BioWare Devs (Probably) Joke About Mass Effect 3 Kinect

[John Funk]

BioWare Devs (Probably) Joke About Mass Effect 3 Kinect

We're pretty sure that the BioWare guys are just having some fun regarding Kinect-powered features in Mass Effect 3. At least, we hope they are.

Several days ago, sharp-eyed viewers saw temporary Mass Effect 3 box art on the EA store that carried with it the purple "Better With Kinect" bar for games that use Microsoft's magic little camera. Said art has, of course, since been removed (but you can see it here to the right).

While neither BioWare nor EA have officially commented on the Kinect slip, Mass Effect 3 executive producer Casey Hudson wasn't above commenting via Twitter [http://twitter.com/#!/CaseyDHudson/status/76512395526283264]: "Can't comment on the Kinect rumors. On an unrelated note, I just flew to the Citadel and boy are my arms tired."

The game's producer Michael Gamble fired back [http://twitter.com/#%21/GambleMike/status/76521197269037056]: "[Planet] mining is a pretty good workout too..."

We can't know just why the placeholder ME3 box had the Kinect bar on it, but this is almost certainly just Gamble and Hudson having fun with their fans based on a silly rumor. It seems unlikely that BioWare would include Kinect functionality, given that ME3 is going to be a multiplatform game. If there were any Kinect features, they would have to be completely ancillary.

While I support motion gaming as a general concept and think Kinect is a neat concept that has proven very hard to actually work into a game, I just don't think it would fit with the Mass Effect setting. So, let's just hope that Gamble and Hudson are just pulling our collective legs.

(Via Destructoid [http://www.destructoid.com/bioware-devs-joke-about-mass-effect-3-kinect-right--202761.phtml])

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[rsvp42]

Yeah sounds like a little good-natured fun. I wouldn't worry, there's no way it would be anything more than an optional feature anyway, because not only would it anger fans of the series who don't own the peripheral, it would make releasing it on other platforms way too difficult. So yeah, no way it would ever be mandatory.

 

[RA92]

The game's producer Michael Gamble fired back [http://twitter.com/#%21/GambleMike/status/76521197269037056]: "[Planet] mining is a pretty good workout too..."

Like I said, they're gonna include planet scanning, but this time you're sent down the planet and are made to mine manually like Infiniminer/MineCraft.

'Cause, you know, AAA studios love cashing in on popularity?

 

[Waaghpowa]

They're not the first ones to joke about the kinect, remember Blizzards April fool's joke about Kinect Starcraft?

 

[ZombieGenesis]

If it's on the box, why would you assume it's a joke?
If it's on the box- then it's in the game.

 

[Harmondale2]

Please be a joke.. please oh please..

 

[MiracleOfSound]

More horrid box art for ME3 there.

How can such a wonderful series have such bad covers?

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

Oh the rage there will be if it's actually part of the game.

Clever marketing ploy.

 

[LostNumber]

I could see biotic and tech powers being used with a controller and kinect. For instance, using pull by selecting the pull ability and making a pulling motion with one hand, or controlling the path of your incinerate by steering it with your hand. After those comments, though, I doubt that the kinect box cover was anything but a mistake.

 

[CM156_v1legacy]

And this, my friends, is how you troll

OT: I think it is a joke. But if it is put in the game in some way that works, I'm fine with it.
Also, on a unrelated note, wasn't Fable 3 going to have something like that, but it got scraped late in the dev cycle? Perhaps that will happen

 

[Zhukov]

Wow. If that was a troll then, just... wow. Job well done.

Also, this:

More horrid box art for ME3 there.

How can such a wonderful series have such bad covers?

Yup. Even the first game had pretty bad art, what with the artist trying to cram on every damn thing they could. (Shepard Vanderloo, Ashley, Garrus, the Normandy, Saren, Vigil, two planets, some ships, Sovereign and a whole bunch of Geth.)

The worst part is that they are actually capabale of putting out really good box art. The collectors edition of ME2 had an awesome cover.

Ah well. Nobody really cares about the picture on the box. But still... eaarg.

 

[Panzervaughn]

It would be cool to see it a kinect-optional Hack Minigame where you dick around with your own little Augmented Reality Omnitool =D

 

[No_Remainders]

Please be a joke.. please oh please..

... Wait, what?

This is something I don't understand. What's wrong if it is there?

Seriously, it won't inhibit you from playing... At all? I mean, it's not like it's forcing you to play with Kinect, it's just giving you the option.

Oh, I forgot, some people are just elitist pricks.

 

[akibawall95]

Please be a joke.. please oh please..

... Wait, what?

This is something I don't understand. What's wrong if it is there?

Seriously, it won't inhibit you from playing... At all? I mean, it's not like it's forcing you to play with Kinect, it's just giving you the option.

Oh, I forgot, some people are just elitist pricks.

I agree, what is the big deal it is not like you have to have a Kinect to play so I do not see how this would affect you in any way. If anything it would be funny watching people throwing probes at Uranus.

 

[Knight Templar]

More horrid box art for ME3 there.

How can such a wonderful series have such bad covers?

Collectors edition for ME2 had an amazing bit of box art.
Simple is best.

This is something I don't understand. What's wrong if it is there?

I don't have Kinect and as such would feel my copy is lacking.

 

[MiracleOfSound]

[
Collectors edition for ME2 had an amazing bit of box art.
Simple is best.

[looks at game shelf]

Yes, yes it does. It's beautiful. I have it up next to my Alan Wake special edition which is also pretty sexy.

 

[Nihlus2]

The game's producer Michael Gamble fired back [http://twitter.com/#%21/GambleMike/status/76521197269037056]: "[Planet] mining is a pretty good workout too..."

Like I said, they're gonna include planet scanning, but this time you're sent down the planet and are made to mine manually like Infiniminer/MineCraft.

I can already picture it...:

Shepard hits a vein and breaks into an old miner voice and gibbery dance "Oh boy! Hehehe! I found gold- iridium!"