Japanese Coder Creates Predator Kinect Hack

Logan Westbrook

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Feb 21, 2008
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Japanese Coder Creates Predator Kinect Hack


New hack provides hours of invisible fun, without the decapitation, mandibles, or thermonuclear devices of your standard Predator.

One of the coolest things about the Predator movies was the invisibility technology the aliens used to blend in with their surroundings. We're still a pretty long way off having a real version of it, but a new Kinect hack lets you live out at least some of your alien hunter fantasies, although only those that will fit in your living room.

Created by a Japanese coder called Takayuki Fukatsu, the hack detects the user as normal, but converts the data into a nearly transparent outline, allowing the user to appear invisible. The effect seems to have a limited range however, as Fukatsu clearly disappears from shot when he moves to the back of the room. We are talking about being unseen though, so it actually makes the effect look more cool, rather than less.

Fukatsu used the open source C++ toolkit, OpenFrameworks [http://www.openframeworks.cc/] in the creation of the hack, and while it's pretty much just a neat trick at the moment, you could use it for some interesting games involving sneaking around and not being seen.

Source: Engadget [http://www.engadget.com/2010/12/02/kinect-now-offers-a-stealth-mode-courtesy-of-optical-camouflage/]


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Mar 30, 2010
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That is pretty damn cool. I wonder how long it'll be until someone uses this hack to make their own version and post it on Youtube with a vid title along the lines of 'OMGWebcamProvesRealGhost!!!' or similar?

[sub]To be fair if I had a Kinect and this hack I'd have done it already...[/sub]
 

Spoonius

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Jul 18, 2009
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Can't really see many potential applications for this... sure does looks cool though.
 

EllEzDee

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Nov 29, 2010
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By "predator" i thought you meant "child predator". That would have livened the kinect up...
 

Simalacrum

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Apr 17, 2008
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Wait... hold on a second, how does the Kinect detect (and project) the objects behind the player? Surely they'd be blocked out of view? o_O
 

TheComedown

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Aug 24, 2009
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Simalacrum said:
Wait... hold on a second, how does the Kinect detect (and project) the objects behind the player? Surely they'd be blocked out of view? o_O
This was my first thought, it probably has some sort of stored image of the background that gets projected onto the person and updated when the covered area is revealed.
 

carpenter20m

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Nov 9, 2009
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TheComedown said:
Simalacrum said:
Wait... hold on a second, how does the Kinect detect (and project) the objects behind the player? Surely they'd be blocked out of view? o_O
This was my first thought, it probably has some sort of stored image of the background that gets projected onto the person and updated when the covered area is revealed.
It could be this. Sounds logical. I was also thinking, however, that it might be that the Kinect has more than one cameras, so it can compose the image from 2 points, much like our brain does. It's like when you're able to see through your finger when it's in front one of the eyes. But the storage thing sounds more reasonable.
 

Smooth Operator

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Oct 5, 2010
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Simalacrum said:
Wait... hold on a second, how does the Kinect detect (and project) the objects behind the player? Surely they'd be blocked out of view? o_O
I'll give you a hint, having a static picture helps ;)
 

General_Potatoes

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Jun 22, 2009
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Wow thats really freaking cool. I wonder if any game companys will hire him to do make games that would the stealth element.
 

Pinstar

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Jul 22, 2009
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Just don't hide in a lone bush in the middle of a field...

If you don't want to be seen that is.
 

wastaz

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Nov 16, 2009
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So he modded the camera to...not include him in pictures?
Wait...what?
Look, this is cool and awesome and all (and mad props to the guy for doing this, it's seriously badass)...but I fail to see any real application of this, even as a game?
 

_Cake_

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EllEzDee said:
By "predator" i thought you meant "child predator". That would have livened the kinect up...
That's what I thought it meant too :p You know how the Japanese are...