14 DAY TRIAL // At this year's E3 trade show, both Sony and Microsoft tried to woo gamers and developers by presenting motion tracking solutions. Project Natal from the latter will allow players to use hand gestures and no controller to guide their gaming experience, while the new wand and camera system from the former will permit something similar. Neither of the two solutions has a release date at the moment but Sony appears to aim for spring 2010, while Project Natal will likely come to life in late 2010.
And it seems that one of the publishers interested in offering the first games for both motion tracking platforms is Electronic Arts. Natal was demoed, both at E3 and in subsequent public presentations, using Burnout Paradise, which seemed to work very well with hand gestures and body movement.
John Riccitiello, who is the Chief Executive Officer for Electronic Arts, told investors that “On Natal, I think at this point in time, I would rather lump that up with what is going on with Sony with their new motion-based controller, and the answer is we're really positive on both. Our view is that motion-based gaming is something that is both going to drive install base, drive interest, and drive growth, so we're positive overall.”
EA plans to announce actual projects that are using the two new technologies in early to mid-2010. Microsoft has said that both Epic Games, responsible for the Gears of War series, and Bungie, the creator of Halo, are looking into using Project Natal, while Sony is already offering development kits for those interested in its wand tech.
During the last few years, Electronic Arts has made great efforts to break into the Nintendo Wii market, which is also heavily reliant on motion tracking-powered games. It had registered limited success until recently, when games like Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 and EA Sports Active were released.