No European date as Microsoft shows online EyeToy equivalent for Xbox News
Xbox News by Patrick Garratt
It's a webcam....with a green flash!
Microsoft Japan has released the first images of its Video Chat system, a package comprising a webcam, the ordinary Live chat headset and a year’s subscription to Live.
Microsoft has made no noise on a European release as yet, but is expected to comment in the next 24 hours.
The system, first shown at E3 in May, will allow five people to talk simultaneously on-screen, while offering features such as backgrounds, music and the ability to ‘rumble’ other people’s controllers remotely. Now, our minds are clean as the driven snow, but surely this isn’t as innocent as it sounds?
Costing around £35, the system is rolling out in Japan first due to broadband being the normal for Japanese households. Video Chat is expected to launch in Japan towards the end of this year, so Europe shouldn’t expect a release until well into 2005.
No announcements have yet been made for EyeToy style software. But given the remote-rumble function and the fact the Xbox audience is “adult”; well, our minds are boggling, frankly.
Look back for Microsoft Europe comment later today. And look here for some more photos.
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Comments: 1-24 of 24 in total
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That's nasty.
It'll be interesting to see if they use it for anything better than just a cheapo talkie cam. Would like to see it used in games (but not necessarily as just another eyetoy) Funny isn't it, the big three console giants are now getting into cams pretty much just because of the success of the eyetoy. My money's on Nintendo being the only ones to do anything reasonably good with it though (I hope!) Peej |
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martyngates
18/06/04 @ 12:52
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nintendo were there first with the gameboy camera,
looks like a rebranded logitech cam from the red light |
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I think the XBox controlers are too big for it... now the Rez vibo box, that was a feature... Better yet, reading the review with pictures in a woman gaming site was very.... erm... ilucidating :D
You can read the article here: http://www.gamegirladvance.com/archives/2002/10/26/sex_in_ga mes_rezvibrator.html#000141 (safe for work, if the words sex and the pictures of some panties don't scare you) |
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prettyboytim
18/06/04 @ 13:33
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I wonder if it has any kind of microphone of its own, like the eyetoy does?
Oh, and that thing's fugly. |
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"That's nasty.
It'll be interesting to see if they use it for anything better than just a cheapo talkie cam. Would like to see it used in games (but not necessarily as just another eyetoy) Funny isn't it, the big three console giants are now getting into cams pretty much just because of the success of the eyetoy. My money's on Nintendo being the only ones to do anything reasonably good with it though (I hope!) Peej '' Nintendo fanboy me thinks \waits for backlash |
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To be fair though, the EyeToy doesn't look like much either. Question is, how big is it? Will it be proportional to the size of the Xbox, therefore as tall as my tv?
And another thing, I'm fairly sure that I got into gaming all those years ago so that I wouldn't have to interact with strangers. Oh well. |
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"'And another thing, I'm fairly sure that I got into gaming all those years ago so that I wouldn't have to interact with strangers. Oh well. '
Playing with yourself is bad for your health. Much better to play with someone else. " There is a marked difference between playing with close friends and talking to complete strangers though, isn't there? Everything I've ever known about life, I've learnt from computer games. ... no, hang on... |
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inpHilltr8r
18/06/04 @ 18:31
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Presumably the 'remote rumble' feature, is activated by the large button marked 'Fun'. Douglas Adams would have approved...
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TheRealBadabing
19/06/04 @ 04:08
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"Nintendo's son-to-be-announced cube cam"
Will that be the same Nintendo that spits on any connectivity other than having a shit load of (£90) GBAs attached to it's machine? You never know, we might be lucky enough to see our faces on our handheld (GBA/DS). Attached to the GC/N5. By wires. By 2007. If we are "lucky". MS are offering a video chat service over this thing called the INTERNET (remember that word Nintendo, it might actually be important). It is not an eyetoy competitor though once the hardware is out there, developers will use it for their own nefarious means. |
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BLACKSHEEP
19/06/04 @ 17:35
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Someone's gonna get into trouble with this, it ain't adults who will make most use of the vibration feature and how will Microsoft stop perv's when it's well known that gaming is full of them (apparently) :D
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Comments: 1-24 of 24 in total
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