I agree with some previous statements. It looks really interesting, but its price and bundling strategy are key. The biggest obstacle is that it isn't a new system and requires at least a $200 (more likely a $300) investment in addition to its price. That doesn't put it in a great spot against the Wii, and will be a large barrier to adoption by the market that Nintendo has opened up and entrenched itself in. If the Arcade had more storage for online interaction, it might be easier for Microsoft to leverage Live's features against Nintendo's weaker online strategy, but with the $300 initial buy in versus the Wii's $200 and existing line up of group friendly & family games with motion controls it will be pretty tough. The only leverage Microsoft has in that battle is if they price Natal to be sub-$100 and can 'try' to make the argument that is it almost the same price as buying a Wii with 3 extra controllers. Still, not a great position to be in for that market with Nintendo's market dominance there.
So, if it isn't adopted by large enough numbers of the existing 360 market, it isn't going to be a big success. If included with the next Microsoft console, though, it could make some inroads, depending on its price point. Not saying it isn't a fascinating concept with some great potential for the future development. I just don't think the market climate is right for a big Microsoft win here.
I give this thread a 9.7.
Thank god for the disable signatures option.
