More Natal applications revealed in LA Times preview

In just a couple short days, we'll be soaking in the Vitamin D provided by the blaring Los Angeles sun, digging for stories at the Electronic Entertainment Expo. One of the first events we'll be attending is a preview of Project Natal -- an occasion which could bring about some major announcements for the peripheral. Before that, though, the LA Times has published a hands-on report on the device that's worth checking out, as it reveals a pair of heretofore unannounced Natal applications.

The first is "Obstacle Course" (which was briefly hinted at in Parade's wildly flailing Natal preview), in which players will have to navigate a "summer camp"-esque row of hazards. As dangerous as that sounds, it's pretty tame compared to the other unveiled application: "Living Statue," which lets players record and send video messages using their Avatars. Which is great, because we were just talking about how awesome it would be to be bombarded with videos of our friends' Avatars doing pelvic thrusts and other suggestive maneuvers every time we turn on our Xbox 360.

We look forward to learning about these applications (and more) during Microsoft's Natal sneak preview this Sunday.

Reader Comments (36)

Radtastic

"We've also bundled Natal with a club membership to Old Navy, cause we figure if you wanna look like a douche you might as well go all the way".

Oh, snap.

I could show people the bottom of MY Avatar's shoe!

....when I actually create one, that is.

(C'mon 360 Slim!)

@Ezio Auditore da Firenze

You're like the 3rd most vocal anti-xbox person on this entire blog. I find it hard to picture you with a 360...

@Ezio Auditore da Firenze You know, I don't like to think of myself as Anti-360 as much as Pro-Sony.

I think the 360 is a fantastic machine, and I'm impressed with what Microsoft has been able to do in one and a half generations.

My home will always be with Sony, though, and that's never going to change, I just haven't felt much need for a 360 this gen. I'm going to pick one up later on this year, though. Probably the inevitable Halo: Reach bundle.

On the bright side, all the great games I've missed out on will be cheap. =P

@Ezio Auditore da Firenze
Ive said it before ill say it again.
I'm pretty sure he looks for articles with the Xbox tag to troll on.

Be content with your PS3 bro.

@Ezio Auditore da Firenze I like how saying positive things now, is trolling!

Must be the new site redesign. =P

Who comes up with this crap?
Dev A: Alright, let's make a game about being in an obstacle course.
Dev B: Great idea. What should we call it?
Dev A: I don't know. Obstacle Course?
Dev B: That's it!

It's just lazy as all get out. I can't wait to play other similar games such as "Shooting Game" "Platform" "Drive a Car" and "Punching".

@(Unverified) Obsctable Course makes Bulletstorm seem like pure genius.

@Morph156 haha bravo sir, bravo.

@Morph156

Their taking a page out of Nintendo's "New Super Mario Bros Wii" style of game naming.

Reach is getting a rename too.

Halo: The-One-Where-Things-Blow-Up-And-Little-Kids-Are-Better-Than-You

What the F*CK is this? I come to my internet home and shit's all rearranged. I feel like a stranger :(

@Marco le Polo

It could be a wonderful time of self discovery for you if you let it be...

"My home will always be with Sony, though, and that's never going to change, I just haven't felt much need for a 360 this gen."

You know, when the original Xbox came out, I thought the whole thing was an awful idea. When the 360 rolled out, my brother (and Gears of War) convinced me to get one, and I've enjoyed it since.

I also thought the PSP was kind of a disaster, but now I'm almost considering picking one up, mostly for development purposes.

My point is, times change.

The more i read about Project Natal, the less interested i become.

@(Unverified) heh, I am too, it seems to become more and more of a shovelware magnet

You guys almost seem sarcastic about the pelvic thrusts

Hey these games sound awesome.

Oh wait, no they don't.

I knew Natal would end up like another version of the EyeToy. Casual shovelware for all!

At least Sony is (allegedly) targeting all types of gamers with the Move controller. Sort of like a pizza with everything on it.

@tendoboy1984
I think its a bit too soon to start making assumptions.
Microsoft has kept a pretty tight lid on all Natal news. We haven't even seen any real media apart from tech demos a year old.

Teabag avatar messages here I come.

I'd really like to know what they're planning for Windows 7 compatibility with Natal.

@EJ A - I doubt there will be any Windows 7 support, actually. I recently tried getting my 360 wireless mic to work on my Win 7 machine, and had the same trouble I always had with it for XP.

I thought, since the Xbox had been out for a while, and Win 7 seems to be a lot more compatible with all the new peripherals, that it was pretty much guaranteed that all my 360 junk would work with it seamlessly... such was not the case.

Oh god! Halo 3 will never be the same. Getting messages of Avatars hip thrusting/t-bagging/spanking/taunt of some sort from people in games is going to be more annoying then whatever my friends decide to send...

@TheC0A7S Not to mention the friend requests my girlfriend always gets after her UNO games...

BlackedOut has a good point. I've been very skeptical of Natal all along but I've held my tongue and have been keeping my fingers crossed in hopes that it'll blow us all away once released.

I'm pretty sure that with what they reveal at E3 this year we'll be much better able to effectively predict how successful it will be.

Was in reply to your first comment.

There's a difference between kissing ass and being positive btw - hence why your second comment has faded into oblivion.

This is not making me interested in Natal.

reply fail.

???

I guess things aren't as perfect as they seem...

There have been several reply fails, don't worry, it's not you...

It is about time Natal got some killer apps up in here! ;)

But really, I hope E3 brings about some announcements that make this thing matter.

Great, when did gaming become MSN?

All we need now is the ability to nudge gamers when they are playing and turn all our text chat words into sparkly pictures or emoticons.

So far the games listed definitely not my cup of tea but I am more than able to wait until everything is revealed before making a decision.

Reading the LA Times article, the ability for Natal to using Facial Rec and pull up player profile actually might be pretty good for parents setting up kids profiles. Now when I leave the house, I do not have to worry about my Son playing GTA4. Could be interesting??

@imeNrique

don't quote me (i'm too lazy to verify) but i think Natal actually floods the room with infrared light and reads that spectrum. This would make it able to work regardless of the visible light in the room, or lack there of.

I sometimes use Xbox to communicate with friends and family outside of gaming context.. this could be useful. Hopefully it's bundled and/or relatively inexpensive.

More Natal applications revealed in LA Times preview

Reader Comments (36)

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:32PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:35PM Shagittarius said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:37PM Ezio Auditore da Firenze said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:39PM R Planteer said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:44PM Ezio Auditore da Firenze said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:20PM BlackedOut said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:46PM Ezio Auditore da Firenze said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:39PM Morph156 said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:40PM Ezio Auditore da Firenze said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:51PM Itchyfinger said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:08PM Curtis17 said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:42PM Marco le Polo said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:53PM Shagittarius said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 5:17PM FredFredrickson said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:50PM MatthewMk2 said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:03PM gaboose said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 3:59PM MrAlex said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:01PM Vcize said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:18PM tendoboy1984 said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:45PM BlackedOut said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:24PM Haon said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:26PM EJ A said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 5:20PM FredFredrickson said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:27PM TheC0A7S said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 5:14PM Petebot330 said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 7:21PM Mouthsmasher said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:50PM BlackedOut said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:49PM Bentzero said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:50PM BlackedOut said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:51PM BlackedOut said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 5:14PM Petebot330 said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:53PM Zombienutz said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 4:55PM Spunky Monkey 190906 said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 6:11PM Machiavellian79 said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 7:06PM Zepinephrine said

Posted: Jun 11th 2010 10:42PM majg said

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