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Epic likely not Natal-izing shooters - Bleszinski

By Tor Thorsen, GameSpotPosted Jul 6, 2009 4:36 pm PT

Gears of War design director Cliff Bleszinski says his company will "likely" stick with "classic control interface," but thinks hybrid controller/motion-capture schemes have potential.

One of the centerpieces of last month's Microsoft E3 press event was Project Natal, the long-rumored motion sensing peripheral for the Xbox 360. Speaking with GameSpot, Phil Spencer, head of Microsoft Games Studios, revealed that two major shooter developers, Bungie Studios and Epic Games, were already playing around with Natal technology--which requires no controller to use.

Bleszinski won't be air-chainsawing any Locust anytime soon...

The prospect of playing a 360 shooter without any buttons, pads, or thumbsticks--all of which are heavily used in the genre--was greeted with more than a little skepticism. This sentiment is apparently shared by Epic design director Cliff Bleszinski, who told British magazine Develop that his studio will probably not be jumping on the motion-sensing bandwagon anytime soon.

"Y'know, we'll take a look at Natal--no promises--but it's likely that the classic control interface is what Epic will be working on in the foreseeable future," promised Bleszinski. He then added, "But I think there's ways that you could merge the two interfaces and supplement a classic game with Natal controls to make something compelling."

Bleszinski went on to express his feeling that he thinks the shooter genre should evolve by adopting elements from role-playing games. "I had a conversation with Harvey Smith--one of the lead designers on [the action RPG] Deus Ex--and said to him the future of shooters is RPGs," the designer told Develop. "He said he completely agreed."

Bleszinski went on to praise another recent action-shooter hybrid, BioShock, and to call out another one coming out this year. "Randy Pitchford at Gearbox is an absolutely brilliant designer and business man, and I think Borderlands is not getting as much hype as it should because it really looks like a more accessible, shootery version of Fallout," he declared.

280 Comments

  • xtremeflem2day

    Posted Oct 9, 2009 2:50 pm PT

    Using a "real" fake lancer to chainsaw a locust would be a dream come true.

  • johnryandaplin

    Posted Aug 29, 2009 3:25 am PT

    @advanracer


    you certainly are an idiot arent you?
    youre complaining cause your tactics dont work anymore?
    ahahah what a n00b, and just as facistinabag said
    adapt or die, its been going around for thousands of years fish needs to glide around freely in the water and they adapt by having fins, you sir are pathetic for even posting that kind of comment

  • facistinabag

    Posted Jul 31, 2009 8:36 pm PT

    @advanracer
    You ever heard of the term "Adapt or Die"? They change something to make easier on new players, simple concept, works in the end, however, every old player seems to rage because his same crappy tactics don't work anymore.

    The majority of GOW's multiplayer is running to the nearest sniper rifle/motor/boomshot with your shotgun out, it's nice to have matches that actually vary slighly from time to time.

    Rather than whining and accusing Epic of ruining games, why not back up your saves, deleted the content updates from your harddrive, cancel your gold account and just use an Xbox Tunneling program to play against people still running the retail version of GOW.

    or you could just adapt.

  • advanracer

    Posted Jul 24, 2009 4:16 pm PT

    The thing that sux about this game is..when players get really good at their skills and most of all have fun playing, then the company decides to mess it all up with their so called "UPDATES" and in the end...it changes and makes it more unenjoyable because you have to start all over and adjust to the new slower settings. THANKS EPIC GAMES. REAL QUALITY SERVICE FOR YOUR CONSUMERS. The Original Gears of War was more fun to play..even in co op compared to this game. A downtuned shotgun, a Useless COG pistol, Lowered ammo count from 660 to 550, a TU4 Less Lethal/Mortar reload delay, my favorite Slow moving characters, and now a paid for expansion pack. Sure Epic..you're already ruining the game with useless updates and now you want more money. Pure Greed for JUNK gameplay

  • JOEPEACH

    Posted Jul 13, 2009 12:28 am PT

    CliffyB must stop speaking now. He sounds like a mosquito that buzzes in your ear when you are trying to get some sleep.

  • ldonyo

    Posted Jul 9, 2009 9:17 pm PT

    Epic isn't likely to do much of anything new or inventive until someone else does it first. Even then Epic will still not manage to get it right. Cliffy ought to talk less and work more.

  • batmanboy11

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 11:15 pm PT

    That might be for the best, but I'll wait to see if Natal is good/bad before I say that using Natal in shooters would suck.

  • bl33kda58

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 7:19 pm PT

    @nukku actually people who play wii fit actually lose weight thats why they keep track of how much weight you lose in the game and it actually works trust me it worked for my mom and I dont remember wii sports being advertised to make people lose weight its just a tech demo and is it nintendo's fault that they are successful and sony and microsoft want to be successful as nintendo. and p.s nintendo cant kill hardcore gaming since it created it

  • GeigerdolylWodd

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 7:08 pm PT

    Bleszinski went on to express his feeling that he thinks the shooter genre should evolve by adopting elements from role-playing games. "I had a conversation with Harvey Smith--one of the lead designers on [the action RPG] Deus Ex--and said to him the future of shooters is RPGs," the designer told Develop. "He said he completely agreed."

    Bleszinski went on to praise another recent action-shooter hybrid, BioShock, and to call out another one coming out this year. "Randy Pitchford at Gearbox is an absolutely brilliant designer and business man, and I think Borderlands is not getting as much hype as it should because it really looks like a more accessible, shootery version of Fallout," he declared.

    Yep I agree whole heartedly.

  • dogpigfish

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 4:10 pm PT

    If you are good at something it is easier to acknowledge others, like Cliff is doing. I was impressed with Natal, but I don't buy that it is going to be the next wave of gaming. I think it is just another peripheral like the guitar controller. The advantage that the wiimote has is that it appeals to traditional and new gamers, it is both motion and a controller. Developers can support one, the other, or both. When you back up and look at Natal after being impressed you realize that the demographic is teenage to young men (not saying that this is solely who will play this). What we need to see now is something that uses the controls successfully and is truly a fun and addictive experience.

  • andrew_ribbons

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 3:11 pm PT

    "Wii > Natal because it is a combination of the buttons and motion tracking, the metroid prime games are excellent examples of shooters that use the Wii hardware to make a great game.

    Most interesting to me was Sony's new controller, although there isn't much information on it it seems like an overpowered Wii using two Wiimotes instead of a wiimote+nunchuk."

    I don't often rain on people's parades, but there is just so much wrong with this i had to rebut.

    First off, you cannot claim "Wii > Natal" based on you having used the Wii for years, but are instantly dismissing a technology that they've not even finished developing yet and have certainly never used yourself. Nice.

    Second, after claiming "factually" the situation with the Wii vs. Natal, haha nice one there, you claim that the Sony motion controller is more interesting. Despite it clearly being a cheap Wiimote spin-off with LEDs at the top. Oh wow, innovation there. At least Microsoft are trying something new AND refreshing, not just copying Ninty to make the 360 have the same exact features. Natal has serious potential. No promises yet of course, but simply slating it off just seems silly.

  • valuum

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 2:59 pm PT

    How can anyone here make any assumptions about the quality of the Natal tech without actually having used it? Stop huffing about it's "lack" of precision when you really have noclue_27.

  • noclue_27

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 1:25 pm PT

    Natal does not have the precision to track a finger pulling a trigger, don't expect any triple A shooters to use Natal anytime soon.

    Wii > Natal because it is a combination of the buttons and motion tracking, the metroid prime games are excellent examples of shooters that use the Wii hardware to make a great game.

    Most interesting to me was Sony's new controller, although there isn't much information on it it seems like an overpowered Wii using two Wiimotes instead of a wiimote+nunchuk.

  • Rudorlf

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 8:29 am PT

    I guess technologies does have it's limit, but Microsoft does gives us something original. I love Sony more than Microsoft (Sorry for going offtopic and please remember that I'm no Sony fanboy as I agree that both game companies and Nintendo's consoles are great at their own terms), but come on, I'm sure they have better ideas than plagiarizing Wii.

  • StegrShmil

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 8:19 am PT

    Project Natal is pretty cool and looks fun, but im a hardcore gamer that loves first person shooters, and project natal is not anything that i want interfering with the new shooters coming out. How are you suppose to shoot or move or anything without a controller. Besides, a controller is one of the main reasons why shooters are either good, or bad, and if their good, than the experience that the game makes cannot be improved by making me do the actions that my character does in the game.

  • NuKkU

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 8:17 am PT

    @bl33kda58: because all this wii sports and especially wii fit people think they are losing weight but they are not Nintendo is really destroying the hardcore gamer market and now M$ and Sony are doing motion controllers too and its all because of Nintendo

  • dzimm

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 6:43 am PT

    Natal sucks. That is all.

  • gapinglotus9

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 6:14 am PT

    I'm not a cliff fan but ill agree with him here. shooters need to advance and stealing rpg elements is the way to go. mass effect and fallout are rpgs first and shooters second what we need is a shooter first and rpg second similar to bioshock. its about character development both story wise as well as gameplay. think excellent shooter controls like modern warefare or gears plus the ability to upgrade your main characters armor or speed or reload speed or evasiveness or turning speed or jump height or hand steadiness. allow you to mold your character into a sniper or a tank like bullet absorber or a stealth knife killing machine. right now its just talk and i'm not confident cliff "more badess" bleszinski will deliver on this

  • StarlightHunter

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 4:55 am PT

    NATAL will probally cost the same as a wireless controller, Since all future 360's will come with NATAL as standard, I can't see it being to expensive. Its good that Epic are keeping shooter on a controller system they belong on but it would'nt hurt to experement.

  • ZippyDSMLee

    Posted Jul 7, 2009 9:43 pm PT

    Of cores not all their creativity dead with Gears...or Unreal 2....or Unreal tournament 3.... really their nothing but pompous cash ins who whine about porting games to the PC.....

    As for the WII comments ,it lacks precision and nintendo handicapped themselves going for the casuals like that. If they put a bit more into the WII and took more of a loss on the profit per unit made by putting in a better sensor unit and one built on wifi/blue tooth and not bloody INFRA RED, the wii would be that much better for all games..... Nin is lost in casual land where zombies roam, MS/Sony are trying to lure in the brain dead techno freaks who'll buy anything because its cool.

    Forget having better gameplay that pipe dream died with the continuation of graphics > everything else....I just hope by the 8th generation of gaming we have real button mapping option standards and perhaps automated AI driven playing since they are going to fck over play control with all their poorly thought out gadgets trying to one up each other........

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