kinect
Latest
Seattle Symphony uses Kinect to conduct robotic instruments
Microsoft might have scaled back its ambitions for Kinect, but creative modders and developers are still finding ways to put the peripheral to good use. Conductor Ludovic Morlot used the device to control three "kinetic" instruments -- a robotic grand piano, 24-reedhorn sculpture and custom concert chimes -- as part of an intimate Seattle Symphony performance on May 1st. During the 22-minute composition, Morlot could start, stop and control the volume of the instruments with gestures. Making a fist in different places let him select the unusual instruments, while waving the other hand up and down would change the amplification. The system was devised by Trimpin, a kinectic sculptor, sound artist and musician, and will remain in the Benaroya Hall so that visitors can try it for themselves. Microsoft seems to have given up on its second-gen Kinect, but mods like this one are a reminder of its untapped potential. Between this concert, a weird musical sandbox and a Nine Inch Nails festival tour, it seems to have a small future in the music industry.
Motion-sensing 'PomPom Mirror' recreates your likeness in fur
If you're tired of your ugly mug staring back from across the bathroom sink every morning, just install this furry silhouetting mirror from New York-based artist Daniel Rozin. He built it for the Descent With Modification exhibit at NYC's bitforms gallery. The "PomPom Mirror," as it's called, leverages a Kinect motion capture device to control 464 servos that, in turn, flip 928 black and white faux fur pom poms back and forth to match your movements in real-time.
The US Air Force hopes to recruit you with a virtual reality game
The US Air Force has an interesting dilemma: how do you convey the thrill of flying a fighter jet to potential recruits without taking them on a very expensive trip? Virtual reality, apparently. The military branch is teaming up with Reel FX on Air Force Performance Lab, a recruiting "experience" whose centerpiece is an Oculus Rift-based VR game that has you flying an F-35 through an obstacle course. It's more of an arcade game than a simulator, but the use of real throttle-and-stick controls and a rumbling seat could make it feel convincing enough.
You can build Microsoft's Kinect-powered holodeck at home
Got a Kinect, a projector and a knack for code? If so, you can create a Star Trek-like holodeck in your living room. Microsoft has released the RoomAlive Toolkit, a software framework that lets you string together Kinect motion trackers to create interactive projection maps. You can use it to build anything from extra-immersive games through to art displays. This isn't exactly a trivial undertaking (Microsoft is promising lots of tutorials), but it means that you won't have to wait for someone else to bring your augmented reality dreams to life.
Murder, cat women and time travel hit PC in detective game 'D4'
D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die is a wacky, weird and fairly wonderful point-and-click adventure originally released on Xbox One for Kinect. Fast-forward a few months and, now, it's heading to PC. Creator Hidetaka Suehiro, AKA "Swery," confirmed the PC port on Twitter and in Japanese magazine Famitsu. In the Xbox One version, D4 truly (and surprisingly) shines as a Kinect game, allowing players to control a hardened, time-traveling detective using arm gestures and voice controls. The PC version will feature standard mouse controls: "It's really good I think," Swery tweeted. There's no word on whether the PC version of D4 will be on Steam, but Swery has "noted" fan requests for a Steam launch.
Relive the history of computing at 'The Interface Experience'
At a time when devices are faster and slimmer than ever, a collection of bulky old computers can be amusing yet surprisingly evocative. The Interface Experience, an exhibition at the Bard Graduate Center's Focus Gallery in New York, brings on a rush of nostalgia with a ton of vintage machines. Kimon Keramidas, curator and director of the digital media lab, hopes that an interaction with aging technology will make people think critically about their current devices. Unlike the objects that are off-limits behind a glass wall in a museum, the machines at the exhibit are open and quite alive. They've been overhauled with custom programs to initiate a three-way exchange with the user, the software and the hardware.
Microsoft isn't selling Kinect for Windows anymore
Given that Microsoft has consolidated so many other parts of how it operates lately, word that it's discontinuing the new Kinect sensor for Windows shouldn't be much of a surprise. From here on out, Redmond will no longer sell the now redundant desktop-specific version and instead point app developers toward the "functionally identical" Xbox One unit and its necessary adapter cable instead. The Xbox One sensor was apparently pretty popular amongst desktop developers and Microsoft couldn't keep up with demand in some markets, so rather than keep producing two incredibly similar units, it's likely focusing its efforts on producing more of one. Should you already own a Windows Kinect don't fret -- Nadella and Co. promise that support for it isn't going anywhere. For a peek at how we put the console do-all sensor to use with a Windows PC, take a gander at the video just below.
How I turned my Xbox's Kinect into a wondrous motion-capture device
When Microsoft started selling a basic Xbox One package without a Kinect V2 for $100 less, the result was unequivocal: Sales took off. Most gamers can take or leave the ubiquitous depth camera, because it just isn't as useful for gaming as, say, the Wii controller. It is indispensable for certain titles, like Just Dance 2014, Xbox Fitness and Fighter Within. Others, such as Madden NFL 25 and Battlefield 4, can make use of the Kinect 2, but absolutely don't need it. In other words, it's a big bag of meh for gamers and casual users. But recently, my ears perked up when Microsoft released a $50 cable that lets you use the Xbox One's Kinect on a PC.
The Xbox One's built-in video editor just got a lot more powerful
Microsoft has been touting its Upload Studio since before the Xbox One launched, but until now, the video editing suite only offered a few options for gamers. Now its first major update is bringing a ton of new features -- it can splice together recordings to run for up to 30 minutes, drop in text overlays and toss in tons of new effects and transitions including many styled for games like Forza Horizon, Halo and Call of Duty. The biggest change, however, may be the ability for players use the Kinect camera to drop themselves into the video, using green screen effects without the need for an actual green screen backdrop. According to Major Nelson, the system can see your body and pick it out of the background, but we've seen enough camera glitches and voice commands missed to be skeptical until more people have tried it out. There's a demo video laying out the new Upload Studio experience embedded after the break (plus a clip I tossed together with the new tools), and if you have an Xbox One the update should be live right now for you to try out.
Microsoft leaked the Xbox One, HoloLens and more way back in 2012
Covering Microsoft can be comical. The enormous, multinational company is notoriously prone to leaks. Here's a short highlight list from our vast library of leak posts about Microsoft: Microsoft's fitness wearable, Band The Xbox One game console, in development kit form, on eBay of all places Cortana for Windows, the voice-based search engine Former CEO Steve Ballmer's entire CES 2010 keynote speech While that list of all stars is impressive unto itself, there's a far more interesting leak that happened way back in June 2012. A 56-page business presentation was uploaded to document-sharing service Scribd -- the document outlined four years of Xbox plans, the vast majority of which have now played out. From Kinect 2.0 shipping with Xbox One to HoloLens (then known as "Project Fortaleza"), essentially the entire recent history of Xbox was exposed nearly three years ago.
Best of the Rest: Sam's picks of 2014
WildStar I grew up during what I'd consider "the golden age" of MMO games. I was there for the launch of World of Warcraft, as well as earlier titles like EverQuest and Ultima Online. The genre has a very special place in my heart, and WildStar felt like the last, major, "true" MMO (as opposed to games like Bungie's Destiny that possess MMO-like features) release that we would see in a long time, possibly ever again. A last hurrah, if you will. And what a hurrah it is. We don't really "review" MMOs here, but through a series of postcards, I chronicled my time with a game that is in no uncertain language a fantastic piece of craftsmanship. The visuals are bright and colorful, with a Pixar-esque personality evident throughout. The gameplay is fresh and fast, requiring constant focus instead of hotkey rotation memorization. And of course, the housing. Oh, how I could spend hours simply customizing my plot of land with various wallpapers, decor, even mini-quest objectives. WildStar is a thoughtfully-constructed game with a wealth of content. True that it relied a bit too much on large-scale endgame raids and the promised monthly updates fizzled shortly after launch, but I don't regret a moment spent on Planet Nexus.
PSA: D4, MX vs. ATV now on Games with Gold
As the calendar flipped to January yesterday, Xbox Live Gold members are now able to download this month's free games on Xbox One and Xbox 360. As revealed in December, Xbox One owners with a premium Live subscription can now pick up Access Games' quirky adventure D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die free of charge. Subscribers get two games on Xbox 360 this month: Offroad racer MX vs ATV Alive and CD Projekt's The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings. D4 will be available throughout the month while the two previous-generation games are on a split schedule. MX vs ATV Alive is free until January 15, then The Witcher 2 will be available to download at no cost on January 16 through the end of the month. Lastly, according to the Microsoft Store, last month's Xbox One game Worms Battlegrounds is still available to download for free. [Image: Microsoft]
Engadget Daily: the year's defining stories, the dangers of sitting, and more!
We're just about through with 2014, so it's the perfect time to take a look back at the defining moments of the past year. To help, we've rounded up some of the biggest stories of 2014. Click on the gallery below to find out what made the list, along with other stories that made headlines in the past 24 hours.
Original Kinect for Windows being phased out next year
Microsoft will phase out sales for the original Kinect for Windows in 2015. The decision follows the arrival of the sensor's second version and PC adapter in October, as well as the latest hardware's SDK being made freely available. The company noted in an announcement blog that companies reliant on the original motion sensor should contact Microsoft soon to fill orders for the older hardware, though "no more original sensors will be manufactured after the current stock sells out." Version 2 of Kinect for Windows is essentially the same tech paired with the Xbox One when Microsoft's latest home console launched in November 2013, save for two changes: Microsoft pulled the Xbox logo from the camera and added a separate hub and power supply to operate. Microsoft's PC adapter for the Xbox One Kinect links the new camera to Windows 8 machines using USB 3.0 for $50. The original Kinect for Windows hardware launched in February 2012. [Image: Microsoft]
Wave goodbye to Microsoft's original Kinect for Windows
Whether you think depth-sensing cameras will become the next big thing or fizzle out, one of the models that helped usher in the tech is set to be retired for good. The original Kinect for Windows will be phased out in 2015, nearly three years after Microsoft first introduced it. The sensor (which is nearly identical to the Xbox 360 model) was controversial with gamers from the get-go, but was embraced by the DIY hacking community and companies who used it for facial and motion tracking, among (many) other uses. Plenty of those folks still rely on the Kinect v1 for Windows, so Microsoft advised them to buy as many as they need, and soon, since it won't make any more after the current stock sells out. However, Microsoft will continue selling the Kinect v1 for the Xbox 360 online and in the Microsoft Store for the foreseeable future.
XNA, Xbox Live founder leaves Microsoft
Xbox Live Founder Boyd Multerer announced his departure from Microsoft this week after 17 years with the company. Multerer revealed the career change via his Twitter account, saying "Goodbye Microsoft. It was a good run. Xbox was Great! Time to do something new." Multerer's bio on the social media site indicates that the "something new" he's up to is on his own terms, as he is "currently doing independent secret stuff." Multerer not only led the design and direction of Microsoft's Xbox Live service starting in 2000, but also served as project manager and led the creation of XNA, the company's toolset that facilitates independent game development for its platforms. The longtime Microsoft designer's last position with the company was as director of development since 2011, designing the operating software of its latest home console, Xbox One. [Image: Microsoft]
Report: Microsoft building game-streaming tech, 'Arcadia'
Microsoft has job openings within a new cloud-based Operating Systems Group, and one of the listings says the project is called "Arcadia." ZDNet reports that Arcadia is a new streaming system built on the Azure cloud and is poised to replace Microsoft's Rio game-streaming tech. Arcadia will stream games and apps to Microsoft devices, the site says. Halo 5 on your Windows Phone, anyone? One of Microsoft's job listings reads, in part, as follows: "The new Operating Systems Group (OSG) Streaming team is leveraging the cloud to bring premium and unique experiences to Microsoft's core platforms. These experiences take advantage of a new geo-distributed massively scaling service to redefine what is possible on today's devices. The client team is building the user facing application(s), bridging the service and devices together seamlessly. Our team is a small but growing and dedicated to solving one of Microsoft's biggest business challenges in a creative fashion." Both job listings note that experience with iOS and Android app development is "a plus." As Engadget points out, this technology is most likely a long way off, since the development team isn't even finalized yet. Sony has its own game-streaming system, PlayStation Now, and that's in beta on PS4, Vita and PS TV, well, now. [Image: Microsoft]
Xbox One gets cozy with Threes and Limbo this week
Xbox One welcomes all moods on December 5 with Limbo and Threes, the next two ID@Xbox entries. Microsoft gifted early Xbox One adopters with Playdead's monochrome misadventure last month, but everyone can purchase the platformer starting Friday. As for numeric puzzler Threes, you can flirt with its figures on the big screen for $7, also on Friday. Limbo is dark, disturbing and more than a bit hostile, but it still earned the full five stars in our 2010 review. If you're after something perkier, Threes combines an esoteric brand of tile-matching with the jazzy, bubbly atmosphere of a lounge party. That may sound like a bizarre mixture, so it's worth reading our Portabliss column to see just why it intoxicated us.
Dragon Age: Inquisition cut to $45 in Amazon's Cyber Monday sale
Summon the advisers to the war table and plot a course for Amazon, because today's deal of the day has Dragon Age: Inquisition down to $45 on all platforms. The offer ends at midnight PT today (3AM ET tomorrow), and only applies to the extras-less Standard version. As for why Inquisition is worth the inquiry, BioWare's RPG scored the full five stars in our review. In the words of Joystiq's Alexander Sliwinski, "This is the sequel fans were hoping for all along, and new adventurers will be eased into this next generation of Dragon Age."
You don't have to wear a horse mask in this Kinect, PS4 camera game
Developers André Noller and Georg Graf of Grandé Games aren't interested in the spotlight. They want their game, a body-bending platformer for Kinect and PS4 camera called Commander Cherry's Puzzled Journey, to be the star. To ensure that Noller and Graf don't interfere with the game's message, their demo videos star a man in a horse-head mask and a purple morphsuit, and when they emailed Joystiq answers to an interview, it was in the voice of Commander Cherry himself. We did eventually speak with the real Noller and Graf, and unfortunately for their invisibility plans, they have an interesting story. Commander Cherry is their first game, but they're already registered developers with both Sony and Microsoft for PS4 and Xbox One. They're financing the game with their own money, working side jobs on Mondays and Tuesdays, and developing Wednesdays to Fridays from 9AM to 9PM, Noller said. To get in with the big players, Noller and Graf prepared a pitch package that included a video of the team and a short Commander Cherry gameplay trailer. "We also pulled off some 'guerilla contacting,'" Noller said. "The breakthrough with Sony was a tweet to Shahid Kamal Ahmad. This was necessary because we had trouble uploading an OpenOffice file (yeah, yeah, the poor Indies). The breakthrough with Microsoft was also the work of guerilla contacting. We searched for the email address of the ID@Xbox director on the internet and found it on the last page of an old PowerPoint document."
