90°

8Bitfix E3 2013: Hands On (or is it Hands Off?) Impressions with the Kinect One

Is the Kinect One worth the extra $100 on the Xbox One's asking price? Find out as we analyze what the Next Gen Kinect One is capable of with a video demonstration that was recorded live at Mirosoft's E3 booth.

Neoninja3966d ago

I'm happy to see a preview about the new kinect, I'm a bit skeptical on it as most are. The first one was okay, but not as good as it should have been. It's looking like this one will be leaps better. I would like to see a few games with some kinect integration to see just how much better it is than the original.

Foxgod3966d ago (Edited 3966d ago )

Yeah me2, despite al the negative concensus, i am actually curious about kinect2.
Didnt care so much about kinect1 as it didnt offer too much to me, but the improved and new features sound fun.

For the rest i dont care about having yet another camera in my house, i own so many devices with camera's. or that do data mining, what gives to add another one.

IIJOSEPHXII3966d ago

I don't think anyone at Microsoft ever read the book "1984" by George Orwell.

Foxgod3966d ago

Whether or not you believe the scenario of that book.
its not something that started with kinect, you are already surrounded by camera's (tablets, phone's, laptops, 3Ds, Vita, etch).

Its really strange that people freak out all of a sudden about something that is already all around us, namely, data mining.
Every device we use that has the least amount of internet capabilities mines data, from our phone, to our pc.

ShwankyShpanky3966d ago

Please familiarize yourself with the concept of "false equivalency."

There are a couple other logical fallacies in your brief "argument," but the above referenced is obnoxiously common.

slapedurmomsace3966d ago (Edited 3966d ago )

@ Fox And what do all of those devices have in common? You can turn them off. Granted you could unplug the console from the wall every time you were done playing..but that...if anyone finds that acceptable in this day in age, than more power to them.

Foxgod3966d ago

Kinect can be turned off,

http://kotaku.com/xbox-ones...

it has a power button, and kinect can be disabled, but then you can only turn it on using the buttons.

besides, does it matter, whenever you use your device (camera, laptop etch) the camera's are on as well, so info is gathered, its nothing new, and it remains bull to attack the XB1 on something everybody already uses.

falviousuk3966d ago

@fox why do you even bother arguinf with them, they are blinded to things like facts, and only regurtitate the negative falswhoods propagated on here.

Its almost as if there was a full on campaign by a certain company to apply as much pressure on negativity towards the xbox one as possible in the run up to launch.

When you actually stop and thing about the features that the xbox one is pushing, there is more to the box and service that what people on here would have you believe.

Yes you can turn off kinect (this sentence will appear blurred to the ps fanboy brigade)

As someone else pointed out elsewhere, what has the PS4 brought to the table, other than more powerful hardware over the PS3. And since when did more power equal better games. State of decay on the 360 is an excellent example of gameplay over graphics.

But again its pointless posting this up as the usual brigade fanboys will continue to pollute these forums, xbox posts in particular.

If they are so disinterested in the system, why do they continue to post time and time again. Makes you wonder what there motives are. paid ?

ShwankyShpanky3966d ago (Edited 3966d ago )

"Kinect can be turned off ... it has a power button"

No, the Xbone has a power button. The Kinect can only be shut "off" via software settings. Software settings can be remotely overridden.

Remote activation doesn't even necessarily need to enter into it. I've got a Samsung DLP HDTV from 2008, and recently it's been a bit buggy, with settings repeatedly reverting themselves to defaults. Hell, when I plug my Win7 laptop into my docking station at work, I often have to re-do the display settings to get the proper dual-monitor and display rotation settings back.

As has been asked over and over (and I'll ask it again over and over)...

If it can be "turned off," why can't it be disconnected?
If it can be "turned off," why can't it be disconnected?
If it can be "turned off," why can't it be disconnected?

Consumer: "I'm not too crazy about this always-online camera and microphone."
MS: "That's okay, you can turn it off."
Consumer: "Great! So if I can turn it off, that means that the system can operate without it, so I'll just unplug it and put it away. One less piece of clutter in my entertainment center."
MS: "Oh no, you can't unplug it."
Consumer: "Why not?"
MS: ... <crickets> ...

P.S. Again: False equivalency. Your comparison is unsound.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 3966d ago
Dr Pepper3966d ago

The only thing I've really seen demoed with the new Kinect (besides when people have just stood in front of it and watched themselves be turned into block figures) was the Fantasia demo at E3. The lag was quite noticeable. I'm not exactly sure what the person playing was doing besides making fireworks appear, but there was such noticeable lag that it seemed like it would affect the experience negatively.

I'm not sure why they would show the game in that state. Either they weren't ready to reveal it, or there are problems with the product on a more fundamental level. Other people can continue to be amazed by seeing the machine recognize a smile, but I have plenty of doubts that have yet to be alleviated. So far, it seems like nothing more than a less convenient way to move slides on the X1 menu and provide a way to use Skype (which doesn't exactly scream gamer-centric, or, for me, justify the added 100 dollar price tag).

badkolo3966d ago (Edited 3966d ago )

listen at this point we should really wait, they are adding it to the system so they are bankking on kinect v2 to work as advertised, i mean lets be real here, if this thing launches and kinect 2 doesnt work as advertised, you can kiss the xbox good bye so lets just wait, either kinect is usefull and works extremly well or they dug themselves a grave they cant fix since the whole system is pretty much based on having kinect work with it, thats what the whole reveal was about. I doubt they would commit suicide like that . kinect v1 didnt need to be perfect, it just needed to work ok and bring something new to garner the wii style audience, it was coming out years after the launch and isnt the same as kinect 2 . lets wait before we get our pitchforks ready

Dr Pepper3966d ago (Edited 3966d ago )

I just feel that MS, to really sell the device, should've come out of the gates with something amazing. As an example, an RTS game utilizing fluid motion controls could've been really interesting. Hell, they owned Ensemble. What if they had kept the studio and released an amazing Age of Empires game in the launch window to sell the concept? Just throwin' out an idea.

Instead, gamers are shown a delayed firework simulator with a Disney name slapped onto it. I just don't understand how they are trying to sell this idea with an extra 100 dollars attached to the console. I can skye, but I can do that on a laptop, or on my phone. And even if they did something more hardcore, there are still fundamental problems with using that type of motion control system. I think there is a reason why a game like Ryse abandoned the idea and is using it as support, or a game like Dead Rising 3 says "the zombies can hear you in your room", and doesn't go much further.

These aren't fundamental to the gameplay, and in some ways just detract from it. Therefore, the lack of fundamental benefits make me wary of throwing in an extra 100 dollars for something that isn't necessary. Seems like a weird thing to base your video game console around.

It isn't my goal to bash the X1 for the hell of it. I've been a customer for a long time now, with the original xbox and xbox 360. But I've grown so weary of this game they play.

Shadonic3966d ago

Im going PS4 as well but lets be realistic here Technically you can still play online with Xbox one you just need to have connected to the internet in that 24 hour time-frame which kind of makes online the 24 hour connection stupid. You can trade games as they said you can trade a Code specifically for playing on other consoles with your friend which is a huge hassle in my book and yes you cant play without the camera but you can turn it off while your playing or cover it up if your not using it for gesture specific operations.

fsfsxii3966d ago

I'm going PS4 too but let's be realistic.
Xbox One SHITS on your rights. Is that clear??!

badkolo3966d ago (Edited 3966d ago )

It was easy to hate on kinect and I do agree on the why, it was pushed hard to capitalize on the motion fad and while it worked better then previous cameras and while the mic part worked decently it still had many drawbacks and wasnt fully reliable for gaming and was limited in many aspects, and in the end we got no core games for it, we got crap kiddie kinect games shoved down our throats when they could have been giving us more games and exclusives, so it was easy to hate on it. The kinect 2 though, if finally it lives up to its potential and it actually seems like it might then for once i can be excited about it, it looks like it will be an additional thing to use during games with some kinect games versus it being a motion camera with forced games that dont work well and only focus on the wii style audience while ignoring the core, it looks like they are making the proper changes as we only heard about 1 kinect game and you can actually use it for many other purposes and use it successfully

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220°

Microsoft’s Surface and Xbox hardware revenues take a big hit in Q3

Microsoft just posted the third quarter of its 2024 fiscal financial results. The software maker made $61.9 billion in revenue and a net income of $21.9 billion during Q3. Revenue is up 17 percent, and net income has increased by 20 percent.

Read Full Story >>
theverge.com
darthv7217h ago

Xbox content + services up 62% while hardware down 31%... seems about right with the way they tout you don't need the hardware to play. People can play on their phones or smart tv or other means. I don't hardly play on my consoles directly since getting devices like the logitech g-cloud and ps portal. Which is to also say I have been playing more digital than physical because of these devices.

solideagle4h ago

you should apply in MS PR team buddy, I think you will do a great job in my humble opinion :)

Sonic18812h ago

I thought darthv72 and Obscure_Observer already work for Microsoft 🤔

dveio1h ago

MS: "Xbox services and content without AB up 1%, with AB up 62%. Hardware down 31%. In total a loss of 350 mill."

darthv72: "Seems about right."

MS: "Excuse m ..."

darthv72: "I don't hardly play on my consoles directly."

MS:

Cacabunga4h ago

I can tell people like you are an absolute minority..

If service is up means their fans and fanboys accepted this model and subscribed to it. The near future you will see a big decline because the service is saturated.

shinoff21833h ago

But that's been ms for years. When things aren't going their way they try to change the way things are said. For instance console sales are down, they stop telling how many sold instead telling us how many hours spent in halo or headshots. So it makes sense console sales down just say people are playing on more devices then previous. What they won't say is how many xbox players jumped ship to ps5.

Cacabunga2h ago

Hardware sales are so bad that Sony and Nintendo are blowing the sales off the water with their hardware.

If Xbox are losers, others aren’t..
Xbox already tried everything with Xbox live then subscriptions went down so much that they had to find something else. Their fans subscribed then reached saturation rather quickly.

Hardware and exclusive games is where it’s at! Keep gamers excited, announce decent software and people will support you

purple1017h ago

Xbox hardware revenue tanks to lowest point of Xbox Series generation

Profchaos6h ago

I'm not surprised surface is struggling they aren't relevant anymore

XBManiac5h ago

Too expensive hardware when others offer the same or more for less? Good work, Green Team.

SimpleDad5h ago(Edited 5h ago)

"Despite some early successes for Xbox games on rival platforms, Xbox hardware is down by a massive 31 percent this quarter."
"Without Activision Blizzard, Microsoft’s overall gaming revenue would have actually declined this quarter."
"Xbox content and services would have only been up a single percent without Activision Blizzard..."
"It looks like next quarter is going to be a similar story for gaming at Microsoft, too."

That is crazy... so A/B/K is carrying the whole Xbox gaming.
Oh and Microsoft will be fine. Windows, Office and Cloud are growing with each pc purchase.

purple1015h ago

Activision: "we gonna need a bigger rucksack/backpack please"

Microsoft: "why's that"

Activision: "to carry yo' weak ass'

Profchaos4h ago(Edited 4h ago)

Top brass have also wanted to start seeing returns on the 100 billion they have put into various Xbox related moves so seeing more multiplatform games is highly likely especially from abk

It's basically saying that PlayStation is the reason Xbox is afloat right now thinks to Ps5 versions of COD

Kornholic3h ago

So basically PS and PC gamers' money is keeping Xbox on life support.

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300°

Microsoft Seemingly Closes Bethesda France

As part of its plans to cut 1,900 jobs, Microsoft has reportedly shut down operations at Bethesda France, letting go roughly 15 people

Read Full Story >>
insider-gaming.com
Hereandthere1d 14h ago

Microsoft should have left them stay 3rd party

GamerRN1d 11h ago

If they are let go, they can be whatever they want. They ARE 3rd party now... 🤦

Barlos1d 9h ago

Yeah, they're also jobless.

GamerRN1d 2h ago

They can form a company if they want, they are just as jobless as if "Microsoft had left them as 3rd party".

peppeaccardo1d 4h ago

"MIcrosoft leaves Bethesda do what they know how to do best" ... close! Oh the irony ....
(Citation from a week old article)

ChasterMies1d ago

I think Microsoft and other game publishers are letting people go because they think ai will replace them. Doesn’t matter how much profit they make. They were always going to be let go.

PassNextquestion1d 13h ago (Edited 1d 13h ago )

Bethesda France was made up of roughly 15 people... they couldn't of being doing much

Bethesda France mainly did publishing and marketing within the region

blacktiger1d 11h ago

that's a shame for you to say that, i'm sure Elite loves hearing what you just said.

Mr Logic21h ago

What a stupid thing to say. The elites give 0 fucks what we say on an obscure website in the comments section.

Crows9021h ago

You can always reach out and give them jobs at your company man. Don't wait

Profchaos1d 13h ago (Edited 1d 13h ago )

Bethesda France focused on publishing and marketing in the region. And 15 people lost their jobs as part of the closure.

I wonder if this is part of Microsoft's strategy to abandoned physical media or possibly gamepass advertising makes their roles redundant you don't need to market a game as hard when the majority of players get the game as part of a sub which already promoted upcoming games

Tacoboto1d 13h ago

It's France too, there's a high likelihood only 1-2 people on the team even had an Xbox.

Profchaos1d 13h ago

Possibly guven all the leaks we know the Xbox brand is really struggling in the region.

Yi-Long1d 10h ago

Well, if your consoles and games are barely found in any stores any more, of course you're gonna struggle finding consumers ...

XiNatsuDragnel1d 12h ago

Tbh Microsoft I think Bethesda being 3rd party same with Activision would probably more competitive than thus scenario imo

Profchaos1d 10h ago (Edited 1d 10h ago )

I think it would have been better for all parties really especially gamers

TheColbertinator1d 11h ago

The recently purchased Activision French offices might take over all the licensing and marketing for Microsoft in France from now on.

Show all comments (21)
280°

Xbox's Preservation Step Sets A Much-Needed Example, Especially For Nintendo

Hanzla from eXputer inquires: "If Xbox can care about preserving its games and legacy, what exactly is wrong with Nintendo, trying to kill game preservation single-handedly?"

purple10112d ago

Ahh yes the good old game preservation of saving all your games to a removable hhd on the Xbox 360, taking it round your mates house, setting up multiple tvs to
Be met with “save data corrupted, please re download”

Or how about removing 360 games
From the store
, download them now or else, and, better hope to god that save data doesn’t corrupt, or it’s lost for ever

Nice one ☝️

Zeref12d ago

It's better than what Nintendo and Playstation is doing. It might not be perfect but at least they are TRYING. Unlike the others.

DarXyde12d ago

Trying? Take off the blinders for a moment, mate.

1. A failure to preserve games is just that: a failure to preserve games. Don't try to sugarcoat it: NO ONE is doing it properly. Better than awful is nothing to write home about.

2. At the time of this comment, isn't it the case that you need an internet connection to play Xbox games even if you buy physical discs that are hardly in circulation anymore? I don't have a Series X and I can't verify, but I think that is correct. I'm fairly certain you can at least play PS5 games at version 1.0 (not much of a win really when many games require day one patches). I think Microsoft's all digital, licensing approach is by far more aggressive than anyone else's. They really try to push you to game pass where you lose your entire library by umm.... Skipping a month of payments.

I don't think anyone is doing it right whatsoever. Don't get me started on Nintendo, who goes after anyone looking to preserve their games better than they ever would with extreme litigation.

Don't be a simp for any of these companies. Get it together.

PhillyDonJawn12d ago (Edited 12d ago )

@DarX never speak on Xbox again. You lost all credibility with your internet connection comment. Smh you have 0 clue and misinformed yet speaking on something you don't no squat about.

Einhander197212d ago

What has Sony done exactly? You guys keep deflecting to Sony but I am not actually seeing any results, and ai am certain nothing that you can come up with even comes close to what Microsoft has done and what they have tried and failed to do, like tie all your disks to your account on xbone.

Microsoft removed their whole indie section when they moved to the xbone because they were going to only allow games on the service that came from a publisher, id@xbox started after xbone launched and it only exists because Sony embraced indie and Microsoft was forced to cancel their plans and reverse course.

And every single game that was part of games for windows live including disk games (I have gta 4 on disk that won't work) so hundreds of games that use that DRM no longer work unless the company themselves patched it out which of course very few did.

MrBaskerville11d ago

Not trying. Tried. they killed of the backcomp program years ago. They set something up again, but sounds like it's more of an attempt to save the current library on whatever they are planning next. With luck they save everything and more, but let's see. I could see them killing off parts of the OG xbox and 360 libraries. Can't imagine that they would allow us to play Forza 5-7 in the future.

With that said, I do like what they've done and really wish they could have done more.

shinoff218311d ago

Zeref

So killing off physical media is trying what exactly. Ms don't really give a fk if you think they do your kidding yourself.

Profchaos11d ago

They are not trying this team is established for forward compatability the team is. It interested in preserving Xbox or 360 games.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 11d ago
isarai12d ago

Is that why Hellblade 2 is digital only?

Zeref12d ago

Just because it's digital only doesn't mean you can't preserve it. Just put it on an external and you have the exact same functionality of what a disc does.

MrNinosan12d ago

Guess you're trolling, but if you actually think that's how it works, I'd recommend buying some braincells.

mkis00711d ago (Edited 11d ago )

Volitile vs nonvolitile data. A disc will not corrupt either. A drive can be corrupted.

Einhander197212d ago

This is just a scammy PR move to distract from the fact they are going digital only and trying to push streaming and subscriptions only.

No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft.

Without discs there is no preservation, preservation can't be done by the rights holders it can only be done by the consumers, anything else is a lie.

12d ago Replies(3)
Einhander197212d ago

Anyone remember xblig which Microsoft removed their whole 360 indie section removing hundreds of games from people?

12d ago
12d ago
Zeref12d ago

Do you know you can put your games on an external and preserve them that way? There are no benefits to discs. ZERO. Idk why some of you are still obsessed with them.

DarXyde12d ago

Because games like Persona 5 exist. It's STILL V1.00. On Playstation, that's a win because 1.00 is installed on the disc—no need to download anything.

If a game does not require any updates, it's all on the disc.

Extremely low bar in the modern era, of course. It's not much of a win by any stretch.

But for now, physical media does have a purpose, at least on Playstation.

Einhander197212d ago

That is factually not how game licensing works, try plugging your hard drive into someone else xbox, It's not going to work, and it won't work if the licensing servers ever go down.

Einhander197212d ago

Anyone remember games for windows live.

I have around a dozen games, some on Steam itself that will not work because Microsoft shut off the licensing servers.

BehindTheRows12d ago (Edited 12d ago )

I do. I STILL have games (Gears of War being the big one) I cannot access because Games for Windows LIVE is total garbage and no one has held Microsoft accountable.

Zeref11d ago (Edited 11d ago )

You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership.

Chevalier11d ago

"You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership."

Damn how many times do people got to explain your idiocy to you? You can take a copy of Persona 5 like someone used as an example and play that game on ANY console WITHOUT logging in which means I can lend the game to a friend without internet and they can play my game. Can you lend your hard drive to anyone without logging in for them to play? NOPE. That is a huge difference and if you think otherwise then sorry you're an idiot.

Tacoboto11d ago

"No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft."

Ubisoft is literally erasing games people bought from their libraries... My PS1-3 discs are useless on modern hardware. Nintendo's re-published and resold almost their entire Wii U library, and the eShop is completely dead with no BC mechanism in the Switch software. Microsoft publishes everything they make today day one on Steam and Xbox/Windows. Sony only brings to PC the titles they think you might want some years later and Nintendo won't even design a functional long-lasting joystick.

You're absolutely trolling and not serious if you think Microsoft today is the worst offender.

shinoff218311d ago

Yay steam

Not everyone fks with computers though. The disc is still the best way as a console player. Period.

Tacoboto11d ago

How do Sony and Nintendo feel about these discs from 2001-2013?

Don't be stupid, you know Xbox is the best at this today.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 11d ago
Hofstaderman12d ago

Nobody wants this. Sales or the lack of it in the case of XBOX is very telling. I wonder how the adorably all digital series X will fare. Adorably dismal perhaps?

crazyCoconuts12d ago

Only time will tell, but for from someone like me suspecting that Xbox is trying to gracefully exit the console market, that "forward compatibility" team is trying to get Xbox games playing on Windows PCs. I mean, it's nice that they're not planning on exiting with a "enjoy your games while the hardware still works" message, so that's nice. They still have a brand to protect via Microsoft so probably feel obligated to have a better exit strategy.

Xeofate11d ago (Edited 11d ago )

That is not their plan, their plan is to transfer users accounts to the cloud.

Phil Spencer himself said as much a few months back, plans could have changed but I think people are reading way too much into one statement where Phil said he would allow Epic on xbox because he wants to be able to sell xbox games directly on other platforms. Aka, instead of selling Sea of Thives through PSN he wants to have an xbox store to sell his games on PlayStation without giving PlayStation any money.

Again, it's extremely unlikely that Phil plans to put PC on xbox and licensing would prevent them from just giving out other publishers games purchased on xbox copies of thier games on PC, Microsoft does not own their games.

crazyCoconuts11d ago

The thing that doesn't align with the cloud strategy is the giving up on exclusives. You'd still need strong exclusives for cloud streaming - it's still a "platform" , just with a lower upfront hardware investment. I feel like they've learned what PS learned with PSNow long ago. We're not ready to stream games and it's only gonna lose them money to try at this point

FinalFantasyFanatic11d ago

I would love that, I'd buy up some of the Xbox games if they could run on PC, like the Rare Replay, Lost Odyssey and Dead or Alive Ultimate, probably a pipe dream though.

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