Button-Using Kinect "Hybrids" On the Way

[PedroSteckecilo]

Kinect has YET to present me with a game I would actually play as anything more than a 15 minute diversion. When Microsoft explains to me how Kinect would enhance my enjoyment of games like Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Assassin's Creed, Gears of War, Bioshock etc. then I might start actually giving a crap about Kinect. Currently seeing as the simple act of "movement" in 95% of the games I play would be annoying... yeah... flail fail and all that.

Even then, how would Kinect be anything other than a $200 annoyance to me? I have no issue with the way my favorite games control, I don't currently see any need for motion control, hence I can't see how Kinect will be anything more than a "Ha ha, you need to pay us $200 to keep playing games".

 

[Anton P. Nym]

Controller + Minority Report menu systems = lots of sex appeal, although I'm not sure it's enough to put it in my living room

To use a tired Internet meme, "This." I also see some interesting potential for hardcore games using Kinect's mic array and facial detection in addition to the now-traditional controller input.

Some folks here are being (deliberately?) obtuse... I don't think anyone assumed that Kinect would replace the controller completely, any more than the guitars in Guitar Hero did. (Though I did get to watch one intrepid soul play a round of Halo 2 with the guitar... 'twas amusing.)

I also think that it's telling that media outside the "hardcore" echo chamber are giving either mixed or positive reviews of the system. I have yet to be convinced to get one by any of the reviews, myself, but I'm not going to just dismiss it airily; someone could very well do something interesting with it. There's a lot of potential there if studios can find a way to use it.

-- Steve

 

[josemlopes]

I hope that they start using this more often. It would be cool to throw grenades with the force depending or your arm speed.

Also to navigate the inventory

The face recognicion would be cool to express your emotions in online games, and also for the lip sinc for when you talk on the mic.

 

[Nouw]

Let's destroy the whole point of a new console guys! I guess it's to let us gamers ease into it.

 

[SelectivelyEvil13]

Well if Microsoft annoucnes new "Kinect Kontrollers" a la the Wii-mote peripherals, I bloody called it!!!

Because let's face it: realistically, how convienient, immersive, or important would any movement be if you have a controller for everything else? Oh wait! Maybe the developer felt like being a prick and excluded the jump button so every time you want to jump, you must leap off of your couch as though you realized you've been sitting in your dog's excrement(or just stand if you have any sense). The 360 controller is either going to be in your hand as normal, your only one hand will be utilizing one side. The later is more difficult because the 360 controller simply was not designed to be used with one hand as the player flails about.

If this actually results in any form of 360/Kinect hybrid controller, I honestly won't know whether to laugh or cry. BUt eventually, my Kinect-incompatible 360, my PS3, and I will all point fingers and share a laugh [sub]playing a game that doesn't suck[/sub][footnote]I'm not saying that all motion control games suck, rather, I am referring to the ones that are essentially Wii-shovelware clones.[/footnote].

Snip

I feel exactly the same way as I find the Kinect titles in particular to be rather dull attempts at shoehorning in the Kinect control system while not providing a lasting experience. I see more possibilities for games that are the same price that become tired several times faster.

 

[Mr.Squishy]

So they just invented the PF3 move?

 

[The Rockerfly]

*sigh* This is a bit silly, it's almost embarrassing that no one can decide what the hell to do with motion controls

The Wii
Six Axis
Move
Kinect
Then Kinect hybrid

Look Sony, Microsoft that is not what we want. We gamers want better third party support for developers so better games can be released more often. I am sick to death of seeing the exact same games being released countless times while different games have no competition so they are usually of poor quality

I don't think motion controls are completely doomed but, I don't think I know anyone who bought an xbox with the intention of motion controls

 

[spectrenihlus]

Kinect has YET to present me with a game I would actually play as anything more than a 15 minute diversion. When Microsoft explains to me how Kinect would enhance my enjoyment of games like Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Assassin's Creed, Gears of War, Bioshock etc. then I might start actually giving a crap about Kinect. Currently seeing as the simple act of "movement" in 95% of the games I play would be annoying... yeah... flail fail and all that.

Even then, how would Kinect be anything other than a $200 annoyance to me? I have no issue with the way my favorite games control, I don't currently see any need for motion control, hence I can't see how Kinect will be anything more than a "Ha ha, you need to pay us $200 to keep playing games".

What about that Steel battalion game?

 

[Fuselage]

Sounds interesting. I could imagine it would be fun - if a bit flimsy - to use voice commanads to select your line of dialogue in an RPG like Mass effect or Oblivion.

I wonder if they will focus on using both control schemes at the same time - moving around while holding the controller - or if they'll separate the Kinect-controlled parts from the controller-um...controlled parts.

That would be quite cool, i can't wait to see how this turns out.

Being able to shout out "STOP RIGHT THERE! CRIMINAL SCUM!" Makes me want to buy the Kinect

 

[Treblaine]

"and the cool-factor of Kinect."

Wut?

 

[Jkudo]

I suppose if they could combine the facial recognition and voice commands abilities with the controllers then perhaps it might not be a bigger flop than it is now...they still have to implement it correctly though.

I hope you don't mind me quoting you but i had an idea for kinect today. I never bought into the whole "creating brand new amazing experiences without a controller" thing(always thought move would be a better buy and still do) but i did always think a hybrid could be pretty cool. For the life of me i couldn't come up with how it would work other than headtracking(which ps eye can do, its cool but not amazing) or moving your feet. Now moving your feet i could only see it not sucking for a mech type game where you use pedals. Then i thought of this game LA Noire. I remember reading an article on how amazing people thought the facial rigging was, then i thought: what if kinect had a setting that switched from using the camera and all the bones to track your body, to using the same number of bones to track your face and recognize your expressions. Now imagine if during cut scenes or in game a character made a joke, and it failed to make you laugh, the character would respond to that and then say something appropriate, or say the opposite if it did make you laugh. Or if you smiled and a character asked "what the hell are you smiling about?". The point would be to just enhance the experience instead of creating a brand new one. You wouldn't need to wave your arms around or do anything to take you out of the game. If anything i could see it adding to immersion. Although i don't know if the tech is currently capable of it because it has been downgraded a bit, and keep in mind kinect does supposedly "learn" so it would get better at tracking your expressions if it could. Still just something i thought of and felt the need to share.
EDIT: I do know how kinect's hardware works for the most part and i followed it since before Microsoft bought it.

 

[Something Amyss]

Well, if done right it could work. But wouldn't we end up with something like the PS3 six-axes?

Not necessarily. There's still a lot more freedom than with the Sixaxxis. It can still track body parts, rather than solely relying on the movement of the controller.

Personally, I think it would have worked best with something similar to Wii's nunchuck. Simply having an analogue stick and two or three buttons held in one hand, that was light enough to not make range of motion potentially awkward (Using the 360's controller, I picture it slipping out of my hand).

In essence, what I think would be the best model would be a Wii60 hybrid sort of deal. It's possible there are some perks to Move that could be thrown in, too, but I like the above model. However, it would mean selling another controller for a product that's supposed to be controller free. And, of course, it would only work with some games--I have too many plastic peripherals as is.

 

[Buizel91]

Sounds interesting. I could imagine it would be fun - if a bit flimsy - to use voice commanads to select your line of dialogue in an RPG like Mass effect or Oblivion.

I wonder if they will focus on using both control schemes at the same time - moving around while holding the controller - or if they'll separate the Kinect-controlled parts from the controller-um...controlled parts.

That would be quite cool, i can't wait to see how this turns out.

Being able to shout out "STOP RIGHT THERE! CRIMINAL SCUM!" Makes me want to buy the Kinect

Being able to HI5 an Elite and kill him makes me want to buy it...

 

[VZLANemesis]

In my opinion, these hybrid Kinect games will likely be the most compelling experiences, because they can implement the accuracy of button control, and the cool-factor of Kinect.

so... sort of like the move ...but more unconfortable.
lol?

On the topic, I really dont see the appeal of either the move or the kinect.
Im a Sony guy. Mostly cuz I didnt wanna pay for the Gold, also, cause I like many thought that FFXIII was gonna be an exclusive. Anywho... I'll consider buying the move only when they get at least 3 solid games that look way more interesting using the move than using the controller. Which I doubt will happen.

I think independent developers are gonna end up being the winners of this by using the move in some unique way with a small game that a AAA game wouldn't possibly afford to try. Bulletstorm with its "electric whip" would be cool to play with the move, wouldn't it? or Bioshock?

 

[Tom Phoenix]

"and the cool-factor of Kinect."

Wut?

Yeah, I was kind of perplexed by that one as well. What cool factor? Also, where was this "cool factor" when the Wii launched?

This bit of news reminds me of the Roll 'n Rocker for the NES and how you could plug in a controller into it. In both cases, it kind of defeats the purpose of having the accessory in the first place (appears at 8:13):


Besides, hasn't Microsoft been claiming how they want to use Kinect for different experiences than the ones players can experience with the regular controller? If so, what is the point of trying to mix the two together?

If Microsoft wants to sell Kinect to the general public, they need to differentiate it from the regular console controller and it's games. Trying to combine the two just solidifies Kinect's reputation as a tacky add-on rather than being something that brings entirely new experiences.

 

[LostNumber]

This is exactly what I was hoping they would use Kinect for: enhancing gameplay rather that being the gameplay. I could think of a ton of games that could benefit from Kinect, if even only slightly.

One that comes to mind (because I'm playing it right now) is DA:O; hold up your hand to bring up the circle menu and select the ability you want by moving your hand over it and selecting it (or even just saying the name of the ability), then say the name of a party member to change to that member. Really, with a few voice and motion, but still mainly controller-based gameplay, the possibilities are endless.

 

[The Wykydtron]

Wasnt the whole point of the kinect NOT to use a controler?

This

 

[Splunge]

OK, so what they're saying is they can combine motion tracking with controller precision. I don't see the conflict. How about sitting in front of the TV, playing a game, and having the view on the screen change according to the angle or direction your head is pointing? There is nothing that says you have to take your hands off the controller to use the Kinect, only that you can incorporate gestures, either grand or subtle, into the gameplay along with the button pressing.

 

[Norix596]

I can't imagine how this would work -- the easiest movements to identify would presumably be wide arm movements but your arms will be holding a controller. The whole PSWii and Wii60 knockoff fad may likely turn out to be as pointlessly gimmicky and frustrating as the original. The games that by my impression were the most successful, Smash Bros Brawl and Super Mario Galaxy didn't even bother with them. Honestly this seems like the whole 3-D movie trend, they're only going to work well for games/films that are specifically designed for the sole purpose of using the hardware. I'd rather watch a movie and not be annoyed by glasses or play a game and not be hair ripping-out frustrated by motion controls that will inevitable less accurate and more constrained than regular controllers. The Kinect or however it's spelled that it can imitate wide motions but how is that going to be useful? Image playing say, Call of Duty -- you can't walk because if you moved your body you'd run into the screen or walk out of the camera's field of perception. And how exactly would you fire? Twitch your finger? I'd put a significant amount of money on the bet that it wouldn't be able to reliably pick up that. If you'd say to me that it's not the kind of game that the Kinect would use, I'd say whats the point of making a control system that dictates the kind of games that it can use -- I'm there for the game not the controller.