasearch into the actual tech behind Natal. You will be surprised at how far removed from a simple camera it is (things like absolute z-axis measurement and skeletal movement tracking). Investigate trackIR headtracking as well, it’s a great effect that will be used a lot in many first and third person perspective games.
zoopdeloop said:
It sounds great…but it won’t deliver i assure you.
Ps3’s motion control won’t deliver either because it’s hard to use the wand on one hand and the sixaxis on the other like we saw in RE5DC(Wii remote and nuchuk are much easier to use)
theevilaires said:
Oh well I’d buy it for $100. freak it why not?
….whoa reading some of the comments above and looks like this has yet again turned into a PS3 vs 360 war. WTF people chill out please.
Michael O'Connor said:
Careful Gadzooks. You’re using reasoning, logic, and factual information to prove people wrong. Expect 90% of people to respond to you with insults and accusations that you are “ranting” at almost ever turn.
I’m sorry… but did anyone actually bother to *read* the article as opposed to just the headline? Nowhere *AT ALL* did the guy say that the price of the Natal would start high high. He simply said it would go through the same prize curve as… well… every single electronic product in existence, really! There isn’t even the *slightest* mention that the price will start “high”… whatever the hell “high” equates in this case.
Dear lord.
freedoms_stain said:
Actually O’Connor the original article does say the price will “start high” although that isn’t a direct quote from Robbie Bach.
Michael O'Connor said:
Exactly, it’s not a direct quote from Robbie Bach, it’s the article writers over-blowing someone else’s words.
So no, nowhere was it stated that the Natal would start at a high price point. Unless it comes out of the mouth of the person being talked to, what the original article writer *assumes* means jack. That’s just shoddy journalism, but hey, the internet isn’t known for its high standards in that regard…
theevilaires said:
Ummmm O’Connor they have a shitty wireless adapter on the market for a highway robbery price of $100. This article is about a camera that will supposedly replace the controller.
I don’t think it’s going to be cheap my dear boy. Put the Irish whiskey down for the millionth and two time.
BeastModeYMOB said:
To be honest I think the world of gamers is looking to finally have something that will be on point. That’s all i’m looking for. I’ve told many ppl i’d toss out my PS3 if Natal is PERFECT. I’m sure it is ppl out there that can understand where i’m coming from when I say…I want it to be worth my money.
theevilaires said:
Lol you would toss out a PS3 if natal is perfect?
Define perfect please. Do you mean if Natal talked to you? Or recorded your every move through out your house and responded to your every command like something from the Jettsons?
If you don’t mean perfection by those standards than you are an idiot XBOT who deserves to lick Aaron Greenturd clean after a visit from the toilet if you were to toss out your PS3.
BeastModeYMOB said:
WTF??? Lol you need some help dude! It was a figure of speech meaning I would not play my PS3 as often as I do now.
theevilaires said:
“I’ve told many ppl i’d toss out my PS3 if Natal is PERFECT.”
yea I heard that figure of speech many times in my life.
And by many times I mean refreshing this site and reading that stupid comment over and over.
Psychotext said:
Of course, there are some here that would have us toss out our consoles for far less tangible reasons.
theevilaires said:
if you called the biggest failure rate in electronic consumer history then I agree, toss out your console.
Psychotext said:
There are also some people so paranoid and self absorbed that they can’t tell when a poster is talking about BDH and his PC fanboy army…
theevilaires said:
There are also people so butt hurt and insecure that they have to make charts defending a lie and completely ignore a fact because they got owned…
BeastModeYMOB said:
We will just have to wait and see. But i’m not goin to toss out my system ok guy. Some ppl take stuff a lil too serious on this site. Its just video games.