Microsoft Confident That $150 is Right for Kinect

[JMcEntegart]

In a recent interview, Microsoft's Chris Lewis revealed why the company priced Kinect the way it did and how long we'll have to wait before we see some non-casual games.

Microsoft Confident That $150 is Right for Kinect : Read more

 

[makotech222]

i wouldn't get that for $10...

 

[daship]

Fail, $50 is pushing it.

 

[Morgan3rd]

I think $120 would sell a lot more than 150... I still don't have a 360 or a PS3. (PC gaming ftw). I may get a rockband 3/kinect/360 bundle though if I feel like splurging... Or I could upgrade to i7...

I think it will be a while yet before I own an xbox.

 

[rmmil978]

I think it is overpriced at $150. $100 seems more reasonable to me, and the bundled / "free game" will be no more exciting than Wii Sports was, which was a gimmick game that was fun for about 10 seconds. The new pricing on the Xbox console as a whole and the slim versions with wifi are wonderful ideas and I applaud Microsoft for doing it. But if they're going to charge $150 they'd better broaden past the "casual gamer market" (i.e. hardcore gaming = plants vs. zombies) and do it fast, because the casual gamer will just go out and buy a Wii if they wanna spend $150 on something (which the Wii will probably be by next Christmas).

 

[back_by_demand]

I think I understand what MS is trying to do here, and it is very subtle.

Owners of the Wii are casual gamers and potential casual gamers likely buy a Wii as there are no hardcore games.

Owners of the Xbox 360 like to think of themselves as hardcore games and potential hardcore gamers are likely to buy an Xbox 360 because it has hardcore games.

So, what about those who dont have either console yet or are upgrading?
Millions of consumers who are either casual or hardcore, so why split the market in half and lose all the customer?

The new Xbox 360S and the Kinect will attract previous Wii owners looking for a casula game but on a more powerful system
It will attract previous Xbox 360 owners as it can still play their existing hardcore games and is more reliable (cooler).

But more importantly it will attract those who have never owned a console before who wanted both casual and hardcore but not have to buy 2 separate consoles. There are people out there who want to play GoW2 for themselves and when their kids play on it switch over to Monkey Tennis.

 

[Guest]

The point of Kinect is to grab a piece of the Wii pie, not to sell an accessory to the 18-35 year old boys who already own an Xbox 360 and buy Call of Duty maps.

The $300 bundle is a very good deal and will attract a lot of new family-conscious consumers. If the family already has a 360 then for $150 they ostensibly get a new video game system with games that are wildly different than what's been available on Xbox 360.

MS wants to expand the Xbox's appeal beyond 18-35 year old males that have usurped the platform. They've wanted to expand the Xbox audience for a long time, but this looks like the first time it's actually going to work. Fitness games will get women playing Xbox. Dance games will get girls. Pet sims and kart racers will get kids. Sports games and party games will get families. Xbox will no longer just be a brand associated with violent shooters and fantasy games for immature boys.

18-35 year old males are still going to buy Halo, CoD, and Gears. Microsoft has that demographic locked up there is no point in targeting Kinect at that audience.

I'd say the biggest flaw in Microsoft's strategy is the design of the Xbox 360. They've actually made the Xbox 360 less appealing to girls/mothers/grandparents than it was before. Kinect hardware could have been a little more candy apple friendly as well.

 

[stromm]

I bought an Elite just to play crackdown. I've had it RRoD on me and it took my sending a video of the RRoD to MS's support team (they swore Elites couldn't RRoD) for proof to get it exchanged. That process was quick though, less than 2 hours of my time. Then I had a new Elite within 3 days.

I also have a Wii with 4 sets of controllers and spent way too many nights in the back yard with my home made projection screen playing golf and other games. Not to mention the money I've spent on gaming PC's over the years.

But, there's no way in he11 that I'm going to spend $150.00 on Kinect. Sorry MS. Make it $99.00 and I'll get one as soon as they're released.

And doesn't anyone else think that 12-18 month timeline they mention might also coincide with the next generation console? Why not 3-6 months for "hard core" games? 12-18 months is past the "oh, I gotta have that thing" time.

 

[Guest]

Should have been $79 - $99. At $150, I don't think they are going to be able to sell enough of them to get the install base they need. At $90, I probably would make a launch day purchase. At $150, I'll pass.

 

[Guest]

I think $150 is fair. It seems like the technology used would take up some more cost being that there is two cameras and then they had to develop and tweak the programming to use the device. Impressive so far by the demo videos. If it works 75 percent as well as I have seen in the videos, hats off to the team who developed it.

 

[AndrewMD]

Initial price is fine. It is either you want the device or you do not want the device.

Microsoft will most likely lower the price once the initial demand is gone. As for the device itself, it represents another type of interaction with a console that has been fairly good to me since its launch.

I will most likely purchase a complete bundle version of this set when it comes out. I like the way the new 360 looks.

 

[Guest]

How many Wii controllers did you buy and at what cost? How many move controllers will you buy and at what cost? The Kinect is like buying multiple controllers at once, because casual games are not fun to play by yourself. The price is right, but I wish it was a bit lower as I did when I purchased my house. Either you buy the produt or not.

 

[smeker]

I would pay $39.99

 

[coldmast]

[citation][nom]stromm[/nom] Make it $99.00 and I'll get one as soon as they're released.[/citation]

I totally agree; $99 is the sweet spot, though I'd at least play a game I like on it before I fork over any cash. I think the Microsoft view about the attachment is that it functions as multiple controllers, so you should pay the same price as multiple controllers.

 

[Guest]

I'd could buy a used Wii for $150.

 

[ares1214]

this is a good extension and all, but 150 bucks is kinda pushing it. if they put it in a combo with the new xbox, maybe for 350-400$, then thats better, but i dont think many "casual" gamers will spend 150$ on an extension like this, and a lot of "hardcore" gamers will be too proud to buy it, or have no use for it.

 

[Marco925]

I can't wait for Air Guitar Hero!

 

[Sorax]

It's hard for us to know how much money has already been spent by Microsoft for Kinect's development. I don't imagine the hardware is particularly expensive to mass produce but the software is revolutionary. This blog post from a Kinect engineer gives a great perspective on just what has been achieved: http://procrastineering.blogspot.com/2009/06/project-natal.html

I know at the end of the day it only matters if it is fun. But that's because Kinect is a game implementation. It's tech could be used in many facets of life.

So it's hard for me to say if $150 is a good value. As a consumer, I always want the price to be lower, but I also appreciate what's actually in the box. The $300 bundle is instantly more appealing and I might choose to buy that just to get the new Xbox form.

 

[sceen311]

I'm quite sure it wont be worth anything until there is a decent game for it.

 

[sliem]

Get a decent hardcore fps game or two that uses kinect and lower the price to $99 (or bundle it with that game and tag it $149) and it'll sell better.

 

[aznshinobi]

Ehh.... Not exactly the ideal price considering (sorry to be a fan boy) but the move is only 100$, you'd think they would price it to compete. I guess not. 150$ is just pushing it, I COULD BY A CPU WITH THAT!

 

[zaznet]

It's a specialized and limited use controller. You can only control a select few new titles with it. It may be a revolutionary controller but it is still limited to game availability.

Making it over $100 is too expensive for what it does.

I'd spend $50 for one (like I would for a wireless hand held controller) but not $150.

 

[Honis]

I think $150 is competitive if you consider cost to max out experience.

A full set of Wii controllers (motionplus controller (3x$50) and nunchuck (4x$20)) is $280.

A full set of PS3 motion controllers (PS Eye (1x$40) Controller (4x$50) and "nunchuck" (2x$30)) is $300. Using regular controllers instead of the 2 nunchucks (dual shock controller (1x$55)) brings the total to $295.

In both cases I left out controllers and accessories standard with basic bundles. Prices are based on BestBuy.com 07/23/10.

A $150 complete package is not only cheaper but easier for parents to understand and buy for little Johnny. That's the target audience of the motion gimmick and Microsoft is playing to it quiet well I think. I own a PC and will buy a kinect as soon as windows 7 drivers are available. There are a lot of fun possibilities.

 

[hixbot]

Way too expensive for a RGB camera with a cheap depth finder. If it offloaded the processing to a built-in processor, I'd say that would be different. But since all processing must be done by the 360, it's just a cheap device that should be no more than $50.

Considering the entire Wii console sells for $150 and has a healthy library of motion controlled games, I'm not sure why anyone would pay $150 for kinect, plus another $200 for the 360.
Those who already own a 360 would still be better off buying a Wii if they are interested in casual games.

 

[husker]

[citation][nom]Quote[/nom]Chris Lewis, VP of Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft, this week told GamesIndustry.biz that we can look forward to hybrid games that complement what might ostensibly be a controller-based experience with gestures, voice and physical movement. [/citation]
This is the real news here. Some naysayers here have been dissing the kinect because they prefer a controller and say that motion sensing is just a gimick. I and others have often stated that games could use both. You don't loose anything that a controller gives you and then add motion detection with it. A wii or sony move is just a replacement for a standard controller, where as kinect is a whole new input method you can use in addition to the controller.