Motion-Based Gaming on the Horizon for Xbox

After curling up in the fetal position and taking a thorough ass-kicking from Wii for a while, Microsoft has opened its eyes to make sure it was clear, pulled itself up, hobbled battered and bruised back to the proverbial drawing board, and taken solace in the old maxim that starts off by admitting defeat then advocates mimicking the competition. In other words, they’ve announced a new package of body motion-based hardware at E3.

The new hardware package, tentatively called “Project Natal”, promises to be an exciting advance like nothing we’ve seen yet. Natal will drop external controllers altogether and use a series of cameras and sound sensors to detect motion of the face and body, as well as sounds from the voice. Kick, elbow, punch, yell, swat and head-bob your way into the action without ever touching any hardware.  Natal will be integrated into the existing Xbox 360, avoiding the launch of an entirely new console. No official launch date or pricing has yet been specified, though speculation is that it could be as early as next year.  Microsoft is sending 1000 kits to software developers to begin designing games based on the new controls.

Two demos that have been displayed are “Ricochet”, which allows you to use your body to block various virtual projectiles that come flying your way, and “Paint Party”, a virtual canvas upon which you can splash paints. The latter would clearly be a lot more fun if it was called “Megan Fox Body Paint Party”, but so far, no sign of that update. In the meantime, Microsoft has also announced that it will be adding new connectivity for social networks like Twitter and Facebook starting next fall to help warm the casual gaming crowd to the Xbox. Because nothing makes non-gamers lust for a console like access to the same tired social networks that they get on every electronic device that you use everyday, always. [via LA Times]