Microsoft TGS Keynote

[Mr. Gerbik]

Jeez remember when people used to get excited about games? Even just a little bit? Can we have those days back please?

What the fuck dude, I'm as excited as can be over The Last Guardian, Asura's Wrath, the Team ICO collection, Project Dark, Zettai Zetsumei Toshi 4, and a bunch of other games from TGS. But somehow because not everybody thinks the idea of Steel Battalion without its main gimmick is worth getting excited about we now live in a dark age where nobody gets excited about games anymore? Get a grip.

[Sarlaccfood]

What the fuck dude, I'm as excited as can be over The Last Guardian, Asura's Wrath, the Team ICO collection, Project Dark, Zettai Zetsumei Toshi 4, and a bunch of other games from TGS. But somehow because not everybody thinks the idea of Steel Battalion without its main gimmick is worth getting excited about we now live in a dark age where nobody gets excited about games anymore? Get a grip.

Get a grip!? I've got a massive grip!

(That last bit wasn't aimed at you specifically, just at the tone of the thread in general)

[MDY]

How many 360s are there out there in the first place? 3 million seems rather ... ambitious. Even if I move my own pethates aside and try to look at it as objectively as I can, I can't see it making any serious waves. Especially if the tech is as shoddy as early reports suggest combined with uninteresting titles and a pretty high price.

http://gamingbolt.com/xbox-360-lifetime-sales-reach-42-million

As of July this year (pre-slim) they'd announced 42 million worldwide.. Should be getting on for 45 by the time Kinect turns up.. so 1 in every 15 users needs to buy one... suppose that's not hugely unrealistic...

[Jolly]

Ok, it might not be as good as having the old controller, but for those of us who don't have the kind of money to piss away on a controller for one game, it'll be quite nice to give it a go thanks. I'm sure a combination of the pad and kinect will be quite fun.

Jeez remember when people used to get excited about games? Even just a little bit? Can we have those days back please?

Apart from the lunacy in suggesting on one hand that the original controller and game was an extravagance and that buying a Kinect to play this new version somehow isn't, my lack of interest in one game doesn't stretch to the game industry as a whole. I'm pretty fucking excited about Dance Central for one, mostly because its Harmonix and its also a sensible use of the tech.

Rather than, say, inexplicably spending time updating a franchise that few have heard of, fewer have played and even fewer loved, removing the main gimmick and then sticking it on a new platform that is notoriously unpopular with the original games audience.

Fortunately for you I'm not the CEO of Capcom, so regardless of how I feel I still think they're going to make it. Still, I'd quite like to be able to talk about it if that's alright with you?

[Mr. Gerbik]

Get a grip!? I've got a massive grip!

(That last bit wasn't aimed at you specifically, just at the tone of the thread in general)

Yeah but for example the Project Dark and Asura's Wrath threads are 99% positive and general excitement, so it seemed a bit unfair to suggest that *nobody* gets excited about games anymore based on people reacting negatively towards the idea of Steel Battalion Kinect. That wasn't really fair imo, and that's why I made that post.

[Sprite Machine]

In my head, I just imagine this has the viewpoint of a FPS inside the mech(a). On screen you see your (virtual) arms and the controls below your windscreen. The game mirrors your arm movements and head tracks you as you look up, down, left and right to see what's going on. If they can nail the onscreen arms mirroring your own arms, it could work well. They can still keep the hardcore die = save wipe as well. I don't think I'm explaining it well, but in my head, I can just see it working.

That would be cool, if the tech could do that.

I'm not sure it's sensitive enough to track smaller arm movements that accurately, though.

[Sarlaccfood]

Apart from the lunacy in suggesting on one hand that the original controller and game was an extravagance and that buying a Kinect to play this new version somehow isn't, my lack of interest in one game doesn't stretch to the game industry as a whole. I'm pretty fucking excited about Dance Central for one, mostly because its Harmonix and its also a sensible use of the tech.

Rather than, say, inexplicably spending time updating a franchise that few have heard of, fewer have played and even fewer loved, removing the main gimmick and then sticking it on a new platform that is notoriously unpopular with the original games audience.

Fortunately for you I'm not the CEO of Capcom, so regardless of how I feel I still think they're going to make it. Still, I'd quite like to be able to talk about it if that's alright with you?

But the Kinect isn't just for one game is it? And as for "a platform that's notoriously unpopular with the original games audience"... it's not even out yet.

I just don't get the unecessary negativity, it looks like a good example of how a "core" game could be made for the Kinect. Yeah we could talk about how it might not be as good as with the original controller but the answer to that would be to go and play the original. As I said before, if releasing the old controller again was financially viable I'd be all for it, but as it is, Kinect + controller is probably the closest thing we'll get.

At least they're trying new and thinking outside the box a bit.

It's not like they gave the robots asymetrical haircuts and designed them for the youth culture of today, influenced by music, street art etc.

[Mr. Gerbik]

It's not like they gave the robots asymetrical haircuts and designed them for the youth culture of today, influenced by music, street art etc.

Okay, I'll give you that one.

[TheSlugFormerlyKnownAsNap]

http://gamingbolt.com/xbox-360-lifetime-sales-reach-42-million

As of July this year (pre-slim) they'd announced 42 million worldwide.. Should be getting on for 45 by the time Kinect turns up.. so 1 in every 15 users needs to buy one... suppose that's not hugely unrealistic...

That should be doable. I never realised there were so much 360s out there by now, I haven't visited the sales numbers thread in ages.

[Meh]

OH MY FUCKING GOD STEEL BATALLION

[Jolly]

But the Kinect isn't just for one game is it? And as for "a platform that's notoriously unpopular with the original games audience"... it's not even out yet.

Still expensive though. And I suspect that the venn diagram of those that played the original and those that are excited about Kinect would make pretty grim viewing for the studio.

I'd love to be proven wrong and for them to pull it off though. Gotta love big stompy robots!

[Yoshimax]

Just when I thought I'd talked myself right out of a kinect

[Meh]

Oh, SB's a Kinect game.

Fuck that.

[Mr. Gerbik]

Just when I thought I'd talked myself right out of a kinect

Simply test it out at a trade show or something, maybe at a store once the demo pods arrive - it'll take you right out of wanting to buy it again

[TheSlugFormerlyKnownAsNap]

You are so negative Mr.Gerbik, can't you get excited about games anymore?

[Sarlaccfood]

Simply test it out at a trade show or something, maybe at a store once the demo pods arrive - it'll take you right out of wanting to buy it again

Is it proper poo? I've yet to try one. Oh dear, If it can't do precise stuff, like registering fingers and that, it makes you wonder why MS bothered in the first place.

[Mr. Gerbik]

You are so negative Mr.Gerbik, can't you get excited about games anymore?

I know, I must learn to stop being negative and love the waggle

Is it proper poo? I've yet to try one. Oh dear, If it can't do precise stuff, like registering fingers and that, it makes you wonder why MS bothered in the first place.

See the Kinect thread for what I thought of it when I played it Gamescom.

[Comrade]

I know everyone loves hating on motion gaming now, but can we at least wait and see how these games use the Kinect before dismissing them as terrible?

[Meh]

SB is not something that should ever be on Kinect. Simple.

[Beertiger]

I know everyone loves hating on motion gaming now, but can we at least wait and see how these games use the Kinect before dismissing them as terrible?

Not on rllmuk. This is officially an anti-Kinect forum. It's impressive to see so much hate for something yet to be released. Even more so when you consider it's got Rez 2, a new Panzer Dragoon and Steel Battalion 2. Gamers are a grumpy old bunch and Kinect is the kid playing on their lawn (precious game series').

[Meh]

Rez 2 and PD will probably be quite alright on the system - even though they'll probably tone down the difficulty to compensate for how shit a glorified Eyetoy is.

But STEEL BATTALION? 2? ON KINECT? It's the most ridiculously hardcore mech(a) simulator there ever was, and that's why people wanted the thing; the buttons and the lights and the eject and OH FUCK THERE GOES MY SAVES. It was a very tactile experience - which is something non-existant with Kinect.

[Tom_B]

Not on rllmuk. This is officially an anti-Kinect forum. It's impressive to see so much hate for something yet to be released. Even more so when you consider it's got Rez 2, a new Panzer Dragoon and Steel Battalion 2. Gamers are a grumpy old bunch and Kinect is the kid playing on their lawn (precious game series').

Oh don't let it get to you. Us PS3 owners had to deal with the collective scorn of Rllmuk for years before it was accepted as having "a few worthwhile games". In fact, I seem to remember you yourself being on the front line of pre-release PS3 negativity...

[Cyhwuhx]

Most still hate it. Hell, every time somebody buys one, the 'has no games' parade is given another spin.

As for Kinect, I think it's perfectly clear people are going to remain skeptical until it manages to remove the sour aftertaste the Wii left. If it's good enough, everybody wil fall in line. If not, it'll be waggle hell yet again and nobody will like that.*

*: Except for scottcr, OBVIOUSLY.

[Roboplegic Wrongcock]

What MS has done after months and months of forum retards saying that it's only good for Wii style hand me downs is get their chequebook out and deliver most gamers fantasy projects but only on Kinect.

Magnificent.

[Meh]

It's a piss-take, isn't it? I'm going to moan about the SB thing for a fucking age.

[Cyhwuhx]

What MS has done after months and months of forum retards saying that it's only good for Wii style hand me downs is get their chequebook out and deliver most gamers fantasy projects but only on Kinect.

Magnificent.

And this is just the backlash beforehand. Just imagine the games turning out to be unplayable to those who love the IP. This place will be a bloody warzone.

[Harsin]

What MS has done after months and months of forum retards saying that it's only good for Wii style hand me downs is get their chequebook out and deliver most gamers fantasy projects but only on Kinect.

Magnificent.

I think TGS may have just been one elaborate:

There's a new Steel Battalion!

It's on Kinect lol!

There's a new Devil May Cry!

From Ninja Theory and Dante now looks like a member of My Chemical Romance.

There's a new Fire Pro Wrestling!

Starring Xbox Live avatars.

[Beertiger]

Oh don't let it get to you. Us PS3 owners had to deal with the collective scorn of Rllmuk for years before it was accepted as having "a few worthwhile games". In fact, I seem to remember you yourself being on the front line of pre-release PS3 negativity...

It was asking for it yer' honour. Face it, pre-release and even shortly after the PS3 was an over priced joke. And I'm speaking as someone who's owned it ever since they announced they were cutting backwards compatibility. It's great now and has a smashing library of exclusives that make it worth owning for any serious gamer.

I don't think Kinect will ever reach that stage of acceptance but I'm hoping it'll have enough to justify its existence. These games should have been coming this year. By the time they roll around Kinect will probably be a failed add on. The PS3 had blu-ray to coast on while we waited for the killer app. All Kinect can do is power down automatically when it hears you crying.

[MK-1601]

I'm getting overwhelming deja-vu to the Xbox1's early round of third-party games here.

Tekki, Phantom Dust, Grabbed by the Ghoulies, and Panzer Dragoon Orta, JSRF and the other Dreamcast-refugee projects all sank without a trace at retail. Why would repeating this strategy work now? At least they're keeping the Tekki tradition of an expensive, overly complex controller alive, lololol.

Commercial doomsaying aside though, using Kinect for Steel Battalion at least gets away from the constraint that you'll always be using your actions to control a human avatar. It's going to be interesting to see the DDR-esque methods that hardcore players develop to exploit the controls.

It seems Microsoft are faced with a uphill struggle regarding Kinect. Everyone bitches there are no hardcore games on Kinect, Microsoft show off fan favourite hardcore games for Kinect and then everyone bitches that they're on Kinect.

Because Kinect (self-admittedly) doesn't work as a general-purpose controller.

...

I can easily see them selling 3m Kinect at Christmas. Kinect is a love letter to game retail. Do not underestimate the draw of novelty peripherals when there's no new home machine on the horizon. I expect most will get traded in when software support collapses no more than six weeks later though. superscope.gif

This is officially an anti-Kinect forum. It's impressive to see so much hate for something yet to be released.

It's not hate though, just realism. There's an inevitability to it like there was with the Gizmondo. Plus some resentment from 360-only bros that their preferred machine will never get a credible motion control solution now, I guess.

...

When did Cywhucxcks go mental about motion control, by the way? I feel like I've missed an episode.