Codies: Natal won’t replace traditional controls

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At E3, Microsoft proudly showed someone using a system of mystical motions in order to play a racing game, but despite Project Natal’s promise of a brave new tomorrow, genre staple Codemasters remains skeptical, believing traditional controllers are the way to go.

“The complexity of control for a racing game, certainly for a core racing game like ours, requires a controller,” explains game design manager Ralph Fulton. “It requires feedback, and I don’t think waving your hands around and pretending you’re steering a car offers you the precision or the feedback that racing games require.

“That’s not to say that I don’t think you could do some really cool things, particularly with Natal, which can function as additional control over and above the controller in racing games. But I certainly don’t ever see it replacing the wheel or the controller as the principle controller method.”

That said, Fulton is excited to get kits for both Natal and the Sony Wiimote, although he believes Natal is more exciting because Sony’s little wand doesn’t look as new. Fair point, really.

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