2020 Gamer Gaming from a consumer's eyes

Imagine playing a fighting game and being able to hit your opponent. Even better, you’re playing a sports game that actually simulates you to hitting the ball based on the motion of your hands. How about painting a picture on a virtual canvas? You probably think I’m talking about the Wii. Now imagine doing all of this without smacking your roommate with a remote (although I do find that to be a bit of fun in itself). What I ‘m talking about is Project Natal.

What the hell is Project Natal, you might ask. Well, it’s an add-on component for the Xbox 360 platform. That’s right, it’s from Microsoft. Hate all you will, it looks like the company is stepping up their game. The Natal sensor includes several components which allow for 3D motion capture, face, and voice recognition, which also includes the recognition of gestures. The sensor is also capable of automatically calibrating based on the user’s environment, such as the presence of furniture, and it can also see under any light setting. It can also track the movements of up to four players. Even more interesting is the noise suppression capability that allows for Xbox chatting without the headset.

I could go on, but it’s better if I show it to you:

Why do I have a feeling that there will be at least one person that finds a way to hurt themselves or other people? I can easily see someone being karate kicked right in the head. I’m sure your next question is “Do I have to buy another 360?” The answer is no. This is merely an add-on for your current system. Sadly, it won’t be available this year. You’ll have to wait until 2010 to see if it's worth your hard earned cash.