motion-gaming
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Seen@GDC: Playground games
Die Gute Fabrik lead designer Douglas Wilson is comfortable asking people to make fools of themselves, as he demonstrated during his panel at GDC on Friday, "Three Folk Games To Inspire Radical New Video Games." Wilson emphasized the impact that physical, playground games can have on modern video game development, bringing players together outside of the screen. They certainly influenced Wilson's convention-famous motion game, Johann Sebastian Joust.Wilson asked for volunteers from the audience to step on stage and play three games that influenced Joust: Standoff, Listelanse and the Danish Clapping Game. See a handful of eager audience members hitting themselves and dueling with wooden spoons in the gallery below, and read more about each game after the break.%Gallery-184408%
BitGym Motion SDK brings Kinect-style games to Android and iOS, no huge living room required (video)
If there's a common barrier to playing with a Kinect controller, it's free space. The sheer amount of necessary distance between sensor and player is fine for suburbanites with expansive living rooms, but not so hot for apartment dwellers. Thankfully, BitGym is doing its best to bring hands-free gaming to small spaces with a new Motion SDK for Android and iOS developers. The kit takes advantage of the front cameras on phones and tablets to track three-axis movement, leans and multiple players without any special hardware -- and without necessarily rearranging the furniture. It's built to work with Unity 3D and most common app code on both platforms, all with a reportedly low overhead for mobile processors. Just don't anticipate any leaps and sidesteps in your loft for the next little while. Although the SDK is ready today, we won't see shipping games built on the motion-friendly framework until early 2013.
PSA: Download Angry Birds on your expensive new TV today
For those of you who were unable to resist the siren's song of a TV with built-in motion controlled Angry Birds, or for those of you who bought a Samsung Smart TV for other, more valid reasons, good news: Rovio's avian aviation simulator is now available as a free download for eligible televisions.Specifically, if you've purchased a Samsung LED 7500 (or higher) model TV or something in the Plamsa 8000 range, Angry Birds should be available for download in your television's Samsung 'Smart Hub.' Also, we'd like to borrow some of your apparently overflowing wealth. We're good for it, we promise.
Rumor: Harmonix prepping 'unique motion-gaming IP' ... with storylines
We thought Harmonix had its hands full with Rock Band Blitz, but the Cambridge-based developer may also be preparing a new IP – and for the next generation of consoles. According to several different job listings, the developer is looking for narrative, content and level designers, and one software engineer to help out with "a unique motion-gaming IP.""Harmonix seeks an accomplished Narrative Designer to incorporate creative story lines into gameplay on a unique motion-gaming IP," reads just one of the positions discovered by Supererogatory. This particular gig is a 12-month contract position, while the others make mention of a "music-based motion-gaming IP" and seem to be for more established positions.A narrative-driven, rhythm-based motion game? Sounds a lot like one of our favorite games ever. [Wait, surely you meant this? - Ed.]
Kinect for Windows SDK beta 2 out now, celebratory celebrations cleared to commence
It's only been a few months, but already the Kinect for Windows SDK beta is moving from stage uno to stage dos. (That's one and two, vaqueros.) Microsoft's outing it in commemoration of the Kinect's one-year anniversary, and it's also launching a Kinect for Windows site and blog, too. We're told that the Kinect for Windows commercial program is still on track for an early 2012 launch, and to date, some 200 companies have agreed to take part in the pilot program. Ask for the beta 2 piece, the refreshed build includes "faster skeletal tracking, a better accuracy rate when it comes to skeletal tracking and joint recognition, and the ability to plug and unplug your Kinect without losing work / productivity." Hit the source links to get your download on, but be warned -- we've seen it off and on throughout the day. Update: Just in case you need even more info on the movement, the official KinectforWindows.org website is now live too.
Nyko Zoom for Kinect hands-on
Microsoft's next Xbox 360 Dashboard update may be packing enough deep Kinect integration to make your inner Anderton tingle with glee, but it won't do you much good if you live in a shoebox apartment, cramped dorm, or happen to own a couch. For all of its fun tricks, the Xbox's depth sensor is woefully farsighted, and doesn't play nice if you stand too close. What's a motion loving, spatiality challenged gamer to do? Well, we've heard of one option. Nyko announced the Zoom for Kinect quite some time ago, making lofty promises of reducing the sensor's minimum required play distance by up to 40 percent. It performed notably well when we gave it a whirl at E3, but with Redmond's Kinect heavy Dashboard redesign just around the corner, we thought we'd give it a second look. %Gallery-137073%
Harmonix aims beyond the music, wants to get physical
Guitar Hero and Rock Band may have catapulted games developer Harmonix into the spotlight, but the games studio looks set to branch out more into motion-based, Kinect-friendly titles. Talking to our sister site, Joystiq, Harmonix CEO Alex Rigopulos said that his company's success with Dance Central had left them with an "affinity for motion gaming." With Guitar Hero currently in rehab, this might be a little clue to Harmonix's future releases. Gymnastics Hero, anyone?
Nyko's $30 Zoom for Kinect now shipping to tiny-roomed gamers worldwide
Kinect ownership means you've got to keep a good ten square feet of space totally free to play in, and that's nearly impossible for many inner-city, bedroom and dorm-room gamers. Fortunately for them, Nyko has developed a solution so simple it's positively genius -- clip-on lenses that reduce the distance the Kinect can see, bringing players closer to the TV. After the break you'll find a video and press release -- but more importantly, the Nyko Zoom is available right now for $29.99 in all good retailers, and some of the bad ones too, probably. %Gallery-133645%
Freddie Wong and Insomniac show us the future of motion control
We're not entirely sure, but Freddie Wong's alleyway may be the most interesting, exciting, and down-right dangerous place on planet Earth. The intrepid YouTube star been Crossfired to death and rolled up by a Katamari along the same narrow stretch of road, and now the asphalt backlot has become a testing ground for the future of motion control gaming. If the holographic baddies in the Wong's concept video look familiar, they should; Insomniac actually halted production of Resistance 3 for an entire day in order to animate custom Chimera soldiers for the production. Wong claims that the majority of the technology required to build a motion gaming rig like this already exists, albeit in not-quite-so-advanced forms. Much like the angular, massively-wheeled concept cars we have all over our walls oogled as children, Wong's video gives us a glimpse into a future just barely more awesome than the one we'll actually get. [Thanks, Ashitaka!]
Hyper Ping Pong is like real table tennis, only without the ball, table or opponent (video)
Microsoft and Nintendo might already have the motion-based table tennis simulation market locked down, but there's one thing their consoles need that the new Hyper Ping Pong paddle doesn't: a TV. That's right, this motion sensor-equipped bat lets you play without the superfluous need for something to look at -- it comes with a speaker that plays back the sound of a rally and all you need to do is "go with the rhythm." A button integrated into the handle lets you put a little extra sauce on your volleys and accurate timing will win you points, awesome sound effects, and the admiration of all your friends. The Hyper Ping Pong kit will start selling in Japan this October for ¥2,000 ($25).
Kinect for Windows SDK beta launches, wants PC users to get a move on
We've been waiting for confirmation on yesterday's rumor, about Microsoft's motion-sensing Xbox 360 peripheral coming to PCs, and now we have it. MS has just now released a software development kit (SDK) for Windows that will allow .Net developers to write Kinecting apps in C++, C#, or VB. We spoke with some developer representatives from the company to get the full details, including just what you can and can't do with this big bundle of libraries. Follow us after the break for all the info.
Kinect integration in Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, hands-off (video)
Microsoft's E3 keynote may have exploded with deeper Kinect support, but nothing caught our eyes quite as sharply as Ghost Recon: Future Soldier's rifle-exploding Gunsmith demo. A Ubisoft representative showed us how it's done: separating your arms separates your deadly firearm into a gorgeous display of floating screws, components, and accessories, which can be effortlessly modified, swapped, and replaced with gesture and voice commands. Too picky to decide for yourself? Then don't: just tell Gunsmith what you're looking for. For instance, saying "Optimize for range" produces a weapon any sniper should be proud of -- even better, we found that commanding Gunsmith to "optimize for awesome" birthed a rifle (pictured above) sporting an underbarrel shotgun attachment. A gun attached to a gun? Yeah, that works. Weapons can be tested in Gunsmith's gesture-controlled firing range, an engaging shooting mode exclusive to the Gunsmith weapon editor and not usable in regular gameplay. Head past the break for a hands-on (figuratively speaking) video.
Xbox Kinect on PS3 is Kevin Butler's worst nightmare come true (video)
So here's a dilemma that some gamers may have faced: do you want a console with great processing power but coupled with some glowing lollipops, or one with futuristic controller-free motion gaming at the cost of Blu-ray playback? Well, for us mere mortals it's either one or the other, but Shantanu Goel went ahead to combine the best of both worlds: Xbox Kinect on a PS3. The video above is our man demonstrating his early software mod, which can currently recognize basic gestures like quickly pushing your hand towards the screen twice to activate the X button, as well as the usual waving around for navigation. While it's obvious that this project is still at its infancy, Goel's already working on beefing it up by adding full game profiles and skeletal tracking support, so with a bit of help from the community, hopefully it won't be long before we get to liberally throw grenades in Killzone 3 without having to worry about damaging the TV. Maybe Kevin Butler will also see the lighter side of things, too.
Microsoft to release Kinect for Windows SDK this spring
Looks like we're not the only ones enjoying all those Kinect hacks being dreamed up and implemented by hardworking enthusiasts the world o'er. That's right: it was rumored early this year, and now it's been confirmed -- Microsoft will be releasing the Kinect for Windows SDK. According to Microsoft, "It will be available this spring as a free download, and will give academic researchers and enthusiasts access to key pieces of the Kinect system-such as the audio technology, system application programming interfaces and direct control of the Kinect sensor itself." Commercial licensing details will be made available at some point thereafter. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Kinect hackers give us iOS-friendly dodgeball and Human Tetris
Remember that Microsoft Rally Ball demo from a few days ago that showed Windows Phone 7's integration with Xbox? Well, the gang at Supertouch has stolen a bit of Ballmer's thunder with a new Kinect hack that lets you hurl digital orbs at your Kinect-controlling friend using an iOS device instead of a WP7 handset. The graphics for the game and the iDevice controls aren't nearly as pretty as Microsoft's cross-platform gaming solution, but the end result is pretty much the same -- flingin' balls with a phone while your friend dodges them courtesy of Kinect. Meanwhile, Frog Design has added a Human Tetris game to the Kinect's repertoire where players perfect their Vogue-ing skills by striking a pose to match an approaching cut-out on screen. Finally, all the shape-shifting fun with none of the goofy silver jumpsuits. Vids are after the break. [Thanks to everyone who sent these in]
Developer gets Kinect working on Android, rains on Microsoft's WP7 parade (video)
Windows Phone 7 is getting a lot of extensions this year and, while we wouldn't say Kinect interoperability is anywhere near as important as third-party multitasking, it could be fun. Still, we haven't seen proper Kinect interop, the sort that would see you controlling WP7 games with a Kinect -- the sort that is apparently possible on Android. YouTuber HirotakaSter has managed to hook a Kinect up to Android hardware, what looks to be an Armadillo 500 FX development platform, and get everything to play nice. He's using openFrameworks and, while at this point the software isn't doing much other than showing a video stream from the camera, the possibilities from here are quite simply infinite. [Thanks, Muhammad Ali]
Kinect combos Street Fighter IV, fires single-fisted boomsticks at the FPS crowd (video)
Oh sure, we've seen the Kinect assist a hadouken or two, but that wasn't the same: here, the YouTube user who brought us Call of Duty via Wiimote, Nunchuk and Kinect is throwing fireballs and taking names in the real game. Demize2010 manipulated the FAAST emulator to recognize a variety of virtual martial arts gestures, including the infamous dragon uppercut and whirlwind kick -- giving him everything he needs for a flowchart victory with only his bare hands. Meanwhile, one Bill Maxwell has taken the Kinect and made it recognize his fist, the better to control first-person shooter games with requiring an Wiimote intermediary. He's developed a "high-speed kinematic tracker" called MaxFPS that monitors his hand's position in real time, allowing him to move, turn, jump, and reload with quick swipes of his paw. How do you shoot? Why, by punching those baddies' lights out, of course. See it on video after the break.
Kinect support for Windows in the works, SDK release this summer?
WinRumors, citing anonymous sources, reports that the official software developers kit (SDK) for Kinect is currently in the works and will be released in beta some time in the next few months. Apparently, support for the device will become a part of Microsoft's XNA Game Studio and also be integrated into Windows 8 in a big way. These details come hot on the heels of CEO Steve Ballmer's statement at CES that the good folks in Redmond would eventually support the device's use on computers, but he set no timetable for the SDKs release. We can't confirm the story, but given the level of detail in the report and the author's confidence in the info, we won't be surprised if Microsoft gives all you Kinect hackers something to cheer about very soon.
App review: kijjaa! (video)
We're used to seeing all sorts of funky motion-based games on smartphones, but here's something a little bit different: a retro-themed desktop 3D flash game that utilises your iOS device as an accelerometer and gyroscope-based wireless controller. The objective of kijjaa! is simple: just fly your vessel around, shoot down or avoid the enemies, and pick up extra lives. Don't worry, there's no jailbreaking involved here -- all we had to do was visit kijjaa.com/air, and then copy the code onto our iOS app to establish the link via WiFi or 3G. There's no serious challenge in kijjaa! -- based on the app's description on iTunes, the game's designed with students and office workers in mind, so it's ideal for those seeking a fun quickie during their short breaks. We'd say the hardest part is trying to dodge the ghosts that show up randomly in short notice, but what really annoyed us were the occasional control lags that popped up even over WiFi. Still, for a promotional $0.99 pricing (the 70 percent price drop ends on January 17th has been extended to January 24th), this game has gone much further than most other games have, and it'll only get better -- already in the pipeline are Game Center support, new enemies, new bonuses, and achievements. Hopefully the developer will also throw in some more chiptune soundtracks as well. Demo video after the break -- it kinda makes you want this on the Apple TV too, doesn't it? %Gallery-114426%
Kinect rumored to have PC support in waiting
There's been no shortage whatsoever of PC control schemes using Kinect, but up until now, every bit of it has been without Microsoft's official blessing. Of course, the company eventually caved to the massive amount of hacking going on and confessed that it didn't have any hard feelings for those giving it a whirl, but is it really fixing to take things one step further with bona fide PC support? That's the talk emanating from South Korea, where game developer GamePrix has reported that at least one of its titles (Divine Soul, if you must know) is "scheduled to support Kinect." Continuing on about the game, the company's Jason Lim was quoted as saying that "Kinect will soon be available as a new PC controller," but naturally, we've our doubts. For starters, why wouldn't Microsoft be working with a more major developer if honest-to-goodness PC-Kinect interactions were planned? Secondly, there's a definite possibility that GamePrix could really be referring to unofficial support, which would make everything seem a lot more sensible. Either way, we'll definitely be keeping an ear to the ground for more, and with GDC under three months away, we ought to know the truth sooner rather than later. [Thanks, Rashad]
