Xbox Kinect

[Hendo]

Milo is A L I V E

Lionhead and Microsoft Game Studios main man Peter Molyneux has responded to the current fuss over the on/off release of Kinect game Milo & Kate at the GameHorizon conference in Gateshead.

When asked by GamesIndustry.biz about Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg's comment on Australian telly that Milo & Kate was just a "tech demo", Molyneux reassured his adoring public that the relationship sim was alive and kicking.

"Poor Aaron Greenberg - he's on the PR team, he hasn't seen it since last year, so he came up with this stock answer that Milo is alive and well and living in Guildford but it's still a tech demo.

"I feel sorry for him, he hasn't seen the game since last year. If I had spent time with him and showed him the game recently, he'd know what was going on.

"All that technology that we showed at E3 last year actually does work," he promised.

Molyneux told the conference that he has struggled to convince people of Milo & Kate's credibility.

"Milo has been a really hard thing to do and a really hard thing to describe. I have real sympathy for the [Microsoft] people over in Redmond, because they understandably have some questions.

"The biggest challenge for us is convincing people what we're doing is actually going to work, is going to reach a new audience, is going to be an idea that people love. That for me is a massive challenge. Convincing people what you're doing is something that can change the world."

Milo & Kate is expected to be formally unveiled in a couple of week's time at TEDGlobal 2010 in Oxford, UK.

[David]

£130, apparently.

Microsoft's Kinect motion sensor will cost £129.99 and be released on November 19.

That's according to online retailer ShopTo anyway, which has the new tech listed for pre-order now at the ever so slightly discounted price of £124.86. Just in case saving £5.13 exactly would seal the deal for you.

There's still no official word on any of this, Microsoft has said that all Kinect prices are purely speculative at the moment.

Still, all speculation seems to be around the 100 mark.

Oh dear.

[DANGERMAN]

I dont think £100 is that bad if they've got some good games with it. But then for the market they are seemingly appealing to it's an insane price. I'd consider it because I dont need a new console any time soon, but they likely need a 360 aswell, not to mention some games beyond the one kinect game they'd buy at launch

[hinn888]

Lionhead's Peter Molyneux showed a new version of his Milo demo at this year's TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) Global Conference bringing the Kinect project out of hiding for the first time since E3 2009.

With Molyneux stating, "I want to introduce a new revolution in storytelling," an assistant demonstrated a section involving Milo exploring a garden, learning how to skim stones and then confiding in the player when he's told off by his parents. So far, so weird.

"Films, TV, even hallowed books, are just rubbish because they don't involve me," said Molyneux. "It's a sea of blandness."

Plenty of technological wizardry apparently makes Milo seem real, and the demos themselves are equally real, with subtle expressions such as a flaring of the nostrils used to denote stress have been employed to make Milo appear as real as Molyneux and his team set out to make him. Molyneux said that he wanted to create a character "that seemed alive, that would look me in the eyes, and feel real".

"Most of it is just a trick - but it is a trick that actually works," he said, while later in the demo, the Kinect motion-controller's in-built microphone detected the player's tone of voice and meaning to dare Milo to squash a snail in the garden. Apparently, these seemingly minor events will shape Milo's development later in the game as he grows.

"No two people's Milos can be the same - you are actually sculpting a human being." Molyneux explained. "Some of the things you are doing will change the course of his life."

The demo made for the TED event in Oxford showed the opening of the game, wherein players learn to interact with Milo for the first time, and apparently "after three-quarters of a hour, he recognises you," said Molyneux. "I can promise you that if you are sitting in front of this screen, that is a truly wonderful moment."

Later stages of the game - which still hasn't been officially announced as such - supposedly allow you to explore more freely with Milo, and "there are lots of adventures - some of which are quite dark."

Microsoft still has no plans to release Milo as a viable commercial product as yet, although Molyneux hinted that the game is being developed with a large consumer base in mind and could one day see release.

"His mind is based in the cloud," he told the TED audience. "As millions of people use it, Milo will get smarter."

[Jimboxy]

"His mind is based in the cloud," he told the TED audience. "As millions of people use it, Milo will get smarter."

[hinn888]

Kinect Pricing Officially Revealed

Written Tuesday, July 20, 2010 By Richard Walker

The wait is finally over. No more speculating about price tags and so on, as Kinect has now been officially priced and it turns out that all of those speculative prices weren't far off, as it's well above the 100 mark.

Kinect has been priced at $149.99 for the US and will be bundled with a copy of Kinect Adventures. The same bundle will cost £129.99 in the UK.

Microsoft has also announced a range of different Kinect bundles to choose from, as well as a new 4GB Xbox 360 Slim (with matt finish), which is being produced to presumably appeal to the more casual market who will use the memory for saves and little else.

The 4GB console will ship on August 3rd in the US and will cost $199.99, while the UK will see the new model on August 20th for £149.99. You can also buy the 'Kinect Holiday Bundle', which includes the 4GB console with Kinect and a copy of Kinect Adventures for $299.99 in the US and £249.99 in the UK.

Kinect and the Kinect Bundles will be released in November, 2010 alongside 15 launch titles that will retail for $49.99 each in the US and £39.99 each in the UK.

So there you have it. It's all official now.

So its like paying £90 for the camera..

[Hendo]

I'm not gonna argue on the price because I have no idea how much that tech is worth, but purely on what games we've seen so far, I won't be running out to buy one on launch at that price.

[Hendo]

You won't be seeing any Kinect-compatible games from small independent XNA developers any time soon.

That's according to comments from an MS spokesperson, who told Digital Spy that Kinect development privileges are currently restricted to "developers with established contracts with Microsoft".

"At this time only developers with established contracts with Microsoft have the ability to create Kinect games," said the rep.

"Like full retail Xbox 360 games and Xbox LIVE Arcade games, Kinect games will be created by a select group of publishers that Microsoft has partnered with for the launch."

That doesn't mean XNA devs will never get a look in. "Opening up Kinect development to XNA Creators Club members is something we may consider in the future, but no plans can be confirmed at this time," they said, although that doesn't sound too positive either.

From CVG.

That's quite sad, the indies would make some fantastic stuff with it.

[hinn888]

The patent for Microsoft's Kinect motion-detecting camera was released to the public last week, revealing that it has hidden talents beyond picking up someone dancing around or karate kicking at their TV screen.

As it happens, Kinect is also able to read American sign language due to the camera's ability to recognise and track arm and hand movements. Kinect can pick up these sign language gestures and subsequently translate them into spoken word or text. Clever stuff that could massively improve the accesibility of Kinect gaming for certain people.

It might not be of particular use to the majority of you, but it does demonstrate how sensitive Kinect is and how it can detect the smallest gestures, which could also hint at other possible applications.

[Hendo]

New Milo video:

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name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="

type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="640" height="385"></embed></object>

[David]

The patent for Microsoft's Kinect motion-detecting camera was released to the public last week, revealing that it has hidden talents beyond picking up someone dancing around or karate kicking at their TV screen.

As it happens, Kinect is also able to read American sign language due to the camera's ability to recognise and track arm and hand movements. Kinect can pick up these sign language gestures and subsequently translate them into spoken word or text. Clever stuff that could massively improve the accesibility of Kinect gaming for certain people.

It might not be of particular use to the majority of you, but it does demonstrate how sensitive Kinect is and how it can detect the smallest gestures, which could also hint at other possible applications.

I think this was revealed to be bullshit, at least with the current hardware. Kinect's power seems to have been curtailed a fair bit since last years E3. It used to have its own CPU, but they got rid of that. Stuff like the sign language thing might have been possible with the prototypes.

[hinn888]

Microsoft has confirmed to Eurogamer that Kinect's voice recognition will be disabled in mainland Europe and won't be coming to the device until spring 2011.

Apparently, Kinect will only accept American English, British English, Japanese and Mexican Spanish upon launch in November, but even the Canadian audience will have to sit tight until the same spring 2011 date for voice recognition.

Annoyingly for Spanish speakers able to imitate Mexican Spanish, the voice recognition function will still be unavailable due to the region restrictions of the Xbox 360. A simple case of numbers dictated the reason for opting to support Mexican Spanish before native Spanish. There are 106 million Spanish speakers in the US and 13 million console owners in Mexico, which tips the balance favourably against the 45 million people in Spain.

So, the US, UK, Mexico and Japan can look forward to Kinect voice recognition this November, while the rest of mainland Europe and Canada will sadly have to wait until spring 2011.

[DANGERMAN]

Microsoft has confirmed to Eurogamer that Kinect's voice recognition will be disabled in mainland Europe and won't be coming to the device until spring 2011.

Apparently, Kinect will only accept American English, British English, Japanese and Mexican Spanish upon launch in November, but even the Canadian audience will have to sit tight until the same spring 2011 date for voice recognition.

Annoyingly for Spanish speakers able to imitate Mexican Spanish, the voice recognition function will still be unavailable due to the region restrictions of the Xbox 360. A simple case of numbers dictated the reason for opting to support Mexican Spanish before native Spanish. There are 106 million Spanish speakers in the US and 13 million console owners in Mexico, which tips the balance favourably against the 45 million people in Spain.

So, the US, UK, Mexico and Japan can look forward to Kinect voice recognition this November, while the rest of mainland Europe and Canada will sadly have to wait until spring 2011.

I look forward to kinnect's appearance on Watchdog for not understanding anything north of Bath

[hinn888]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2a6KBGc0Uo&feature=player_embedded#at=24

Shiny.

[Hendo]

Hardcore mech geeks rejoice!

Capcom reveals Kinect Steel Battalion

Capcom took the lid off of a Kinect-enabled Steel Battalion game during Microsoft's Tokyo Game Show press conference last night.

Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor, created by From Software and published by Capcom, features the series' trademark giant armoured vehicles. It asks, what would the world be like if computers disappeared?

"In a world where computers and almost all modern technology have been lost, the greatest nations of the world continue to battle for supremacy," reads the official blurb.

"The American army lands in New York to begin its first big offensive of a long ground war. Soldiers fire from the trenches as scorched bunkers belch black smoke. As comrades continually fall to the unrelenting crossfire of bullets, the Vertical Tanks make their relentless advance. Experience the battlefield as never before with Kinect for Xbox 360."

"Probably you remember this title - it's coming back," said Capcom head honcho Keiji Inafune on stage during the conference. With Kinect, there's no need for a huge controller, he explained.

"This is for core gamers. That's the only thing we can do at Capcom. And we should do it thoroughly."

Kinect has plenty of potential, Inafune added, not just for Capcom but for "many game creators" to create games for core gamers. This will uplift the games industry, especially in Japan, reckoned Inafune.

Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor is out exclusively on Xbox 360 in 2011.

<object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaGtcXYCQmY?fs=1&hl=en_GB"></param><param'>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaGtcXYCQmY?fs=1&hl=en_GB"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaGtcXYCQmY?fs=1&hl=en_GB" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object>

Also, SEGA's Rise of Nightmare for Kinect

SEGA's Rise of Nightmare has been announced exclusively for Xbox 360 Kinect.

A trailer was shown at Microsoft's 2010 Tokyo Game Show conference. Ellie Gibson, our woman on the ground, glimpsed flashes of zombies, people being hacked to pieces and a man strapped to a bed. Screaming was heard in the background. "Wake up... to a new wave of horror," teased the video.

"Does look quite unpleasant," noted Gibson.

Rise of Nightmare will be released next year.

[Hendo]

Rumours say Milo is dead, again.

UPDATE: Microsoft and Lionhead have responded to Eurogamer's enquiries with the standard: "Microsoft does not comment on rumour or speculation."

ORIGINAL STORY: Peter Molyneux's controversial Kinect game Project Milo has been cancelled, sources have claimed.

Development on Lionhead's motion-sensing relationship simulation was officially halted yesterday, with "19 contractors" let go, according to a source claiming to be close to the situation.

Two teams will now focus on the Fable franchise, Eurogamer was told. According to our source, the old Milo team will reuse the Milo tech for a "Fable themed Kinect game".

[HandsomeDead]

Milo always came across as a tech demo so I'm not surprised.

I missed the Steel Battalion news, awesome stuff, I'd like to see how it turns out. I always wanted to atleast play the original, how could you not want a go with that controller?

[hinn888]

Limited Edition Kintectimals.

[hinn888]

You can sit down with Kinect. Now you can't sit down with it. Now you can. Now you can't. You can. That's been the news regarding Kinect's ability to detect seated players over the past few months, but now we can finally put a lid on it all, as Microsoft has now updated the motion-controller's software and eradicated the issue.

Apparently, the problem with detecting seated players was a result of Kinect tracking the base node at the bottom of the spine to create its model of the player's skeleton, so when players sat with their knees in front of their pelvis, it confused the tracking.

Consequently, there's been more back and forth on the matter than a game of tennis, but now Microsoft has put the whole matter to bed, with a source telling Eurogamer that the solution involved moving the base node from the bottom of the spine, to the back of the neck.

"It means that should the bottom of your torso get confused with the sofa, because your bum and your legs are enveloped inside the sofa, it doesn't matter because your hands and arms are still working," Blitz Games Studios co-founder and Chief Technical Officer Andrew Oliver explained. "You can do most actions."

"A few months ago they changed stuff around. A lot of developers were like, 'Oh my God! Everything's broken,' because all the nodes were moved.

"But then it was like, 'Oh, actually, this is more logical.'"

So, you can sit down and play Kinect. End. Of. Story.

[hinn888]

Family:

* “Kinect Adventures” (Good Science Studio/Microsoft Game Studios) – included with every Kinect sensor – 10th November UK. 4th November US.

* “Kinectimals” (Frontier Developments Ltd./Microsoft Game Studios) – 10th November UK. 4th November US

* “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 The Videogame” (Electronic Arts/EA Bright Light) – 19th November UK. 16th November US.

* “Game Party™: In Motion” (Warner Bros. Interactive) – 26th November UK. November 18th US.

Fitness/Lifestyle:

* “Dance Central” (MTV Games/Harmonix) – 10th November UK. 4th November US.

* “Your Shape™: Fitness Evolved” (Ubisoft) – 10th November UK. 4th November US.

* “The Biggest Loser Ultimate Workout” (THQ) – 10th November UK. 4th November US.

* “EA SPORTS Active 2” (EA SPORTS) – 19th November UK. November 16th US. (w/ heart rate monitor)

* “Zumba Fitness” (Majesco) – 26th November UK. November 18th US.

* “Get Fit With Mel B” (Black Bean Games/Lightning Fish) – 26th November UK.

* “DanceEvolution” (Konami) – 10th November UK.

* “Dance Paradise” (Mindscape/Smackdown Productions) – 10th November UK.

Sports:

* “Kinect Sports” (Rare/Microsoft Game Studios) – 10th November UK. 4th November US.

* “MotionSports” (Ubisoft) – 10th November UK. 4th November US.

* “Sports Island Freedom” (Konami/Hudson Soft) – 26th November UK.

* “Kinect Joy Ride” (Big Park/Microsoft Game Studios) – 10th November UK. 4th November US.

* “Fighters Uncaged” (Ubisoft) – 10th November UK. 4th November US.

* “Sonic Free Riders” (SEGA) – 10th November UK 4th November US.

* “Crossboard 7” (Konami) – 10th November UK.

Additional US Launch Titles:

* "Dance Masters" (Konami) - 4th November.

* "Adrenalin Misfits"(Konami) - 4th November.

* "DECA Sports Freedome (Hudson) - 'Holiday'.

Heres the line up, um..