VisionCamera
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Win Pac-Man, Live subscriptions and Vision cams
To celebrate the continued success of the Xbox Live Arcade (and because they received free goodies from Microsoft), Eurogamer is having a fun little giveaway. European residents can enter the giveaway by answering a rather easy Pac-Man related question over on their site to win prizes galore. What prizes you ask. Well, good question. They're giving away five 12-Month XBL Vision Gold Packs, five XBLA retro tshirts, and fifteen codes to download the new Pac-Man Championship Edition game off the Arcade. So, head on over to their site and enter the giveaway before June 13th. Remember, you must be a European resident, North Americans need not apply.[Thanks, eLiNeS]
The amazing invisible gamer
Perhaps you spotted this on Joystiq, but we had to post it here. It's been some time since we've seen any Vision Camera shenanigans. This video, however, is special. It's not a video of some jackass on Command & Conquer 3, oh no, this video is not of this world. Gasp as his couch defies the laws of our universe. Feel your mind become one with another dimension as you stare through a man's solid flesh.If you prefer to preserve the illusion, read no further. It turns out that the Vision camera used in this video was suffering from a case of burn in. It seems the camera has captured the couch in the background for so long that it is permanently within the frame. As it stands, the video teaches us two things. One, be careful using your Vision cam for prolonged amounts of time. Two, if you're not worried about your Vision's well-being, this should make for an interesting party trick.
Xbox Live Vision camera turns player invisible
Take heed, mortals, and quake as Deric twists the very fabric of reality like a pre-baked Glazin' Raisin pretzel from Auntie Anne's. Thrill as he walks between two worlds and uses the power of the Xbox Live Vision camera to make himself transparent! We're envious of this guy for a few reasons. The first is, of course, his ability to sculpt our reality with the power of his mind. Also, we envy him for his buddy, who pops in at around 15 seconds; it's not every friend will tell your when you get the power to become translucent. Some fear what you are, some are too afraid of what you could become. We're also envious of his tech/common sense skills: He said he figured out later that the camera, much many televisions, is capable of burn in, reducing his otherworldly powers to a simple product flaw. Oh, that reminds us. We're also envious of Deric that he's found something to do with the Vision camera so long that his couch got burnt in. He's already beat the rest of us, who put our faces in Rainbow Six, put our crotches on our gamercard and promptly let the thing gather dust.
Vision shenanigans: R6 Vegas baby
You find the damnedest things cruising Flickr. Today we found this picture taken from Rainbow Six Vegas created by frasermoo. Yes, that is the face of an infant. The face of an infant mounted onto a lethal terrorist killing machine to be specific. While we can't argue the hilarity of such a juxtaposition, we do have to question the logistics of such an endeavor. What had to be done to keep this child still enough to capture his face this accurately? What nefarious harnesses were put to use for the sole sake of creating a humorous avatar? Hopefully, this baby has a penchant for sitting perfectly still and looking cute all the time.Any Vegas players spot any other freaky avatars out there?
Raving Rabbids will utilize Vision camera on Xbox 360
One of the waggle-free ports of Rayman: Raving Rabbids might not be entirely worthless, at least if you happen to own an Xbox 360 Vision camera. IGN notes that aside from "graphical tweaks" and two new mini-games, the Xbox 360 version will incorporate gesture-based gameplay for 37 of the 70-odd mini-games. It's almost a perfect match, really. Raving Rabbids requires some sort of unique input to rise above its mini-game miasma, and the Vision camera needs more games to take meaningful advantage of it. Whether or not the pairing is strong enough to push a great, built-for-Wii experience to the other side remains to be seen. The high-def bunnies arrive this March.[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]
A long distance Xbox 360 Vision X-mas
Over at the Gamerscore Blog Chris posted an account of his first Christmas spent with his family using the Xbox 360 Vision camera. Since moving to Washington our friend Chris hasn't had much interaction with his family and this was his first holiday season without them. What else could he do except purchase his family a Vision camera, get one for himself, and open presents via Xbox Live. Technology bringing together a family, now that's priceless. Have you used your Vision camera to talk with family that lives far away, or newly found friends, or to do some video conferencing? Bringing people together this holiday season, the Vision camera saves the day!
Vegas, face mapping, and you: a video
We recently brought you Major Nelson's Vegas face mapping results, but those were merely pictures. Today we bring you the holy grail of face mapping evidence: video. It seems that the overall goal of face mapping, however, is not to map normal faces. If our previous commenters are to be believed, Vegas players have been trying all kinds of head gear, from sun glasses to Spiderman masks. It's fitting, then, that this video features a woman using the face mapping feature to give Xbox Live a permanent raspberry. Check out the video and tell us what creative things you've done with your Vegas avatar.
Vision Gold pack for $59 (again)
The kooky guys and gals at Stootsi are at it again, offering an Xbox 360 Vision camera -- with a year of Xbox Live Gold and other goodies -- for the low, low price of $54.99. Add $5.00 shipping and you've got a vision cam for only $59.99, a full $20.00 off the full retail price. We'd tell you to hurry because these sales are limited to 24 hours, but it seems like Stootsi is content to offer this deal every other week, so it will likely pop up again. Still it's a great deal and easily worth the money. Go grab yourself a camera if you're so inclined. Hey, it's the only way you're going to get your Oakleys into a game of Vegas, right?
Vegas face mapping: Larry, meet Larry
Larry Hryb, AKA Major Nelson, recently posted the results of his Rainbow Six Vegas facial mapping on his Flickr site. How does it look? Pretty good actually. We mocked up his in game avatar next to his real life mug in the image above. Vegas fans out there may be wondering how Major Nelson came by those cool shades and hat in Vegas. Does he have access to special content because he works for Microsoft? Nope, he was actually wearing those things when he captured his face with the Vision camera. Knowing this, we can only imagine the lengths that some people might go to in order to really customize their character. You want pink and blue camouflage face paint (you know, for sneaking around a cotton candy machine)? Just paint yourself up and take a picture! In theory, you could add anything to your face before you take the picture: tattoos, fake scars, crazy contact lenses, the possibilities are endless.Now that you've seen the results, will you try anything special to customize your character?
2nd chance, Vision Gold pack for $59
It's official, the people at Stootsi.com are nuts about the Xbox 360. We've covered them selling wireless controls and Live headsets, and the Live Vision Gold bundle in the past. Now they're doing it again. The Live Vision Camera deal apparently sold so fast that Stootsi decided to offer it a second time for all the people who missed out. They are currently selling the Xbox Live Vision Camera Gold bundle for $54.99 plus $5 shipping. So, you can grab this for $59.99, $20 off the retail price. Just for a moment, let's peruse the contents of this pack: Vision Camera Live Headset 1 Year of Xbox Live Gold 200 MS Points Two Live Arcade games (Totem Ball and Robotron 2084) That's a lot of stuff for not a lot of scratch. If you've got the cash and you don't have a Vision cam, this is a hell of a deal. Anybody plan on getting it? You've got just over 22 hours to pick one up.[Thanks, get over it]
Texas Hold 'em to get Vision upgrade?
Sharp-eyed 360 Fanboy reader, Gregg Smith, noticed something after this morning's fall update. If you list your Xbox Live Arcade games by category, there is a section for Vision Camera enabled games. In that category, Texas Hold 'em -- or as I call it, Texas Hold Them -- is listed as Vision enabled. Granted, I don't play Hold 'em very much, so I fired it up just to be sure. Lo and behold, there is no Vision support. Does this mean that Hold 'em will have an upgrade in the near future, or did someone at 360 HQ make a mistake?
Xbox Live update: possible pr0n expansion?
So, Xbox Live is down. We all know that. We've been told that it's not going to be the fall dashboard update. Naturally, this has led many to speculate as to what the update actually is. Xbox.com simply states that we should expect some new My Xbox features. The last set of features delivered included things like the ability to check your Live messages from a computer, and send them as well. Considering the release of the Live Vision camera (finally got one myself), many are speculating that the new update will allow Live members to open picture messages from a PC.Let's think about this. Before the PC entered the equation, pictures were bound to the 360, but should they be accessible on a PC, they could be saved, altered, redistributed, you name it. If the word in your mind right now isn't "porn" ... well, you're probably more well adjusted than I am, but I digress. Hell, just playing the Phantasy Star Universe beta last night, I saw several offers to the tune of "I'LL SEND U A PIC FOR $." Sure, technologically, it's nothing new, but you don't even have to leave the couch for crying out loud. Long story short, if the new features turn out to include PC based picture messaging, it will be interesting to say the least. Scary? Titillating? What do you think?
Major Nelson demos Vision camera
Rather than just a standard pod blogcast this week, Major Nelson has instead posted a video podcast. Big deal, you say. But wait, there's more! This video podcast is all about the new Vision camera, which comes out tomorrow (assuming you couldn't snag one early from Toys R Us). The video -- weighing in at over twenty minutes long -- outlines all the super nifty great features of the peripheral. And, did we hear that Rainbow Six: Vegas will feature face mapping? We're pretty sure we did.Those of you interested in the camera (vibration functions and all) should definitely check it out.
Good vibes from the Vision Cam
CheapAssGamer veteran kjauburn snagged one of those premature Vision Cameras at Toys R Us and posted his review. Despite having no interactive game to try out, he has a fairly positive run down of the features, including one (dual) shocking capability you may have overlooked:One interesting or disturbing item to note is you can vibrate the other individual's controller with the trigger buttons. Use your imagination...Owing my utter naivety, I'm throwing this one to our readership and the third party accessory manufacturers.
Leipzig Games Convention roundup
In case you've missed it, or if your slavish devotion prevents you from checking other websites, below is a roundup of Microsoft related news from the Leipzig Games Convention. GC is a pretty big deal in Europe so, there's plenty of stuff to see. Microsoft unveils new peripherals, Vision Camera Settlers of Catan on Live Arcade? Wha? Long promised Lost Planet multiplayer vids Sweet videos of HL2, Team Fortress 2, and Portal. Microsoft nabs FIFA and Pro Evo 6 exclusivity A healthy selection indeed. May they help our American friends make it through a tedious workday, and our European friends settle in for the evening.[Via Joystiq]
Vision camera? Don't forget your free game
Maybe Uno isn't your thing. Texas Hold 'em just doesn't do it for you. Would you rather control a weird totem pole thing by waving your arms and looking like a jackass? Really? Then TotemBall is for you! TotemBall (see video above) lets players guide their character through levels using gestures in conjunction with the Live Vision camera. It should be noted that our own Ken Weeks had some trouble controlling the game in the bad lighting conditions of E3. Hopefully the final version will provide us with a tighter experience -- and another reason to be excited about the Vision camera. The game should be available for download on September 19th, Vision's official launch date. Also, if you haven't picked one up already, the camera will be available in two packages: Standard Kit ($39.99): - Xbox Live Vision Camera - Xbox Live Headset - Xbox Live Gold 1 Month Trial - UNO (code for download) and TotemBall (on Sept. 19) Gold Kit ($79.99): - Xbox Live Vision Camera - Xbox Live Headset - Xbox Live Gold One Year Subscription - UNO (code for download) and TotemBall (on Sept. 19) and third game (TBD) - 200 MS Points [Thanks, Rivithed]
Vision camera available now at Toys R Us [update 1]
Numerous readers tipped us off over the weekend that many Toys R Us stores have -- probably unknowingly -- broken the street date for the Xbox Live vision camera. Originally set for an September 19th release, Toys R Us has beaten the official street date by an entire month. Wait to go, Toys R Us! Any of you lucky enough to grab one early? Better act now before Microsoft wises up, thus preventing you from contributing to the burgeoning 360 video sex chat boom.[Via Joystiq. Thanks to everyone who sent this in.][Update: Changed date to reflect the realities of the Gregorian calendar system.]
Rumor: 360 wireless gaming receiver $20; wheel $130; headset $60; camera $40; Halo and Forza faceplates $20 [update 1]
Thanks to a reliable source from Microsoft, we've learned some important details about the new peripherals announced for the Xbox 360, including pricing and a few Halo faceplate (non)specifics. Check out the leaked info and prices below: 360 wireless gaming receiver (which enables wireless 360 controllers, headsets, and wheels on your PC): $20 Wireless racing wheel: $130 Wireless headset: $60 Xbox Live Vision Camera (with headset, one month of Live Gold, and one arcade -- presumably Xbox Live Arcade -- game): $40 New faceplates for Halo (with the Master Chief on 'em, but not Halo 3 specific) and Forza (no word on connections to the sequel): $20 each 256 MB portable memory unit (MU): no official price yet, but definitely not four times the cost of the older 64MB MU Besides acknowledging that the PC is "the biggest gaming device of all," MS appears to be setting an agressive price for its most relevant new PC accessory, the wireless gaming receiver (at least in comparison to the outrageously priced 360 wireless networking adapter). Unfortunately, no price was revealed as of yet for the USB-based HD-DVD add-on.We've speculated in our recent podcasts as to what would happen to the various 360 SKUs when price drops inevitably occur. An interesting theory bandied about by prolific Joystiq Contributor epobirs (on our earlier bump-to-256MB-MU post) was that a $20 price drop for the Core system, coupled with a $20 price drop on the 64MB MU, would finally allow folks to pick up a capable non-Premium bundle for the original $300 Core price point. (Not a bad way to undercut PS2 memory card prices, too.) We hope to get official confirmation on this info in the not-too-distant future.[Update: Sorry, had the camera price wrong in the headline; it now matches the price of the bundle listed in the body of the text below.]See also: 360's Mem Unit getting a bump to 256MB? (Comment from epobirs) Use 360 wireless peripherals with a PC Engadget & Joystiq's live coverage of Microsoft's Xbox 360 E3 event Joystiq / Engadget podcasts from Day One and Day Two of E3 2006
