These details come from a behind-closed-doors Microsoft tour of UK publishers and studios, with detailed information on launch plans and the tech being shown to grant more development support.
Sources are reporting that Microsoft plans to have over five million units ready for launch, with a mix of cameras and solus SKUs expected. The cost is likely to be under £50 because Microsoft are “trying to get as close as possible to ‘impulse buy’”. Another source suggests that Natal could cost as low as £30 when purchased separately.
14 games are planned for launch, with many of these expected from first-party developers like Rare. Other companies that are known to be developing titles for Natal are Disney, Capcom, Activision, Bethesda, EA, Konami, MTV, Namco Bandai, Sega, Square Enix, THQ and Ubisoft. Lionhead could also be working on something for launch, but this hasn’t been confirmed.
These details sound pretty solid to us, but we’ve sent a message to Microsoft for comment.
Now would be a good time for Sony to tell us a bit more about its plans for the PS3 motion-sensing wand peripheral, please?