Microsoft’s Kinect (previously Project Natal) motion-sensing and controller-free gaming technology was fully unveiled this week during E3 2010, with a release date, a host of interesting looking games and an enormous Cirque du Soleil interpretative performance.

What Microsoft didn’t talk about with regards to Kinect was a price.

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, the manager for Entertainment & Devices at Microsoft Germany, Oliver Kaltner revealed pricing information for Kinect will be forthcoming soon enough, but right now isn’t the time to talk about such details.

When will we get to hear how much would-be Kinect owners need to pay for the device? Kaltner says that Microsoft will share the price at the videogame industry event in Cologne, gamescom, in August this year.

“I believe that the price point is not the critical topic,” Kaltner said, “but something you need at the end of the communication in order to place a product properly into a market. From that standpoint pricing is an important topic for our target groups, our partners and, of course, also for us.

“I also think it is the right decision not to determine price points now,” Kaltner continued, “because it distracts completely from our actual core story with all its possibilities in the area of gaming, movie, music and social entertainment. We firmly believe that we can offer an unique innovation.

“Being responsible for the business in Germany, it comes in handy to still have certain flexibility. In eight weeks we are at gamescom and we will know the price not later than that, because we will start to sell [to retail].”

Kaltner also promised that Microsoft’s gamecom appearance will include a batch of fresh new announcements and surprises:

“I am very proud to say that Microsoft as a corporation did understand, how important gamescom is,” said Kaltner. “We will have a much bigger and more spectacular appearance at gamescom this year than we did last year,” said Kaltner.

“We have invested well – and because we did not unveil everything on E3 we will have also for gamescom a lot of fresh information.”

We’re definitely looking forward to gamescom then!

Source: Games Indutry