gHacks technology news » e3 http://www.ghacks.net A technology blog covering software, mobile phones, gadgets, security, the Internet and other relevant areas. Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:14:29 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 en hourly 1 Xbox Project Natal http://www.ghacks.net/2009/06/07/xbox-project-natal/ http://www.ghacks.net/2009/06/07/xbox-project-natal/#comments Sun, 07 Jun 2009 13:14:43 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/2009/06/07/xbox-project-natal/ This year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo was packed with exciting game and hardware announcements from virtually every gaming company in existence. One presentation dominated the gaming hardware announcements; And that was Project Natal for the Xbox. Project Natal aims to offer controller-less gaming on the Xbox gaming systems. It looks a bit like a mixture of Sony Eye Toys and Nintendo’s Wii way of interacting with games. It basically provides full motion gaming without the need for controllers at all.

Microsoft demoed the technique at the E3 which means that the technique is already existing and working. Information on the techniques itself are scarce. From what could be gathered a hardware device is needed that will send the body’s motion and sounds to the Xbox gaming system. The system is able to follow the moves of every person in the room. It can easily identify and distinguish people. Natal cannot only identify people but also objects in the room.

This leads to some interesting new applications. Think of a quiz where the moderator addresses the gamers by name and repeats their answers.

Take a look at the videos below to get a good first impression on what Project Natal is about:

The official Youtube channel offers tons of videos showcasing Project Natal.

There are two factors that can influence the success of the new hardware device. First the price of the device. If it is expensive than it might become a niche product instead of the new default way of gaming. The second is game support by game developers. Game developers need to produce games for Natal or make their games compatible with the product.

What are your thoughts on Project Natal?

Tags: , , , , , , ,

Related posts

]]> http://www.ghacks.net/2009/06/07/xbox-project-natal/feed/ 6 Best Games Of E3 http://www.ghacks.net/2009/06/03/best-games-of-e3/ http://www.ghacks.net/2009/06/03/best-games-of-e3/#comments Wed, 03 Jun 2009 09:46:41 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/2009/06/03/best-games-of-e3/ e3E3, the Electronic Entertainment Expo, has opened its doors yesterday. It is one of the biggest gaming events of the year which usually sees a lot of game announcements, trailers and ingame video feeds for the PC and video consoles such as PS3, Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii. The following list is a collection of videos from the first day. It is an obviously biased collection of games that are destined to be great games once they come out.

It is likely that additional games are shown in the coming days. This could mean that we are going to create a follow up article with even more trailers and game previews. If you think that we missed a game or think that we have added a game that should not be in this list let us know in the comments.

New Super Mario Bros (Nintendo Wii)

Has the looks and feels of the real classic Super Mario games. 2D environment and Co-Op play!

Modern Warfare 2 (PC, Xbox 360, PS3)

A first person shooter with incredible graphics.

Star Wars The Old Republic (PC)

A Star Wars MMORPG by Bioware, the makers of Kotor 1 and 2.

The Secret of Monkey Island Special Edition (PC, Xbox Live Arcade)

A remake of the classic Lucas Arts adventure

Alan Wake (PC, Xbox 360)

From the makers of Max Payne 1 and 2, following these footsteps.

Dragon Age: Origins (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)

Another Bioware RPG, this with a fantasy scenario and aiming for a mature audience.

Brutal Legend (Xbox 360, PS3)

By Monkey Island and Day of the Tentacle genius Tim Schafer. Funny game with Jack Black and legends of heavy metal.

No More Heroes 2 (Wii)

Probably the most stylish game for the Nintendo Wii.

Mafia II (PC, Xbox 360, PS3)

Mafia was one of the most popular PC games of its time and the second part is destined to surpass that.