To add dramatic dynamism to the milestone event, Microsoft has brought in the talents of Cirque du Soleil to kick things off. The Cirque company reportedly convoyed from Montreal to E3 in L.A. with 25 semi-trailer trucks toting equipment, costumes and props. A cast and crew of over 100 designers, set builders, engineers and technicians pooled their kinetic energies to bring the launch party for the annual E3 conference to exhilirating heights.
“Living Statue” is the name being given to Microsoft’s social media strategy which lets players record their avatars singing, dancing, and singing karaoke-style, then allows them to email the video masterpiece to their friends.
E3, the largest gaming conference in the United States, comes at a pivotal time for the industry as it tries to reverse a lengthy sales slide while making the transition to new business models that rely on more digital distribution.
The games business in the United States is down 11 percent for the year, and industry revenues shrank by 8 percent last year to $19.66 billion, according to industry research group NPD. The figures don’t account for downloadable content and online revenue, but it does paint a tougher picture for the traditional business of selling packaged games.
It is industry knowledge that Microsoft won’t be selling the Natal for a profit. In fact, selling it at or around $100 will not even break even. Like the X-box itself, Microsoft sees the system extension as a loss leader to get these devices into our households and then bring on an onslaught of titles.
Nintendo will take the wraps off a new handheld device called 3DS that doesn’t require traditional 3-D glasses. The current leader in both console and handheld sales, faces stiff competition these days as Sony and Microsoft take aim at the Wii’s motion system, while Apple is increasingly a growing player in the market for portable game players.
Johnny Chung Lee, the former Carnegie Mellon researcher known for finding creative ways to adapt the Wiimote, has revealed himself as one of the minions behind Project Natal, Microsoft’s effort to add motion-sensing capabilities into the Xbox 360.
Lee, who is now a researcher at Microsoft, said in a blog posting that he has been working on the motion-sensing project. Check out the introductory video.
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