Kinect 2 so accurate it can lip read

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 28 November, 2011

Future Xbox consoles to come with Kinect 2 built in.

Microsoft plans to release a next-generation Kinect device so accurate it can lip read, sources have told Eurogamer.

Kinect 2 will come bundled with future Xbox consoles, we understand.

The intention is that Kinect 2 will offer improved motion sensing and voice recognition.

One development source told Eurogamer that Kinect 2 will be so powerful it will enable games to lip read, detect when players are angry, and determine in which direction they are facing.

Kinect 2 can track the pitch and volume of player voices and facial characteristics to measure different emotional states.

The current Kinect is hamstrung by having to pass data to the Xbox 360 through ageing USB technology - an issue discussed by Eurogamer last year.

When Kinect launched in November 2010 the depth sensor was set at a 30 frames per second limit and a 320x240 resolution limit. The issue relates to the USB controller interface, which is capable of around 35MB/s, but it only uses around 15/16MB/s. This artificial limit is in place because multiple USB devices can be used at once on an Xbox 360.

Kinect 2, however, can feed the next Xbox more information, and thus a higher resolution CCD [charge-coupled device].

"It can be cabled straight through on any number of technologies that just take phenomenally high res data straight to the main processor and straight to the main RAM and ask, what do you want to do with it?" our source said.

Microsoft reportedly plans to launch two very different versions of the next Xbox.

According to a Digital Foundry report on GamesIndustry.biz, the first is a "pared down machine" to be released as cheaply as possible. It is likened to a set-top box, and will act as a Kinect-themed gaming portal.

The second is a "more fully-featured machine" with optical drive, hard disk and backwards compatibility. This would be aimed at hardcore gamers and released at a higher price-point.

Next-generation talk has ramped up in recent weeks, with Edge reporting that the next Xbox will launch late next year.

Digital Foundry believes this is unlikely, however, suggesting a 2013 launch. The console is rumoured to be set for a reveal at E3 2012.

Edge also claimed advanced development kits were already at major publishers and their teams - a suggestion corroborated by Eurogamer sources. We have been unable to verify the rumour that AMD is providing the GPU, however.

A report by MSNerd called the next Xbox the Xbox Loop - or the Xbox TV, which may relate to the rumoured cheaper Kinect 2 SKU.

Eurogamer understands Loop was the codename of Microsoft's early motion-sensing technology that predated Nintendo's July 2008 Wii Motion Plus announcement. It was a device that wrapped around a player's arm, and was said to be more accurate than both the Wii and the PlayStation Move controller.

Microsoft told Eurogamer it "does not comment on rumour or speculation".

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

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Comments (176) Latest comment 3 months ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Utopolitan #1 3 months ago

    And my penis is ten inches.

  • sonicyoda #2 3 months ago

    What would be great is if the new Kinect actually increases the accuracy of past games instead of only working with 'Kinect 2 Only' games. The Motion Plus has this same problem and I think Nintendo are missing a massive trick there. Come on Microsoft; you know it makes sense.

  • SpartanGR #3 3 months ago

    God damn just bought mine. So we throw the old ones in the dumpster ms eh?
    Edited by 1 at 28/11/11 @ 12:07

  • Supposedcorpse #4 3 months ago

    Yeah, just as Kinect 1 was going to be able to motion track accurately? Also, why build it in to the new Xbox? I don't want it. I'm not paying extra for a console with it.

  • -cerberus- #5 3 months ago

    Don't shove this garbage down our throats by releasing a bundle. If I want a Kinect, I'll buy one.

  • shrinkwrapped #6 3 months ago

    Kinect 2 will be so powerful it will enable games to lip read, detect when players are angry
    Whereas my Kinect 1 can just assume I'm angry every time I look at it, as I remember how much it cost and think about how useless it has been.

  • xexuxjy #7 3 months ago

    Bundled isn't quite the same as built in, and built in would be 'dumb' :)

  • abigsmurf #8 3 months ago

    So the 720 is confirmed for USB3 ports?

  • GamesProgrammer Verified Games Team Programmer, Eutechnyx Ltd. #9 3 months ago

    I bet all those face tracking animation companies with there multi tens of thousands of pounds camera setups, are quaking in there boots. Think how cheap LA Noire would of been to make if only they had Kinect 2!

    /Sarcasm

  • johnson81 #10 3 months ago

    That's awesome, at least it can see me tell it to "Get Fucked for being a piece of shit".

  • TopKatt #11 3 months ago

    Couldn't care less, just make sure there's a gamepad in there as well please.

  • Yodith #12 3 months ago

    Unless it recognises motion closer to the screen, these improvements are of no use to me at all. I don't have enough floor space for current generation Kinect to work properly.

  • FogHeart #13 3 months ago

    Hope it can be a USB2 device rather than have its own connection type - so your Kinect 2 can plug into a PC running Windows 8. Failing that, I'd like the next XBox to have a way of viewing TV channels that aren't available via streaming over the internet - so we can finally have one box under the TV that does games, movies and TV with PVR recording, with a voice and gesture interface that (shock!) works well.

    EDIT: Yodith, there is hope.
    Edited by 1 at 28/11/11 @ 12:19

  • kestral #14 3 months ago

    Microsoft has a tendency to over promise and under deliver, so I am taking this with a pinch of salt

  • Kanjin #15 3 months ago

    Who cares, just make some good games for it!

  • The-Bodybuilder #16 3 months ago

    I am thoroughly excited for kinect 2......not for gaming reasons though.
    Imagine what hackers can do? And it may finally bring accurate yet cost-effective kinematic data analysis to sports. Yay.

  • Jonny5Alive7 #17 3 months ago

    I'd like this to all be true, but the first Kinect was meant to a lot of this.

  • Bennicus #18 3 months ago

    "a higher resolution CCD [charge-coupled device]. "

    You can just say "camera" and we won't think any less of you.

  • FireMonkey #19 3 months ago

    Post deleted at 09:50:56 12-12-2011

  • Lukus #20 3 months ago

    Kinect 2 sounds pretty good! Assuming it reduces all latency issues.

    Having said that, I've never played Kinect, as it's not my bag at all and is clearly a laggy piece of crap. :)

  • FireMonkey #21 3 months ago

    @kestral - So do most companies.

  • Yuroko #22 3 months ago

    Glad I paid Ł130 for their prototype.

  • Zapatero #23 3 months ago

    I was reading the article thinking Kinect 2 was going to be built in to the next Xbox. If it is, it's going to be a real bugger balancing that bad boy on my TV.

  • Ironic_War_Criminal #24 3 months ago

    @Yuroko

    Microsoft finally caught on to the Apple model of sales.

  • 32768Colours #25 3 months ago

    Kinect 2 could do home CT scans for all I care, if I need to rearrange my entire living space to accomodate its stringent FOV, then I'll still be sitting this particular gaming "revolution" out.

    For a mass consumer product that aspect of Kinect's design was incredibly short-sighted. Perhaps they did the best they could within the constraints the 360 put on them. Or perhaps they just didn't care.

    Either way, its pretty much the main reason I've been so down on Kinect to be honest - we don't all live in open plan Ikea-styled apartments or massive middle-class American homes!

  • LR100 #26 3 months ago

    Hopefully you won't have to stand 100 yards away either.

  • flaming.carrot #27 3 months ago

    Rumored next Xbox comes with rumoured add-on with rumoured amazing new features rumour.

  • coolbritannia #28 3 months ago

    Wasn't there a story saying Kinect 2 can read objects as close as 20cm from the camera? If it's built into nextbox as standard that'd be brilliant. Gamers could actually stop being passively involved in stories and actually act them out, if they wanted.

  • spongebob #29 3 months ago

    I bet half of you cursing MS for putting out a "prototype" first buy all iterations of iPhone and love every second of it :)

    By the way, anyone else think next Xbox could have something to do with the infinity sign (loop, two times 360)?

  • patch #30 3 months ago

    Is the problem with Kinect really all down to lack of resolution? I'd say it was more the lack of high quality games. Pretty interesting article on IndustryGamers. Ubisoft bod Tony Key makes a few interesting points.

  • Cadence #31 3 months ago

    Don't believe a word of it.

  • NHDavid #32 3 months ago

    I love my Kinect and my family plays it all of the time....hate away......

  • Beano #33 3 months ago

    Vapour 2.0

  • Bullet_Tunnel #34 3 months ago

    will i get banned for doing the wanker gesture at the two pricks who clutter up my dashboard with their "zany" antics?- forden and mayher, get off my f*&*$ xbox. just because youve seen the entire box set of blackadder doesn't mean you are a comedy duo.

  • Turrican_Freak #35 3 months ago

    It would have been much more interesting if there were also a cheaper version without kinect.

  • carlitoswagon #36 3 months ago

    If we're looking at next generation gaming then I've no problems with Kinect being built into the console. Granted, it's implementation and performance so far has been poor, although this should improve for the reasons mentioned in the article. As with most, I prefer a good gamepad and buttons to press, although if Kinect can actually lip read accurately, then there's no reason voice commands couldn't be incorporated 'successfully' into our beloved games.

    The overall cost of having this would be my major concern and the starting price of any future xbox will be one to watch out for...

  • FireMonkey #37 3 months ago

    @Yuroko - "Glad I paid Ł130 for their prototype"

    No, you paid Ł130 for a version that works with this gen of console. That's like saying you shouldn't have bought an Xbox or Xbox 360 as they are just prototypes of the Next Xbox.
    Edited by 1 at 28/11/11 @ 14:27

  • Wash #38 3 months ago

    Has a peripheral ever garnered so much nerd rage :p

    As for the news, sounds good.

  • Moz #39 3 months ago

    @Yodith I second that. Traded my Kinect in 'cos it just wasn't usable in my house, they need to get wide angle lens fitted to the Kinect 2

  • Jorendo #40 3 months ago

    Cool story bro! Can we now see some actual games for the kinect plx?

    Seriousely..i bought the kinect with promise more games would appear. A year later and there have hardly been any game releases or kinect support at all. WTF man, both sony and MS where shouting that motion controlled games would be the future yet both systems have a serious lack of games on their motion control devices. Sure sure some dance, fitness and sport games but we where promised more.

  • superdelphinus #41 3 months ago

    Presumably if it detects you getting to emotionally involved in a game it would tell you to turn the machine off, have a walk and ponder what is really important in life?

  • GreyBeard #42 3 months ago

    Yeah.... riiiiight. Just like Kinect can scan in real-world objects to use in-game like they showed two E3's ago.

  • Rack #43 3 months ago

    Honestly I'm somewhat intrigued. I can think of a few things that Kinect could do really well if only it had the familiarity. You could really put the point into point and click, strategy games could be done very nicely and just throwing in the ability to point at an enemy and go "bang" in a brawler would be pretty fun.

    But the idea of buying something else that says "Microsoft" on it doesn't appeal.

  • Syrette #44 3 months ago

    Basically, they are forcing Kinect on Xbox gamers. They are assuming that enough people will not have a problem with that, and will buy it.

    When you've spent so much money on this tech and marketing it, you're naturally not going to want to support games that don't use it.

    And this is why the 360 is almost certainly my last Microsoft console ever. I don't have anything against motion controls, I think Kinect is impressive and will only get better.

    But I play games to relax. I don't want to be flailing my arms around, running around on the spot, or moving my body in any way. And so I find Microsoft's likely lack of interest in people like me (the majority?) quite troubling.

    I'm less worried about a Move-focused PS4 because Sony appear to like to support titles that can be played with both a DS3 or a Move controller. And even with Move, it's easier to play sitting down.
    Edited by 2 at 28/11/11 @ 13:17

  • Progguitarist #45 3 months ago

    If this the direction gaming is going in, I'm out.

  • Jorendo #46 3 months ago

    @Syrette Don't worry you won't have to do that. Look at the kinect atm. How many games do you know that you really love and use kinect for it? You won't have to run around the house trowing your arms around just in order to play Call of Duty modern Walkfare.

  • geoneo123 #47 3 months ago

    Built in? If I have to put my first xbox console under of my TV I wouldnt have been able to hear it.

    Dont put it in the console as I bet there is enough problems trying to keep it cool as it is.

  • Whatascoop #48 3 months ago

    All those must have PSmove and kinect games eh.

  • Badassbab #49 3 months ago

    I want future Kinect technology to be really good, much better than it is now. The day Kinect doesn't need much room, doesn't need me to stand up and most importantly of all has no lag is the day Kinect can really shine.

  • CHAZBIGPOTATO #50 3 months ago

    Xbox "I detect a hint of violent aggression in your voice, please calm down". Then it goes flying out through the window.

  • Cjail #51 3 months ago

    "detect when players are angry"...and start trying to escape!
    Edited by 1 at 28/11/11 @ 13:38

  • Isinona #52 3 months ago

    Hang on, a lip reading machine that can see through an infrared lens? Didn't Kubrick warn us about this?

    Dave Bowman: Hello, KINECT. Do you read me, KINECT?
    KINECT: Affirmative, Dave. I read you.
    Dave Bowman: Open the Xbox disc tray, KINECT.
    KINECT: I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that.

  • Caimbeul #53 3 months ago

    I want to know about its innards!

  • Caimbeul #54 3 months ago

    "Don't shove this garbage down our throats by releasing a bundle. If I want a Kinect, I'll buy one. "

    - indeed, it will only make it that much more expensive to buy!

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #55 3 months ago

    What Kinect in a future Xbox really needs is for the standard controller to be split down the middle to work like a pair of "PlayStation Move Navigation Controller"s. Full body, or just head, or arm tracking, plus a a pair of analogue axes for navigation and facing, triggers under your fingertips, buttons for your off-thumb, and probably gyroscopes for good measure so it can tell how your hand/sword/tennis raquet/pistol is actually oriented.

    Now THAT's an input system.

  • braydee89 #56 3 months ago

    Didn't the kinect have these features before MS ripped out the innards and gimped it to make a profit?

  • wizlon #57 3 months ago

    But will it have buttons /hugs a giant button

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #58 3 months ago

    Just like Kinect can scan in real-world objects to use in-game like they showed two E3's ago.

    What, like this?

  • jools #59 3 months ago

    @Isinona Damn you beat me to posting this quote by 9 min!

    "Dave, although you took very thorough precautions in the pod against my hearing you, I could see your lips move."

  • SpaceMidget75 Verified Senior Software Developer, Minerva Computer Services #60 3 months ago

    I've no doubt that the Kinect 2 will be more accurate. That's a good thing. Kinect might not suit all gaming needs but it doesn't need to.

    It's needs to be there for certain gaming types where it's better suited than the controller, it needs to be there as a supplementary device to controller based games (head tracking, voice control, video feeds), and it needs to be there as an alternative control for the UI. kinect works brilliantly with the new dash, especially when you want to find a XBLA title to download via Bing. Finally it adds some added value with things like Video Chat (which I use a lot so my parents can chat with the grandkids).

    If Kinect 2 makes these things work smoother (and it definitely needs to sort out the space issue!) then I'm all for it.

    A bit of a leftfield idea but I'd LOVE MS to make their controller snap in two parts as it would solve the problem of Kinect games needing buttons/sticks. It's doesn't need motion detection and the controller could stay exactly as it is now. It would be quite comfortable to use in two parts even for normal gaming I imagine.

  • des #61 3 months ago

    "Future Xbox consoles to come with Kinect 2 bundled in."

    Fixed.

  • SpaceMidget75 Verified Senior Software Developer, Minerva Computer Services #62 3 months ago

    Bloody hell MENTAL1ST! I can't believe you posted that controller idea as I was writing my post! :)

  • SpaceMonkey77 #63 3 months ago

    I have no problem with Kinect, but know its going to be a side dish of gaming, the way its always been and naturally, should be. Gamers want the main course to fill their bellies.

    I'd rather hear about a 720 spec, or its launch games instead.

    It would be interesting to see a game with sign language or lip reading, though.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #64 3 months ago

    @SpaceMidget75 Lets hope some great minds In Redmond are thinking alike, too.

  • gooner77 #65 3 months ago

    read my lips " I'm not interested in kinect". now get rare to make some proper games !

  • Obli #66 3 months ago

    So Microsoft are likely to stick with SKUs that have different specifications... hmmm, not wise.

  • Bilstar #67 3 months ago

    They said the first Kinect could do that...

  • GroundZeroUK #68 3 months ago

    hmm im not completely sure about that usb comment I have a Kinect bundle which doesn't use usb but a completely different connector on the back of the console I have no idea what type though firewire maybe??

  • Beano #69 3 months ago

    "Playstation Move on the other hand........ "

    ...has almost 100 games that support it:

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_PlayStation_Move _games

  • huckan #70 3 months ago

    At least they'll be able to reuse the Milo video with the chance of it being minutely close to reality this time?

  • GreyBeard #71 3 months ago

    @Mental1st

    Nice video and proof of concept, but it isn't a product, its a science experiment.
    How do you put new animals in Kinectimals? You scan a barcode. Whoopity doo.

    The important thing isn't resolution, its the manner in which you interface with the technology to get the desired result. The multi-stage, stepping around at 90 degree angles to get a full scan is never going to practical - especially for objects that aren't stable, free-standing entities like a person.

    What you need to bear in mind is that a mass market entertainment product cannot require laboratory conditions to function, because that 1% of instances where it works will always be trumped by the 99% of cases where it only works partially or not at all.

  • FireMonkey #72 3 months ago

    @GreyBeard - There is something in Kinect FunWorks that does this. Just because no full priced released games have decided to use it does not mean it can't / won't be done.

  • Xardan #73 3 months ago

    Sounds pretty good. Hopefully to perform action you just move your lips, no outdated talking, remotes or controllers.

  • Zozzilla #74 3 months ago

    Something else completely pointless for me. Not because I'm not interested, I think the concept is great...it's just I literally have about 6 feet between the wall and my TV. Nowhere near enough to be able to use either version of Kinect. It barely gives me the full movement range on my Wii...
    Edited by 1 at 28/11/11 @ 14:32

  • C.CFanboy #75 3 months ago

    In that case read my lips now: the answer is still no!

  • Timotei #76 3 months ago

    @MENTAL1ST

    God, he sounds like Professor Denzil Dexter from The Fast Show. "We took a beaker of bull's urine and heated it to 190 degrees..."

  • GreyBeard #77 3 months ago

    @Firemonkey

    Can you link me a video? I'm genuinely interested in how you'd isolate the object to be scanned. The way Mental1st's video works is pretty simple because the only supporting point of contact is the floor-plane - simple geometry than can easily be clipped off.

    Holding something irregularly shaped in your hands is a far more challenging proposition because (1) the points of support in the camera's FOV cannot be placed in such a predictable position, and (2) the actual point of support is no longer a flat plane, but another irregularly shaped 3D solid with a far greater likelihood of occluding the object to be scanned.

    I'm not being obtuse by saying this; being able to hold an object in your hands and have the machine scan it and create a 3d version in virtual space is the "dream" that Kinect is selling.

  • JumpinJackFlash #78 3 months ago

    I bet it can't pick up my Glaswegian dialect. :lol:

  • Spekingur #79 3 months ago

    So Kinect 2 is more hardware driven then?

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #80 3 months ago

    The multi-stage, stepping around at 90 degree angles to get a full scan is never going to practical - especially for objects that aren't stable, free-standing entities like a person.

    In the Microsoft video in question, the kid holds up a skateboard, the xbox scans one side, he turns it over and it scans the other.
    Edit: @Greybeard, below, this is the video where "They said" it could be done.

    Actually when I did the video search I forgot that two object scanning titles are current available already, Googly Eyes and build-a-buddy, as part of Kinect Labs.
    Edited by 1 at 28/11/11 @ 15:50

  • Spydy #81 3 months ago

    Kinect 2. So full of BS hype and it's not even released....

  • GreyBeard #82 3 months ago

    @Mental1st

    The skateboard scanning sequence is from the E3 2009 sizzle reel, and is fake.

    Its also deliberately deceptive is the impression it gives is that the whole board has been scanned in for use, whereas all it actually shows is the decals on the board being imaged.

    http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=p2qlHoxPioM

    Smoke and mirrors 101.
    Edited by 1 at 28/11/11 @ 15:04

  • FogHeart #83 3 months ago

    Mental1st, SpaceMidget, just to show that there's nothing new under the Sun...

    http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/ps3-break- apart-motion-pad-sighted

  • kinky_mong #84 3 months ago

    Kinect built into the next Xbox? If that means all the games will be Wii shovelware rip offs then they won't get a purchase from me.

  • Razz #85 3 months ago

    Lip reading? Hmm... as a black man I was disappointed that the current Kinect had problems reading darker skin types. However, this lip reading might be more accurate what with my big lips.

  • mintgreen #86 3 months ago

    I look forward to finally being able to get booked for dissent in a FIFA game
    Edited by 1 at 28/11/11 @ 19:18

  • Razz #87 3 months ago

    Also, what's the point of lip reading when it has a microphone and speech recognition? o_O

  • MattRobson #88 3 months ago

    oh joy were gonna be 'forced' to like motion gaming then. oh joy.

  • Po1ymorph #89 3 months ago

    Heard all this guff before. It was bullshit then, no reason to believe otherwise now.

  • SpaceMidget75 Verified Senior Software Developer, Minerva Computer Services #90 3 months ago

    @GreyBeard As Mental1st said, there are two apps in the Kinect Labs that scan objects. They know to exclude your body as you hold the object because Kinect is tracking your skeleton. You also have to place the object within a frame onscreen to help it figure out how to join the front scan to the back scan.

    Now they certainly aren't great but there's enough there to see that they could be improved upon if they weren't just free downloads.

  • Desheep #91 3 months ago

    If im pissed off, the last thing i need is an xbox telling me to take a break to calm down.

  • Toothball #92 3 months ago

    @Razz

    The voice recognition seemed to struggle to hear over game noise sometimes. You almost have to shout at times. Perhaps this lip reading will mean it doesn't have to, or perhaps it can better interpret any audio ambiguities and thick accents.

  • FireMonkey #93 3 months ago

    @GreyBeard - Here you go:
    http://www .youtube.com/watch?v=EwCO1hsh0OQ
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvUJxJ07N_A&feature=rel ated

    Not the best implementations (but then none of the Kinect Labs are really), but does prove you can do it.
    Edited by 2 at 28/11/11 @ 15:35

  • murrell96 #94 3 months ago

    giggity.........................

  • FireMonkey #95 3 months ago

    @Razz - Lip reading could work along side the speech recognition to help make sure the results are more accurate. It could also be use in noisier environments.

  • Razz #96 3 months ago

    @Toothball A fair point. Cheers

  • ollyn #97 3 months ago

    Post deleted at 09:50:56 12-12-2011

  • jhpeter #98 3 months ago

    I´m happy with my kinect and MS should think in ways to play hardcore games instead upgrading the cam for the same purpose of the previous one.

  • jonfon #99 3 months ago

    Computers which can lipread even when it can't hear what you are saying directly. I fail to see how this could ever go wrong...

  • linksdad #100 3 months ago

    Kinect and any peripheral that expects you to conform to its shortcomings will always fail. I have my xbox and PC setup on a desk and sit less than two feet away from the screens. Some people play in bed lying down, still others have bog mounted controllers so they can play instead of reading when making a visit.
    Even the Wiimote falls down sometimes if you happen to dare to recline in your own home while indulging your hobby. (try swooping without turning in skywards sword whilst almost horizontal)

  • cheeky-sod #101 3 months ago

    Awesome. Kinect is the future and if used well can be amazing for the big games!

  • andromeda #102 3 months ago

    to all the neggers , negging down the negative comments, just remember, Microsoft shouted this from the rooftops as being the next big thing, and it turned out to be broken.
    Every damning comment here should be be +20 at least.

  • FireMonkey #103 3 months ago

    @linksdad - "any peripheral that expects you to conform to its shortcomings will always fail"

    Hmmm... So holding onto a joypad with both hands is not classed as conforming to it's shortcomings? Try drinking a cup of tea whilst playing a FPS.

    The reason we don't generally think of it as a shortcoming is because we have got used to it. In many ways Kinect actually has less shortcomings than a pad.

  • Nova1977 #104 3 months ago

    Until they gimp it, the same way they did the current Kinect.

  • Iain #105 3 months ago

    Certainly sounds interesting from a technical standpoint. Doesn't mean I'll want it in my house tho'.

  • 43n1m4 #106 3 months ago

    Kinect has seen moderate use here. It's ideal for party games with family and friends, but less so for single player games (as of yet). I assume even a more accurate, feature-rich version of it will see similar use. I like the device for some games, but an end-all be-all solution it is not. The way Forza Motorsport 4 used it, was quite nice and showed off the device as an optional feature for more traditional controller-based games.

  • TheLastProphet #107 3 months ago

    Microsoft told Eurogamer it "does not comment on rumour or speculation". Wouldn't it be great if Eurogamer did the same? I'm sick to death of all the reports of possible, rumoured, maybe, theoretical, unrealistic, and downright daft things we're told gamers will be doing in 2012 and beyond. Video games have a rich history, and an amazing range of current hardware and software - there is no need for these ridiculous and unreliable reports when there are a wealth of stories in the gaming world to be told, the recent article 'Making an XBLA game: The inside story' being a perfect example.

  • onyxbox #108 3 months ago

    That advert is almost as bullshitty as Apple's

    I love new tech but I hate the way these companies over sell them as some kind of 'experience'.. we need something like the equivalent to punk music to happen to the games industry and bring some reality back.. and get rid of all this corporate zen like bollocks.

    When did gaming become so utterly dull and without attitude?

  • hiscore #109 3 months ago

    Lip reading. Lesson 1.

    Which lips: north american, south american, european, japanse..?

    In order to READ something you have to know the language. How many languages will kinect know? I rest my case.

  • munki83 #110 3 months ago

    Seems like ms have invested so much money into kinect it can't afford to set it out to pasture. I may have to think hard before getting the nextbox. The biggest issue I can see is price then the inevitable risk of investing in the first batch of nextboxes

  • cheeky_BILLY #111 3 months ago

    Are Microsoft turning into Apple my putting '2'

  • azazel_fallenangel #112 3 months ago

    @Razz For exactly this situation:
    http://youtu.be/1s-PiIbzb hw

  • Vyggo #113 3 months ago

    Maybe I use the Kinect in perfect conditions or something, but it works pretty well as far as I am concerned. It's definately not "broken". And you can play games sitting down if the games doesn't require you to use your legs, Child of Eden and Gunslinger have shown us.

    So many people seem to have a irrational hate for this device. I understand you want to keep playing games on your controller, but Microsoft is not stopping you from doing that. I have been enjoying the likes of Skyrim, Rayman and Dark Souls the last couple of weeks and I didn't have to use Kinect for those games.

  • benfresh76 #114 3 months ago

    I hope it doesn't lip read when I'm angry.

  • DigitalScars #115 3 months ago

    How about you get some decent titles out for the first kinect before you fuckers think about lining your pockets with our hard earned cash on yet another product that fails to deliver.

    MS talks a good game about how good their Kinect 2 will be but remember how good Kinect sounded and looked when we saw Milo tech demo etc whereas what we got was a camera and a bunch of shovelware.

  • GreyBeard #116 3 months ago

    @Firemonkey

    Googly Eyes isn't bad, but its basically creating an extruded 2D shape from a 3D source (front/back analysis isn't a 3d scan) and from looking around on youtube the results are pretty variable at best (the cat one is hilariously malformed).

    Not sure about the other little app, but my point still stands that its not easy to import 3D real-world data into the system because its a fiddly process that's far from foolproof.

    This sort of problem is always going to be Kinect's achilles heel. Don't get me wrong its an admirable piece of tech, its simply that its a very "loose" device when it comes to data acquisition. This applies to motion data as well as spatial/volumetric data as well.

    In layman's terms the issue is simply that the more complex the thing Kinect is observing, be it a shape or a involved/lengthy physical motion, the more the inaccuracies will mount up to the extent the translation gets fudged and the less usable the result.

    More data (as in higher scan resolution) is helpful as it should bring accuracy up, but ultimately its still limited by the nature of the data; for example scanning front/backface only -at whatever res- is still missing input data from top/bottom/side-elevations. And the results will inevitably suffer.

  • smelly #117 3 months ago

    Lol!

  • Bravestinsane #118 3 months ago

    Will Kinect 2 have games?

    All i want to know

  • munki83 #119 3 months ago

    Can it lip read if you have a big bushy beard

  • Astro-Creature #120 3 months ago

    So accurate that nobody will still give two shits.

  • Phishfood #121 3 months ago

    Forgive me for being cynical but this sounds like the emotion engine all over again

  • menage #122 3 months ago

    Peripheral without games to back it up is a sucky peripheral

  • GrizzleBoy #123 3 months ago

    I remember when MS were making statements about how they were going to make sure there were core experiences for Kinect so that the people that didn't want to play dance star revolution in their living rooms also had something to do.

    I would lol if they released a "Kinect 2" while people are still wondering where all the games for Kinect 1 are.

  • like3cokecans #124 3 months ago

    So the 'mass market' one won't have a disc drive or a hard drive then?? Will it just have Kinect Sports, 5 Dance Central X, Modern Warfare 4 and Fifa 2014 hard coded into the motherboard? xD

  • NewbieZilla #125 3 months ago

    It seemed obvious that Kinect was pretty much a beta test for the next gen. Its rare that an accessory such as Kinect getting popular during a console generation. Its pretty much why instead of bringing the Wii mote to the cube like was originally planned, Nintendo kept it for the Wii.

  • bluetoothion #126 3 months ago

    Just wondering if you want to speak to a friend at the same time.... or start swearing....it will say DOES NOT COMPUTE DOES NOT COMPUTE and blow up in pieces?

  • funkateer #127 3 months ago

    Kinect is pretty impressive tech, especially from a software point-of-view.
    I mean, the standard Kinect API has to turn this big noisy stream of pixels coming from the cameras into something usable for games development. Hats off that it works as well as it does already!

    That said, I hope that devs will start to think a bit more out-of-the-box to apply this tech. Dance and Sport games are fun and all, but there should be lots of possibilities that are less derivative.
    The only example I can think of that was quite innovative is Kinectimals (but perhaps I'm missing some obvious examples?).

    I have the feeling that a developer like ThatGameCompany could turn this tech into something quite unique and meaningful. I mean, look what they did with sixaxis!

  • OJSlaughter #128 3 months ago

    2001: A Space Oddesy Anyone?

  • MORZTAN #129 3 months ago

    Lip Reading, eh? But can it translate "Haven't met you yet" to "Russian Unicorn"?

    Now that would be the machine for me!

  • lucky_jim #130 3 months ago

    Anyone else thinking of the gap between what Microsoft promised (current) Kinect would be able to do, and what they eventually delivered?
    /reads comments above
    Oh good, not just me then. I also think I'm not the only person for whom the inclusion of Kinect makes it much less likely I'll buy the next Xbox, and I was a big fan of the last two. I think the time's ripe for Dreamcast 2.

  • keithwithteeth #131 3 months ago

    reading lips?
    how about..
    fuck off?
    cheers.

  • lucky_jim #132 3 months ago

    @keithwithteeth

    Hehe I wish I'd thought of that comment.

  • smelly #133 3 months ago

    I eagerly await the announcement of this - where they once again try to make everyone believe that it can do a billion things that it obviously cant do - like being some sort of brilliant piece of AI machinery in milo, or other such nonsense. And the fanboys will lap it up, and tell us just how powerful it's going to be..

    And then it'll be released, and yet again the only game we'll see for it were possible on the eyetoy 15 years earlier.

  • blinx284 #134 3 months ago

    Why did i just spend 130 squids on kinect!

    with such amazing titles like twister it hard to come up with a good enough answer!

  • IvorB #135 3 months ago

    I think Sony and MS should let their powers combine for the good of humanity. Sony's new 3d headset with this new Kinect and slap some red hot interactive porn on that badboy.

    On another note: is anyone else concerned about having an incredibly powerful, Internet enabled, face-tracking, lip-reading camera/sensor in their living room beaming data to a faceless corporation miles away?

  • funkateer #136 3 months ago

    "It was a device that wrapped around a player's arm, and was said to be more accurate than both the Wii and the PlayStation Move controller."

    Said by whom?

  • uninspiredcup #137 3 months ago

    Stick to my pc, thanks.

  • Nephirion #138 3 months ago

    Microsoft told Eurogamer it "does not comment on rumour or speculation".

    So this article is bollocks and completely illegitimate?

  • HAL9000 #139 3 months ago

    Microsoft PR guy: 'Kinect 2 can monitor the individual firing of electrical signals in your brain, it can map neuron activity when you're whacking off to some internet porn...and most importantly, it'll bring you a cup of tea afterwards!'

  • cloudskipa #140 3 months ago

    I still think MS are backing a dead horse out of sheer stubbornness. Kinect should of never left the R&D department imho. It has completely failed to provide a decent motion gaming experience involving core gameplay, what it greater accuracy going to achieve? I just hope games of the future will utilise both kinect and the 360 controller like the upcoming Steel Battalion, then we may be talking.

    It does sound like the next Xbox is going to be announced at next years E3 with all the new info that's come about recently though.

  • Gammerz #141 3 months ago

    Don't want Kinect. Make it optional to keep the price down.

  • getittoomebaby #142 3 months ago

    Very skeptical with MS in terms of them actually being a good hardware vendor. I would not buy the next Gen Xbox until its 2nd iteration. Plus Kinect 2 really needs to be 5x better than its current form.

  • Loghorn #143 3 months ago

    Nobody's going to give a damn about Kinect next generation. Heck, it's already dying out in sales from what I heard.

  • azix2 #144 3 months ago

    Wonder what the RROD feature will be like. Hopefully that is improved somewhat. Flashing lights maybe in a rainbow colour. Maybe it will have speech included. Can't wait

  • smelly #145 3 months ago

    @Loghorn - that's because there's bugger all decent games for it. Hell if you want to wave your hands around and have crap games - get a wii.. At least then you can occasionally get the odd motion game worth playing (zelda... and ... ermm...)

  • killuminati2911 #146 3 months ago

    @Yodith You are damn right. Kinect is the only hardware I have ever seen that has the biggest requirements ever: a big house i.e a huge mortgage, how could they failed makes you wonder eh?

  • technotica #147 3 months ago

    And the Playstation 2 was supposed to have workstation level computer graphics. promises like that are easily made but often broken.
    Edited by 1 at 29/11/11 @ 08:16

  • DwarfyP #148 3 months ago

    @kestral Exactly like Sony then but the PlayStation fans buy into it every time a new console is coming out.

  • 3william56 #149 3 months ago

    Kinect 2 so accurate it can smell bullsh*t at 50 paces?

  • Widge #150 3 months ago

    If its bundled with the next Xbox then it has a guaranteed hardware audience to aim at, and devs will make games for it.

    Don't expect it to radically change "our" gaming, it's more for the wider audience. Plus there is nothing wrong with that.

  • deded #151 3 months ago

    I hope everyone with reservations about Kinect 2 remember to keep their tongues in their mouths and willies in their pants when Microsoft roll out their 'awesome!!!' Kinect 2 show reel at E3 this year... M'kay?

  • FireMonkey #152 3 months ago

    @GreyBeard - The camera on the Kinect does read depth remember so this isn't just an extruded 2D image.

    I do agree it's a long way from perfect, but we don't really need perfect data acquisition for games. It would be nice for it to be better, but as long as it can do the job to some degree then it's fine by me as it's better than anything else like it (in games) and not something that will be happening all the time anyway.

  • FireMonkey #153 3 months ago

    @cloudskipa - "It has completely failed to provide a decent motion gaming experience involving core gameplay"

    So it's a failure seeing it hasn't dealt with the core gamer? My kids and their friends love playing Kinect games. They used to always play on the Wii or on Lego Starwars on the 360, but this has got them playing other games that actually get them moving. I think that's pretty good going tbh.

  • justsomeone #154 3 months ago

    @FireMonkey "That's like saying you shouldn't have bought an Xbox or Xbox 360 as they are just prototypes of the Next Xbox."

    not really. the xboxes did exactly what they were supposed to do. they played the games they were designed to play, and were fit for purpose. they also had a long lifetime before they were replaced by the next generation of kit. they were iterations, not prototypes.

    the kinect promised much, delivered much less, and people were fooled into buying them, and clearly felt cheated thereafter - look at the sales figures for kinect (very high) versus the sales of kinect-only/enabled games. and now kinect already has a mooted replacement promising pretty much exactly what they promised for the original, but didn't deliver.

    kinect *was* a prototype. sorry.

  • Bradach #155 3 months ago

    They came out with a load of horse sh1t like this before they released the current kinect. I'll believe it when I see it

  • Dogme #156 3 months ago

    @Isinona Ha good one :D The machines are taking over!!!!

  • jarek98 #157 3 months ago

    He really ment: "We really would like Kinect 2 to be able to read lips. We have no clue how to do it so far, but if we feed you with this marketing bullshit, we hope it will sell as hell anyway"...
    Edited by 1 at 29/11/11 @ 10:22

  • spekkeh #158 3 months ago

    Can't wait to have a megacorporation install a CCTV in my house that's even better in tracking me than the previous one!

  • des #159 3 months ago

    yeah,this sounds pretty dangerous

    tinfoil mask is a must

  • FireMonkey #160 3 months ago

    @justsomeone - "they also had a long lifetime before they were replaced by the next generation of kit. they were iterations, not prototypes."

    Xbox released Nov 2001. 360 released Nov 2005. That's a 4 year gap between consoles.

    Kinect released Nov 2010. Kinect 2 expected released date Nov 2013. That's a 3 year gap.

    So the Kinect will potentially have a life span only 1 year less than the original console. That's not too bad. Also, the Kinect 2 is for the next Xbox and not the current, so it's lifetime will actually be longer than that.

    Anyway, time between revisions does not make something a prototype otherwise every Apple product is a prototype.

    Kinect is not prototype (the prototypes were better) and Kinect 2 will be an iteration.

  • LittleRiver #161 3 months ago

    I have no interest in Kinect so I am very pleased to hear that they are not going to try and charge me for the tech in the next gen.

    What I want is backward compatibility for Xbox Live games on the next console i.e. I could still play [your game choice here] (360) online on the 720.

  • Mashum #162 3 months ago

    I don't want to dance around the living room like a hooting chimp every time I want to level up or shoot someone in the face.

    Edit: What I do want is ace graphics, BTW.
    Edited by 1 at 29/11/11 @ 11:29

  • Madder-Max #163 3 months ago

    I dont want a Kinect and I dont want Microsoft knowing what I look like thanks.

    the only benefit of a Kinect is for Microsoft.

  • jonsaan #164 3 months ago

    Maybe I'm old fashioned but I find the idea of telling my console/tv/lights to switch on out loud completely stupid. I just don't understand what is good about that.

  • higgins78 #165 3 months ago

    What an absolute shambles! Kinect failed because no good software has been released to stand along side it which made you feel like shelling the best part of Ł100 wasn't anything other than a mistake. Sure, Dance Central works pretty well but thats it! Kinect (and Move) was little more than a knee-jerk reaction to try and steal a piece of the market Nintendo had been occupying. Now all Microsoft are doing with "Kinect 2" (snigger) is making the same mistake twice...that an clearing up space in its warehouses of the number of Kinect's gathering dust.

    I hope Microsoft fail, I hope they fail because Nintendo took a chance when releasing the Wii, they took a chance because they set out to open up a new market AND make motion controls integral to the experience, NOT simply another add-on! Watching Microsoft (and Sony) releasing its motion add-ons has been little more than an embarrassment. I hope next gen Microsoft and Sony take a chance and release something fresh, something which takes a gamble rather than hanging on the coat tails of others.

  • Sodding_Gamer #166 3 months ago

    Kinect, lip read this. F**k off.

  • Dave52 #167 3 months ago

    @lollage - You seem to be contradicting yourself there, and besides Motion Plus was built into the later WiiMotes.

    Kinect sold well, that is not up for debate and, if you measure success by sales alone then yes, Kinect has been a success. But, as with the Wii, the quality games have been lacking. I suspect, unless you have kids under the age of 10, as with the Wii, your Kinect will be gathering dust.

    Bulding the Kinect into the NextBox is a logical move for MS but, without quality games, it will just be another gimmick.

  • Lunatic4ever #168 3 months ago

    so what will happen to owners of the regular kinect?

    now purchase kinect 2? What re you fucking kidding me?
    Kinect is relatively new how can u put out news like that.

    At elast MS should grant people a fair discount on the new kinect...

  • waynenot #169 3 months ago

    Yeah, of course it will. Fuck's sake - try NOT lying for once.

  • funkateer #170 3 months ago

    "so what will happen to owners of the regular kinect?"

    The same thing that happened to XBox1 and PS2 owners: They can buy something new and improved if they want.
    I can't remember Philips giving me a discount for a CD player because I bought a cassette player once.
    Edited by 1 at 29/11/11 @ 20:23

  • Yossarian #171 3 months ago

    Until you get the latency down to that of a regular controller, no thank you. Even if you do, no thank you. Do not want, will never want. Stop making me less likely to buy your console.

  • DAN.E.B #172 3 months ago

    @ Widge

    "Don't expect it to radically change "our" gaming, it's more for the wider audience. Plus there is nothing wrong with that"

    No theres plenty wrong with that!
    All this dumbing down so gran can play is whats destroying gaming as a whole.
    I think when Nintendo invented waggle thats pretty much marked the begining of the end of gaming.

    Sure theres still(some)great games being made but for how long?

  • Arwin #173 3 months ago

    Will be interesting to see if the Windows version of Kinect planned for 2012 will have the same specs as the one for the next Xbox. That doesn't seem wholly unlikely. If they find a good way of controlling Windows 8 with Kinect, there are certainly some advantages for Microsoft on both sides of the console/pc divide.

  • ToAks #174 3 months ago

    So Milo will be called Milo dating now?
    I can see your lips baby, do me now...
    Edited by 1 at 03/12/11 @ 16:16

  • sugarbaron #175 3 months ago

    I don't care if the new Kinect can wank me off and cook me dinner, I still wouldn't buy the shit. When will they get the message that we don't want to flail around the room like a spaz while playing games? Enough already. Send this crap to the dustbin of history along with all the other fail console add-ons and lets get back to making great games for gamers.

  • Viris #176 3 months ago

    I wonder if their will be censoring *beeps* if someone curses. Read THIS, *beep* *beep* *beep* *beep*!!! :D