Shane Kim on Halo Chronicles, motion-sensing, 'surprises' (News)
GamePro had a chance to chat with Microsoft Game Studios vice president Shane Kim at the company's Spring Showcase event. Though the Xbox 360 leader had little news to report, he did drop a few intriguing hints at what's to come in 2008.
So I just got back from a quick roundtable chat with Shane Kim, and though the Microsoft Game Studios head had little new information to share, he did make a few fascinating comments.
Firstly, regarding questions about the rumoured Wii-style motion-sensing controller allegedly in the works for the Xbox 360: Kim demurred, saying "what is this 'Lips' [a possible code-name] I keep hearing about?" Kim did add, however, that Microsoft continues to invest in research and development, and part of that research does focus on new interfaces for the Xbox 360. So make of that what you will.
Second, regarding Halo Chronicles: Kim said that the project is still planned to be an "interactive series" for the Xbox 360, and that Microsoft is working closely with director Peter Jackson and Bungie Studios in order to see the project through. Kim mentioned the possibility of a second series in Halo Chronicles, which would attempt to push the game further into the mass market, but offered no further details. Though Kim wouldn't confirm that Halo Chronicles would be a downloadable title, he did call the possibility of digital distribution for the game "interesting."
Kim mentioned that Microsoft will be focusing more on developing its own game series in the future, instead of primarily working with outside studios (ala Gears of War 2 and Ninja Gaiden) in order to obtain exclusives. He felt that Microsoft developing more original franchises would be "important" moving forward.
Kim also mentioned that there would be "surprises" in store later in 2008. He gave no details, but suggested that Microsoft hasn't yet shown its full hand and that some of these "surprises" wouldn't just be new game announcements but products that would be available this year.