Natal’s launch to be as big as 360′s, says MS

The launch of Microsoft’s recently-revealed motion and voice-sensing camera, Project Natal will be as big as the launch of the Xbox 360 itself, according to Microsoft corporate VP Shane Kim.

Speaking to Kotaku, Kim said “We’re not just going to ship it when the hardware and software are ready. We have to make sure that there are enough content experiences that are really good. That’s similar to how you would think of the launch of a new console. It’s got to have a great launch line-up. That’s the same thing here.”

When asked what kind of audience Natal will be positioned towards, Kim worringly said, “We’re not focused on this generation’s casual gamers or even PS2 people who haven’t upgraded. This is about the 60% of households were a video game console doesn’t exist… the problem is that the controller is a barrier for some people and now with Project Natal.”

Earlier this week, analyst Michael Pachter predicted that the launch of Natal would require the support of around 30 third-party games. Who’s betting that 29 of them will be simplistic party games?