I'm actually hoping Kinect fails. And this isn't some fanboy thing I actually have a valid reason.

I'm a traditional gamer, I like it sit back on a couch and use a standard controller; but all this shit with motion controls is threatening the traditional style of playing video games! If Kinect succeeds then next gen we're going to be without controllers and stuck playing lame party games till the end of time! Same goes for motion controls on Sony and Nintendo!

Okay I'm exagerating a bit, controllers will never go away. But I want to see motion controls flop hard next gen so we can go back to making core games and not lame ass party games that Grandma can play.

Well, I don't think Kinect failing will spell doom for the Xbox 360 necessarilly, but there will be a pretty severe drought of major core games, for the 360 because of the gap left by all the poorly selling Kinect games, which will have been a total waste of resources and time for MS. So there could be a longterm backlash of the major blow to the 360's library, particularly from the core gamers, which make up a very large portion of its market.

It won't negatively impact* Microsoft's 360 division unless they lose money on the device once launched, which, given R&D is already written off and each camera should be sold at a profit (I believe), is just about impossible.

If they do start losing money on Xbox again (a big if at this point, at least until they decide to launch a new console - which I believe will be sold at a profit from the getgo for this very reason), then they could have problems.  It's actually quite interesting to look at how the division has changed over the past few years, and what corporate strategies are probably at play here.

It seems the 360 division no longer has a blank check with which to run its business.  The idea of a video game console dominating the living room as the ultimate convergence device - the golden goose Microsoft decided to challenge Sony for ten years ago - turned out to be nothing more than a blip on the radar before handheld convergence devices took over.  iOS/Android are where it's at, and it won't be long before hardware running such software can plug right into your TV and play movies, show web pages, etc.  Hell, even TVs are becoming equally as capable as consoles in multimedia functionality, with services like Google.TV bringing web browsing and the like straight to your television. 

The initial vision for Xbox is no longer and/or was never attainable, and as such Microsoft are now focusing their resources on platforms like Windows 7 Mobile.  The Xbox division will have to maintain itself from here on out, which is why the division has been prioritizing profitability over marketshare since the 360's last price cut.  In a way, they're like Nintendo now, and it'll be interesting to see how they handle Kinect and the next Xbox given the way things have changed.

It kinda sucks for Microsoft.  They had an excellent idea of where the market was heading back in 2000, but they tackled it in the wrong way.  Had they invested into Windows Mobile even a fraction of what they invested into Xbox earlier in the decade, they could've grabbed iPhone/iPad market before Apple even showed up.

*Aside from the long term ramifications of diverting first party resources away from their current market and towards Kinect.

Bill gates will eat his own heart out if kinect fails

Off topic - If you are sitting/standing 2-3 feet from your tv, you are likely to develop some serious eyesight problems.

Anyway, I don't think Kinect flopping would mean much for the 360, it's still selling well even without it currently, and I doubt that MS is expecting much of a hardware impact from Kinect

I'm with you. I don't want to be that active while playing all my games, nor do I want that kind of imprecision. I mean the occassional Wii Fit is kinda neat, but I don't want ALL or a majority of my games to be played like that. At the same time though, I want the Wii to succeed, which my sound hypocritical or fanboyish of me, but the Wii's motion controls are really a lot different. Most of the games that utilize it, even heavilly, are nothing more than slight wrist movements.

I look at the Wiimote as somewhat of a 3D mouse. These are the kind of motion controls I like if implemented corectly. But full body motion? I'm not sure I'm into that.. Especially when the games look at poor as Kinect's does. That sort of control just seems imprecise, awkward, and more trouble than it's worth. There is also a very small margin of genres that I could see working with this control scheme; even fewer than the Wiimote.

Bill Gates will shit Blood if kinect fails

Have to agree here.  I could totally see Nintendo cutting the price to $150 this holiday season.  One, I'm sure Nintendo could afford it.  And two, Nintendo will probably feel they need to cut the price.  Not only to cut into Kinect's success, but also because they have been behind MS and Sony 3 weeks in a row.

And if it fails, it probably won't hurt MS too much.  Definitely a hit to the ego, though.  But, after Kinect, there's not too much MS could do to keep sales as high as they have been.  Wii will still have the family friendly appeal, as well as being the cheapest of the systems.  While PS3 will still have that $199 sweet spot to reach.

pew pew pew.

ok jokes aside. I don't think it'll hurt them that much.

Bill gate will vomit blood if kinect fails