By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. Close

Forums - Microsoft Discussion - Molyneux: Natal upgrades "countless"

matt247 on 05 March 2010

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/molyneux-natal-improvements-countless

Peter Molyneux has moved to dampen fears over Project Natal lag, insisting there have been "countless revisions of cameras and countless revisions of software" since the demo units shown to press and celebrities in recent weeks were produced.

Following a recent London showcase, British TV personality Jonathan Ross commented via his Twitter account that Natal was "not quite there yet", which prompted Microsoft PR to confirm the hardware and game demo Ross played dated back to summer 2009.

Molyneux, who hosted an event with non-specialist media early last week at the same venue in London's Fitzroy Square, expressed his frustration at not being able to show the latest iteration of the Xbox motion-control technology.

"It's always a huge frustration as a designer when you see somebody play a version when you know it's been exceeded many times over," he said, speaking in an exclusive interview with our trade-only sister site GamesIndustry.biz at Lionhead Studios earlier this week.

"It so often happens, because you do a version for a show and then you don't do another version because you're too busy developing the game."

He added: "So very often you get a position that what a person's looking at is two, three, four months, a year old and you kind of want to go, 'no, no, it's 10 times better than that!' So it is very, very frustrating; it always is - there's just countless revisions of cameras since the one at X10 and countless revisions of software."

A Microsoft source went as far as to claim the Natal camera used in the London demos was only "one-tenth as responsive" as the latest iteration. The company is expected to reveal the final version of the hardware and the launch line-up of compatible software at E3 in July, with a release expected in the autumn.

Meanwhile, Molyneux revealed his excitement ahead of speaking at next week's GDC, stating: "I'll be showing off Fable III and we'll be making some announcements about [the game] and I've got a talk which is going through some of the big features. I'm really excited to show all the stuff."



Around the Network
JaggedSac on 05 March 2010

Very good to hear. Was hoping for some more Natal info at GDC, but it isn't looking likely.



the2bears on 05 March 2010

Natal will crash and burn. What a bunch of spin... "We had the opportunity to show off our product, but chose to show off yesterday's, last week's, no - last year's iteration. It's so frustrating when you show off old technology."

So, why didn't they show off the new stuff? If it's important enough to spin about... crash and burn. This, as Malstrom says, is a marketing maneuver.



the2bears - the indie shmup blog
galacticwar on 05 March 2010

Really I'm more interested in using natal as a control interface for the Xbox menu's rather than for games.

Call me when they invent the holodeck.



otoniel on 05 March 2010

im getting excited



Official Member of the Xbox 360 Squad 

Around the Network
ruff_romeo on 05 March 2010

Clearly MS has Natal under wraps, and no exactly what dey r doing....I think it seems they have the lag issue completely sorted....I think its time people start taking Natal very seriously rather than bashing it with excuses such as lag and userbility...its shaping to be a revolution for the gaming industry because the possibilities r genuinely endless!



kitler53 on 05 March 2010

wether it's true or not i don't believe 1 word that comes out of peter's mouth.



slowburn on 05 March 2010

Why is molyneux freaking out about what version of Natal the public sees.

We are only seeing what microsoft wants us to.

And if what he says is true, then the project sounds lika a train wreck.

This is just weird, and molyneux is starting to creep me out.



Fuck... I'm dead!

nightsurge on 05 March 2010
slowburn said:
Why is molyneux freaking out about what version of Natal the public sees.

We are only seeing what microsoft wants us to.

And if what he says is true, then the project sounds lika a train wreck.

This is just weird, and molyneux is starting to creep me out.

How so?  If what he says is true, then the project actually sounds like it will be a perfected masterpiece.  Would you rather him come out and say that the slightly buggy and laggy Natal of E3 09 will be the final product?  No, that is not what MS will do and THAT would be a train wreck.

MS is revising the hardware and software to find the best version and combination when release finally rolls around.

Just as Sony will keep revising their product.  This has nothing to do with spin, its just an explanation to people who may be ignorant on the hardware development process.



slowburn on 05 March 2010
nightsurge said:
slowburn said:
Why is molyneux freaking out about what version of Natal the public sees.

We are only seeing what microsoft wants us to.

And if what he says is true, then the project sounds lika a train wreck.

This is just weird, and molyneux is starting to creep me out.

How so?  If what he says is true, then the project actually sounds like it will be a perfected masterpiece.  Would you rather him come out and say that the slightly buggy and laggy Natal of E3 09 will be the final product?  No, that is not what MS will do and THAT would be a train wreck.

MS is revising the hardware and software to find the best version and combination when release finally rolls around.

Just as Sony will keep revising their product.  This has nothing to do with spin, its just an explanation to people who may be ignorant on the hardware development process.

All I'm saying is when it comes out of Molyneux's mouth, it sounds erratic, somewhat desperate, and he creeps me out.

MS needs to let the product do the talking. We'll see it at E3. And i'm sure if people still fail grasp its potential Molyneux will be there to explain it away



Fuck... I'm dead!