[Official] Kinect - Over 4 million units sold!

[Sethos]

Now it isnt.

It will be at launch.

You didn't just say that ...

[adepower]

Well it's not much use being supported now if you can't buy it now :laugh:

What I mean that if someone aquires Kinect now, they can start on PC usage before the release therfore, more things are discovered.

Sorry if it wasnt too clear :)

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

Isn't that what Microsoft & their partners will be doing internally?

I'm not sure how much it's going to be used outside of gaming tbh, if you're expecting Minority Report type computing. No doubt people will try though

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

Will do an update to the OP with today's news, in the meantime here's an interview with Aaron Greenberg

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/microsofts-aaron-greenberg-interview_1

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

Kinect Limit at Two Players?

Microsoft simultaneously offers clarification and dodges the question.

US, July 20, 2010

by IGN Staff

The Kinect multiplayer limit remains a mystery, but it seems that all launch games will be set at two players. In a recent discussion with Aaron Greenberg, Director of Product Management for Xbox 360 and Xbox Live at Microsoft, IGN was given scant new details on what to expect as far as multiplayer limits go for Kinect.

When asked for clarification on the multiplayer limit for Kinect, Greenberg said, "Right now, I think most of the experiences are focused on two-player for the launch titles. But we haven't gotten any more specific beyond that at this point."

The rush to meet launch deadlines may be to blame for this limit, or there may be software or hardware limitations that make expanding games beyond two players difficult. When asked about online multiplayer possibilities for Adrenalin Misfits back at E3, IGN was told that the short development time Konami had for the game prevented the developers from adding such features.

For now, expect games to have two-player multiplayer until we hear otherwise.

http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/110/1106958p1.html

[Smashing Pumpkin]

Definitely wait it out and see wagwan

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

Kinect price could drop next year - Codemasters

Wednesday 21-Jul-2010 10:50 AM Microsoft knows it can "sell all it can make" this year, says Cousens

Microsoft will successfully sell its manufacturing limit of Kinect this year - but may consider a price reduction in 2011.

That's according to Codemasters CEO Rod Cousens, who told CVG today that Microsoft's decision to go with a ?129.99 price point for the solus peripheral wouldn't halt the firm's success in Q4.

"The price point will doubtless have been researched and influenced by the timing of release and the anticipated achievable volume from the Xbox 360 devotees who will want to be first in line for the latest offering," he said.

"Microsoft will be confident about selling all it can make this year. Thereafter, it will be interesting to see if there is rapid downward price migration early on in 2011."

Cousens suggested that Microsoft could drop Kinect's current bundled game - Kinect Adventures - to bring the price point of the peripheral down next year.

"By bundling with a game [Kinect Adventures], it implies a standalone price target of sub-?100 - which is where Kinect will need to be if it is to attract mass and establish itself as a platform."

Microsoft yesterday announced that Kinect would be priced at ?129.99 in the UK at launch in November - but would also be bundled with its new Arcade 360 for ?249.99.

Tim Ingham

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=256585

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

MS: Hardcore Kinect games within 18 months

Wednesday 21-Jul-2010 10:32 AM Firm won't "step away" from main audience, it promises

Microsoft has pledged that its new casual focus - with motion sensing camera Kinect and new 4GB Arcade console - does not mean it is "stepping away" from hardcore gamers.

And it's even put a timescale on when we can expect to see hardcore games on the device - within 18 months

The firm yesterday announced that Kinect would be priced at ?129.99 in the UK at launch in November - but would also be bundled with its new Arcade 360 for ?249.99.

"Certainly over the launch phase and this Christmas in particular I think you'll see very much pure Kinect for 360 experiences that will appeal to the broad young/older/female/family audiences I described earlier," Xbox EMEA boss Chris Lewis told GI.biz.

"I'll say again, at the risk of sounding like a cracked record, that doesn't in any way, shape or form represent us stepping away from the core - which is why, during the press conference at E3 for example, we spent a good solid chunk of time around Halo Reach, Gears of War and Fable. And there will be more coming from us, and our third party partners."

He added: "[Will] we see more of these hybrid experiences coming, where you can complement what might ostensibly be a controller-based experience with gestures, voice and physical movement? Yes, I think that will come. I think there's an overlap there, a logical and a good one.

"Again, without compromising on the experience, making sure it's incremental and generally advantageous to the experience, then you'll see those types of experiences coming over time. And therefore I think all of the different types of gaming experiences you describe will become available over the coming 18 months or so."

That's quite a wait. Is anyone going to buy Kinect on day one?

[ Source: GI.biz ]

Tim Ingham

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=256576

[Hedon]

Now that it's confirmed, let's see what they have on the table!

[PreKe]

So... This is the official Kinect price discussion thread?

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

So... This is the official Kinect price discussion thread?

No, for everything Kinect

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

Microsoft ? Kinect is competitively priced with Wii and Move

July 28th, 2010 @ 19:58

By Stephany Nunneley

Brett Siddons, marketing manager for Microsoft UK, has said Kinect is competitively priced with both Wii and Move, because you only need one peripheral to get the full experience for 360.

Speaking with TechRadar, Siddons said if one were to ?do the maths? they would find Kinect is less expensive for two-players.

?The price thing itself depends on how you look at it,? said Siddons ?It?s ?129.99 RRP but it comes with a game within that price ? so Adventures will be packed in with the camera. If you buy it with the console which normally costs ?149.99, [it's] ?249.99 with the Kinect and the games ? another 100 pound on top.

?The camera tracks six people ? with two active gamers ? you don?t have to buy anything else.

?I?ll let you do the maths, but when you say Nintendo Wii or PlayStation Move you buy this and this, even for a two player games. What do you need and what do [you] actually have to spend for a two player game for this device versus that device.

?You actually find that [Kinect] is very competitively priced.?

In the UK, Sony?s price for a basic Move pack is ?49.99 and includes the PlayStation Eye Camera, the controller and a demo disc. If you want to add another Move and two Navigation controllers, it would cost you an additional ?39.99, plus ?59.98 for the nunchuk-like Navs.

That?s a total cost of around ?150, which is in-line with what MS is saying here, but it?s unknown if Sony plans to offer more bundle savings on Move than what has already been announced, so pricing on each side could eventually become more competitive, obviously.

Both Move and Kinect are later in the year, with the former hitting in September and the later in November.

Thanks, GoNintendo.

http://www.vg247.com/2010/07/28/microsoft-kinect-is-competitively-priced-with-wii-and-move/

[George P Global Moderator]

Makes sense for MS to bang home the idea that you don't need to buy more stuff for multiplayer games, which is true. That's the right marketing move at this point. I also expect that we could get some surprise limited time kinect deals later on where the price goes lower, retail specials if you will.

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

Molyneux: Motion will not cause ?the death? of standard controllers

August 3rd, 2010 @ 17:23

By Stephany Nunneley

Peter Molyneux has said he thinks of traditional controllers as a skateboard, and motion controllers as a bicycle, explaining the analogy comes from one taking practice to use, and the other something everyone can work.

Speaking with Develop, Molyneux surmised standard controllers weren?t dying anytime soon and since both controllers were so different from one another, it made no sense to compare the two.

?The controller is a skateboard,? the Lionhead boss said.

?It requires an element of skill and practice for use. And yes, it is lovely and refreshing to use motion controllers, but they are a different kind of experience. You can argue all you want that bicycles are better for cycling than skateboards, but ultimately they?re too different experiences for compare.

?Games controllers have been designed for two decades, and they?re not going anywhere, they will continue to evolve. I don?t think motion control, in itself, will cause the death of standard controllers.?

As far as motion control?s impact on the industry is concerned, Molyenux doesn?t feel the peripherals are the most paramount invention to consoles, nor gaming as a whole as there?s been many important additions to it in recent years.

?Motion control has been a really interesting concept over the last few years,? he said. ?Though I?m not sure it?s the most important change over the last five years. That would be a difficult one to choose ? handheld gaming, social gaming, the cloud, online gameplay.

?It?s been an amazing ride these last five years. I don?t think anyone?s stopped to notice that every six months over the last five years something?s happened that?s changed the course of the industry.?

The full interview with Molyneux can be read through the link up top and you can catch Fable III in stores around October for 360, while the PC version has been delayed.

http://www.vg247.com/2010/08/03/molyneux-motion-will-not-cause-the-death-of-standard-controllers/

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

No Kinect support for Fable III at launch, says Molyneux

August 5th, 2010 @ 06:05

By Nathan Grayson

Afraid you?ll work up a sticky, exhausting sweat doing some light yoga in Your Shape? Then why not take a load off by, er, saving and then ruling the entire world?

Speaking during the Engadget Show, Lionhead head lion Peter Molyneux revealed that Fable III?s ?wonderfully additive? Kinect support won?t be part of the package when the game launches this October. According to Joystiq, some sort of post-launch patch could be in the cards, but for now, your character?s the only one who?ll be doing goofy dances and pantomiming sock puppets.

Well, you know, unless that?s just something you do. Like, on your own. Don?t worry, though. We won?t judge you. Not so long as you?re holding that gun and screaming at us, anyway.

http://www.vg247.com/2010/08/05/no-kinect-support-for-fable-iii-at-launch-says-molyneux/

----

Kinect: Lag can be attributed to software choices, says Blitz

August 4th, 2010 @ 21:17

By Stephany Nunneley

Blitz Games CTO Andrew Oliver has said lag noticed in Kinect demos can be eliminated by developers if using proper software techniques.

Speaking with Gamasutra, Oliver, who is working on The Biggest Loser: Ultimate Workout for Kinect, said the tech takes a ?little bit of time to calculate? and any cracks seen are ?fixable by software?, and likens these issues to developers working with a new console.

?[Depending] on what technology you?re using, I have seen a few games with a bit of lag, but that is the software choice of the creators; they?ve programmed it a certain way, and they?ll come up with new techniques,? said Oliver.

?We will tighten and tighten it. There doesn?t need to be a lag. We can get it down to maybe two frames behind, which is pretty insignificant; you won?t notice. We?re just learning new tricks. Ours is pretty tight.

?There are various technologies involved. Some people are using a skeletal system, and it takes a little bit of time to calculate. It?s only a split second. We?re actually using a different masking system, which can tighten things up.

?But this is all software-based, so where some people might see some little cracks, they?re easily fixable by software. That is, the camera fundamentally works and gives you the input; game designers are running forward in a completely new area and learning this stuff. It?s like any console.

?The first few games will look like nothing compared to second and third generation.?

Oliver said at Develop last month Blitz found a way to work around the ?sitting? issues in Kinect.

Kinect is slated for release in November.

http://www.vg247.com/2010/08/04/kinect-lag-can-be-attributed-to-software-choices-says-blitz/

[Hedon]

But but but but...you can't sit while using Kinect.

[Hedon]

Kinect gobbles up ?less than 1%? of 360?s CPU

You might be worrying that with all the power of Kinect?s motion tracking magic there might not be much room left in compatible games for the kind of tech we see in many AAA releases. Fear not; Ubisoft?s Frederic Blais who handles all the Kinect stuff for the company is here to wipe those worries away.When asked about the rumors as to Kinect taking up a whole CPU core, Blais replied: ?That?s not true at all. I don?t really know how much I can talk about it but it?s less than 1% [of the CPU's power], or something like that.?

Therefore he?s convinced that using Kinect will not put a strain on the games using it: ??we could apply Kinect to an action game and still put the same kind of action on screen?.

Reassurringly, it looks like Blais is thinking like most gamers in terms of motion controls: ?I think that technology?s really cool when it?s faster than a controller, or you do something that you can?t do with a controller. These are the rules of Kinect design.?

My link

Well that debunks the SDF force.

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

I wonder if it borrows more from the GPU then.

Either way that is a lot of power from 1%. Would be nice for them to open that up a bit and allow developers more power if they can. Getting rid of the chip inside Kinect looks like a smart move after all though.

[mad_onion]

Has anyone else played it on the tour thing yet?

I just played it today at Covent Garden, it's really fun. I only played on the public one but I'm going to make an appointment and go back next week. Then you get a room with a sofa and everything lol. They have Dance Central too!

So I only played Joyride and the raft game on Adventures but me and my non-gamer friend had loads of fun. I came third in Joyride twice, the hot girls running it seemed impressed ;)

If you live in London you should definitely go you can book on Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/KinectForXbox360#!/KinectForXbox360?v=app_143662905646698 or you can just turn up and make an appointment.

[George P Global Moderator]

Has anyone else played it on the tour thing yet?

I just played it today at Covent Garden, it's really fun. I only played on the public one but I'm going to make an appointment and go back next week. Then you get a room with a sofa and everything lol. They have Dance Central too!

So I only played Joyride and the raft game on Adventures but me and my non-gamer friend had loads of fun. I came third in Joyride twice, the hot girls running it seemed impressed ;)

If you live in London you should definitely go you can book on Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/KinectForXbox360#!/KinectForXbox360?v=app_143662905646698 or you can just turn up and make an appointment.

I think this says alot about the tech and the games when gamers actually try it out and say they had fun. What more do you need really? And better yet you said your non-gamer friend had fun as well, that's a huge win right there.

[Ironman273]

Is This How Microsoft Will Fix Kinect's Couch Problem?

Microsoft's forthcoming Kinect camera controller for the Xbox 360 plays better with standing humans than it does with couch potatoes. Microsoft says it's still "calibrating" Kinect for seated players and may accomplish that with a little help from Amazon.com.

The Xbox 360 maker may have turned to Amazon's Mechanical Turk service to make Kinect's depth-sensing camera work better when confronted with furniture, pets and people of varying shapes and sizes.

For those unfamiliar with Amazon Mechanical Turk, it's an online service that distributes thousands of small tasks to a "diverse, on-demand, scalable workforce." Those tasks include tagging objects in a photo or video, transcribing audio recordings or writing small articles. It's grunt work and typically pays pennies for small, repetitive tasks.

Kotaku reader Charonchan pointed us to a series of Mechanical Turk jobs—HITs or Human Intelligence Tasks—that appear to be Kinect related. Users are tasked with looking at an images, seeing if there is an identifiable human head in the shot, then tagging the head, shoulders, elbows and hands with a simple skeletal frame.

Many of the images have users seated on coaches or near tables, chairs and Guitar Hero drum controllers. Those images are animated—helpful for picking out details in these low quality, monochromatic shots—and they look like this.

The images are full of variety, filled with sofas, lamps, ottomans, coffee tables, big people, little people, dogs and all kinds of distractions that might confuse Kinect's infrared projector and depth sensor. They're available on Amazon Mechanical Turk for the studying and tagging until next week.

While the HIT listing doesn't specifically mention that this is related to Kinect or Xbox 360, the job requestor links back to the "Upper Body Image Tagger" on Microsoft's Windows.Net site.

Kotaku reached out to Microsoft earlier today to get clarification and comment on whether Kinect is being tweaked with the help of Amazon Mechanical Turk users, but the company has not yet responded.

Source: Kotaku

[George P Global Moderator]

I think it's well known that MS and Amazon have some IP deal going, from last year. Whatever works, works.

[Ironman273]

250GB Xbox 360 Kinect bundle tipped on 4GB packaging

By Darren Murph posted Aug 6th 2010 7:49PM

Well, well -- what have we here? We already knew that Microsoft was planning to ship a 4GB Xbox 360 bundle that included Kinect, and now it seems as if the Big M will also package its forthcoming motion sensor with the 250GB 'box. Based on the packaging of a 4GB bundle over in Australia, it definitely looks as if consumers will have a more capacious option if buying an Xbox 360 for the first time with Kinect, but we're all waiting with bated breath to hear the official confirmation (or denial, but mostly just confirmation) from Ballmer's crew. Anytime now, folks...

Source: Engadget

[George P Global Moderator]

Source: Engadget

Well, there's your $399 price point I guess? Or maybe $349.99 if they're feeling in a good mood.

[Ironman273]

Microsoft’s Kinect Dismantled and Peered Into, Results Are Impressive

By Evan Selleck on Friday, Aug 6th 2010

Now that a new patent has shown its face on the Internet, and we know that the Kinect is fully capable of recognizing sign language (which just opens so many doors, it’s almost ridiculous), why don’t we take a look inside the device itself? Just like with any other proper piece of technology out there, the tear-down is inevitable. While this one may not be as in-depth as many of the others out there, it’s good enough for now. And, happily enough, it wields some pretty interesting pieces of intel.

Through their inspection, T3 was able to pull how some of the things work within the motion-based peripheral. For example, the motion sensor is made up of two parts: one IR VGA camera, and the projector. Apparently, that projector will fire out a laser that scans the entire field of play, which the camera will then pick up and interpret, to decipher between you, the second player, and your couch. (Among other things in your living room, obviously.) This is called the “depth field.” Which is pretty appropriately named.

Perhaps more interesting, though, is the way that Kinect interprets the pixels it receives from that depth field. The camera will pick up the image that the laser has painted, and then the software will immediately take that image and run it through a multitude of filters, which will work out what is a person and what isn’t. The camera and the software work together to work with the IR noise that it receives from the pixels of the camera, which is then measured in a varying color spectrum. That’s why you have to stand a certain amount of distance from Kinect, so that it can register you, versus everything else. Interestingly enough, Kinect will paint you in bright shades of red, green, or other colors, while the things in the background are all a gray shade.

In other words, as quickly as it can, Kinect has to work out what a human is, depending on each situation and environment. The system will follow a set amount of system guidelines to determine the human veruss, say, your coffee table. It does this because the designers and engineers have told Kinect that a human has two arms, two legs, and a head. The system will then determine how tall, wide, short, or skinny you are, right on the fly. That’s where that whole “body scan” thing comes in.

Truth be told, Kinect may be targeted at the casual gamer out there, at least right now, but there’s obviously some hardcore technology empowering this thing. We can’t wait to see what it all breaks down into, and what games developers out there can come up with. These are definitely some interesting times, and we can’t wait to see what happens.

Source: SlashGear