Project Natal

[Drakul]

Ok, some more info is out about the conditions Kinect needs to work as best as it can. Rather than pasting full articles, I'll just bulletpoint everything.

Things you need for Kinect to work/Things suggested you do:
6 foot between you and the camera in single player
8 foot between you and the camera in multiplayer
Even lighting
Don't play with sunshine shining into the camera
Nothing inbetween you and the camera (coffee table etc)
It's suggested it may be useful to play in a tidy room
If the camera cannot detect you, try changing what you're wearing incase your blending in with your surroundings

[Funky Fly]

I couldn't use this thing even if I wanted to, basically. I have my tv facing a window (no choice, barely 6 feet of space in front of the tv, gonna have to move the table every time and my lighting is not even. Damn.

[D Mac]

I'll probably end up getting Kinect instead of the Move. For bowling and sports games mostly.

[Drakul]

Kinect can now be used sitting down.

The subject of much gumflapping post E3, Kinect's ability to handle players who are sitting down has been more finely tuned, Eurogamer reports. It's now calibrated to focus on your neck-al area rather than your ass-al area.

The "base node" used to create the skeletal models that the controller recognizes has been switched from the bottom of the spine to the back of the neck, says Eurogamer, quoting a developer with experience working on the technology.

"It means that should the bottom of your torso get confused with the sofa, because your bum and your legs are enveloped inside the sofa, it doesn't matter because your hands and arms are still working," Andrew Oliver, of Blitz Games Studios, told Eurogamer.

The change occurred "a few months ago," Oliver said. "A lot of developers were like, 'Oh my God! Everything's broken,' because all the nodes were moved. But then it was like, 'Oh, actually, this is more logical.'"

Source (http://kotaku.com/5666123/kinects-solved-its-sitting+down-problem).

[Boomer]

Giant Bomb is previewing Kinect live right now.

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[#BROKEN Hasney]

A public service announcement: Do not under any circumstances play Kinect Sports Volleyball at 1:30 a.m. while standing under a ceiling fan with a dangling chain for a light switch. You could conceivably spike it into your year-old amazing TV, causing it to die with a rainbow LCD teardrop dripping down from the impact wound.

Plus you'll lose the match by forfeit.

http://becauseitoldyouso.blogspot.com/2010/11/yes-i-am-first-moron-to-break-his-tv.html

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_HGESyt-86TQ/TNPLwsZKn0I/AAAAAAAAAAY/pne-bnMS9gk/s1600/2010-11-05_01-46-31_9.jpg

Needs to be banned immediatatly.

[Emperor Smeat]

So basically this confirms that Kinect players are as clumsy or over-hyper as early Wii players.

Probably worse since at least with the Wiimote and PS Move most accidents occur when the thing slips out of the hand but with Kinect its the person's themselves who cause the damage.

[Drakul]

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Edit: Follow up video:

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It has a drive assist when you sit down, it seems. I think this is why we have to stand for the game. Someone suggested maybe the game assumes your age based on height. So if you are sitting and look to be the size of a 6 year old, the game will assume you're 6 years old and turn on drive assist.
Sounds plausible to me.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Heightist towards midgets, they may want a full gaming experience but can't because of their height. Scandalous.

[Kane Knight]

Heightist towards midgets, they may want a full gaming experience but can't because of their height. Scandalous.

Why must Microsoft pick on the handicapped so?

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Next it will come out that people in wheelchairs can't play Dance Central. Microsoft surely can't be that insensitive?!

[Boomer]

Dance Central succeeds just by not mapping your movements to an avatar directly. Any games that does this is immediately fucked.

[Kane Knight]

Next it will come out that people in wheelchairs can't play Dance Central. Microsoft surely can't be that insensitive?!

Those racists!

[Drakul]

Microsoft trying to quadruple Kinects accurancy.

While Kinect's hardware is locked in and finalised, the firmware that controls it is flexible and able to be upgraded. And that's exactly what Microsoft is planning on doing, according to a report on Eurogamer.

It's being reported that Microsoft is currently investigating ways of improving the compression technology that dictates how much code can run through the peripheral at any one time. This would mean an increase in the camera's resolution, which while currently restricted to 320x240 resolution could be unlocked to run at 640x480.

This would not only mean a clearer picture, but would also mean Kinect games would be able to track a user's individual finger movements, something only possible at the moment via third-party hacks.

Apparently the current limitations are in place because of the console's USB controller interface, which has to be kept open enough to support other USB-based peripherals like battery rechargers.

Microsoft's work on improving Kinect would thus focus on getting more code through the "gate" reserved for the motion-sensing camera.

We've contacted Microsoft for comment, and will update if we hear back.

Source (http://kotaku.com/5714843/microsoft-wants-to-quadruple-kinects-accuracy).

[Drakul]

I bought Kinect yesterday but I didn't really give it a spin until just now.

It's impressive and fun. I wasn't "blown away" like other people say they have been but i was impressed.

I only have Kinect Adventures right now but the disc also has demos of Dance Central, Joy Ride and Your Shape Fitness Evolved.

You move around a lot in KA but it stays fun. Some activities are better than others. I'm enjoying the Breakout style game and the onrails obstacle course the most. The underwater leak game is pretty rubbish, to be honest.
I think the reason for that is that Breakout and the obstacle course are very physical. Breakout, you are moving side to side, kicking and punching. The obstacle course has you jumping, ducking and moving side to side as well as stretching out your arms and legs to collect the coins. While the underwater leak game has you stand still 90% of the time and just stretch your arms out to block the leak.

My two, admitedly minor, problems with KA is that you have to sit through the "Kinect tips" every time it initially loads up. Stuff like "Make sure Kinect is on a stable surface" etc. The other problem is that I can't get back to the KA main menu after I start playing. So I can't access the demos if I start KA because they're only selectable from the main menu.

Kinect itself is better than people give it credit for. It's nothing like the Wii and it's not like the eyetoy, either. Admitedly I only had the original eyetoy so that's the eyetoy I'm comparing it to. To say it's a souped up eyetoy would be like saying your car is a souped up old-west wagon.

Also, you can use Kinect as a mic when you play games online. I think that includes regular games like Super Street Fighter IV or UFC or CoD. So, no headset needed for online chat, it seems.

This year is an unclear one because, looking at the release schedule for Kinect, the only game I know I'd get is Forza 4. I'm hoping more games are announced soon or even regular games with Kinect options. Kinect seems to have sold pretty well so I think it's safe to assume it's going to have a flow of games for a while to come. Weither that flow turns out to be crystal spring water or a burst sewage pipe, in terms of quality, we'll have to wait and see. It's fun, it works, it's just up to the developers how we use it now.

[Drakul]

http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2011/01/500x_avkin.jpg

Some photos snapped from behind the scenes at the setup for this week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas hint Microsoft will be showing something called "Avatar Kinect".

What is it? Provided, that is, these shots show anything other than a new marketing slogan? Your guess is as good as ours, since it won't be fully detailed until later this week when Microsoft holds its press conference on Wednesday night. We'll have men on the ground at the show, by the way, so will be bringing you the news on whatever it is "Avatar Kinect" turns out to be.

For what it's worth, given the name I'd wager it's some kind of social networking system using both your 360 avatar and the Kinect camera. Watch football games or movies with like-minded folks in the same Xbox Live Party while using/seeing your avatars, that kind of thing.

We've contacted Microsoft for comment, and will update if we hear back.

UPDATE - WinRumors says almost exactly that, the site claiming that Avatar Kinect is a software update "delivered over Xbox LIVE, [that] will allow Kinect owners to interact with each other using their avatars. The avatars will have a separate area, much like Nintendo's Mii channel, that will allow for users to control them using Kinect and interact to watch content or play games."

Source (http://kotaku.com/5724149/what-is-avatar-kinect).

[Drakul]

We've been wondering what Avatar Kinect is. Now we know. It's a way to use Microsoft's Xbox 360 Kinect sensor to slip us into a Matrix of avatars hanging out together in the virtual world.

They showed it in Vegas today.

http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2011/01/340x_av1.jpg

http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2011/01/340x_av05.jpg

Remember, the Kinect is a hands-free system and it's already been able to make avatars of gamers move on the TV in sync with movements of gamers in their living room. This Avatar Kinect tracks more and connects people via their avatars. Hence that Avatar Kinect name, of course!

During the CES 2011 keynote out in Las Vegas, Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer showed a short highlight reel that seems to promise the following:

-The Kinect sensor will not just map body movements, but facial expressions, mouth movement and eyebrow-raising
-It will then let our Avatars hang out together in virtual rooms, while we're connected over Xbox Live
-We'll be able to record videos of our connected Avatars and put them on Facebook
-We'll be able to hang out in various "sets"

It's essentially a fancy new kind of chat room with avatars puppeteered by people's gestures via the Kinect. Ballmer said it will be free for all Xbox Live Gold members (translation: paying Xbox Live users) this spring.

http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2011/01/340x_av2.jpg

Source (http://kotaku.com/5726116/avatar-kinect-is-a-new-xbox-live-gold-perk-and-a-fancier-chatroom).

[Drakul]

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[#BROKEN Hasney]

Sounds worse than Home, which makes it worse than AIDS.

[Drakul]

Does anyone else have Kinect and Kinect Adventures or is it just me?

I just got through playing KA online for the first time. Thought it was excellent. We did two different courses of Reflex Ridge. Thats this one:
http://gamerlimit.com/files/2010/11/reflex_ridge_2-590x331.jpg

and ended with the 3D breakout style game. It was competitive so it was much more physical and all the better for it.
After two courses of Reflex Ridge spent, jumping (over obstacles and to get a boost), ducking, hopping side to side etc, it got my pulse rate up a bit after doing it continually for half an hour. So cooled down with breakout which is much less physical in multiplayer than it is in single player.

Now that I've used Kinect a lot more, I can say it's worth getting it eventually. If you can afford it, you may as well get it now.

I was surprised that it understood me when I spoke to it. You don't have to do what they do at trade shows btw "Xbox....sign in", you just say "Xbox, sign in" like you are talking to anyone else and it does it. Even with my accent and even if I mumble. Though there was a time I said something and it did something else and another time where I was talking to someone in the room and the Xbox thought I was speaking to it and launched to the achievement screen.

Only real issue is that the camera seems to get confused if someone walks infront of you, even for a second. Then it has a hard time figure you out again, it seems.

I'm really hoping it doesn't become a "shovelware" magnet and that people don't waste money and time putting togethor things like Avatar Kinect, which is useless but will be helpful when they use that facial movement recognition in games. KA already has a simple version of it in its trophy room. Avatars mouth moves when you talk.

[Drakul]

One of the upcoming more "mature" Kinect games had details spilled by the ESRB. This is for Rise of Nightmares by SEGA. Possible minor spoilers:

This is a horror-adventure game in which players assume the role of an American tourist who must rescue his wife from a deranged scientist. From a first-person perspective, players use brass knuckles, knives, hatchets, and chainsaws to kill zombie-like creatures and disfigured monsters inside a mansion environment. Combat is highlighted by exaggerated sprays of blood, and damage often results in dismemberment or decapitation-stray body parts sometimes litter the ground. Some sequences and cutscenes depict more intense acts of violence: a man screams loudly as spikes impale his body; a restrained character's hand is chopped off before he is killed; a character (cut in half) crawls away in a pool of blood; a soldier is ripped apart by a monster, causing blood to stain the screen. During the course of the game, some female creatures are depicted in revealing outfits (e.g., 'pasties' that partially cover their breasts); in one sequence, a woman sits on the central character's chest and engages in suggestive dialogue (e.g., 'Oh, how I've thought of this-night after night. How I've missed these lips.'). Dialogue also includes phrases such as 'Best sex of my life.'/'Worst sex of my life,' 'f**k,' and 'sh*t.'