Kinect and the new dashboard

[bovine]

Hi Team,

What do you guys think of the upcoming Kinect and the new dashboard?

I'll give you guys my two cents on the Kinect, since I have been in the beta for the past month and a bit. It is a pretty neat little device. I have only really played Joyride. They gave me downloadable copies (that have since been taken away. Sad) of Sports and Adventures as well, but I really did not have the time to play them. So what you are going to get is my impression of Joyride. They rolled out many different versions of the firmware, and the sensor itself started off being really awful. It had a terrible time picking me up in my living room because I only had 6 feet between my couch and the sensor. That is literally the minimum amount of space needed, and it was very problematic. As more firmware was rolled out, the sensor became much more responsive, and I am sure that it is working as intended now. It works exceptionally well to pick up both voice for voice commands and your body structure to play games. It is certainly not perfect, but joyride certainly works with all the system's limitations in mind. It is a fun, but light little game that is nothing more than a really cheap mario kart rip. I'll probably pick up sports and the harmonix dance game on thursday, because I've got a free kinect.

You guys think you will pick this thing up?

Relating the the dashboard, the swiping that was shown in demos to control it with the kinect is a fallacy. You wave at the sensor or tell it to go to the kinect menu, and then you just guide a cursor with your hand to select what you want to do. The one big thing that surprised me was how well the facial recognition worked. Once you go through this strange process of standing in a bunch of different places, it matches your face to your profile and signs you in when it sees you. I though that was pretty nifty.

[Lox]

The facial recognition is pretty cool. I love neat little things like that.

I'm not getting a Kinect, but I'd take one for free. It seems like a pretty cool device and I think it's more interesting than the Move since it's not just an improved Wiimote. If I get some time with one and the Dance game, I could see myself wanting one more, especially for my wife. I'm hoping a Best Buy or something has the Kinect set up with a demo (if that's even really possible without calibrating per person).

Let me know what you think of the Dance game.

[bovine]

Other than dancing around for it to recognize your face, there is no calibration needed to actually play games or interact woth the sensor.

[Lox]

Cool. That's what I had hoped. I would love to test it out someplace.

[Zeus]

I will get it when it goes down to $20

[Tessian]

I like the new dashboard, it's pretty fancy looking. The Kinect right now seems little more than a gimmick though, and I sure as hell won't pay $150 for that. Come out with some fun games and drop it down in price and I'll consider it.

[SineSwiper]

Ugh, this dashboard sucks. One, I get a fucking tutorial on HOW TO USE MY CONTROLLER! Dude, I've been using a controller for 30 years. I don't need a fucking tutorial, and neither does 99.99% of your audience.

Two, it's like they took all of the smooth edges and replaced them with flat 2D white boxes. Yay, it looks like Windows 3.1!

[bovine]

Dance central is the greatest.

[Lox]

You didn't have to watch the tutorial. There was an option to skip it.

I like the clean look of it, too.

[Flip]

This scene is not something i ever want out of a video game experience. I like to play alone, immerse myself, sometimes play for hours on end, and generally escape.


Lame family fun

[Zeus]

Ugh, this dashboard sucks. One, I get a fucking tutorial on HOW TO USE MY CONTROLLER! Dude, I've been using a controller for 30 years. I don't need a fucking tutorial, and neither does 99.99% of your audience.

Two, it's like they took all of the smooth edges and replaced them with flat 2D white boxes. Yay, it looks like Windows 3.1!

They hope to capture a chunk of the Wii crowd in which case they haven't been using a controller for 30 years. They might need it.....at least that's what they think. They are after all the dumb Wii non-gamer audience you always bitch about.

Hmm, Microsoft changing something to look more like a product everyone's forced to use. Who woulda thunk?

[SineSwiper]

They hope to capture a chunk of the Wii crowd in which case they haven't been using a controller for 30 years. They might need it.....at least that's what they think. They are after all the dumb Wii non-gamer audience you always bitch about.

Hmm, Microsoft changing something to look more like a product everyone's forced to use. Who woulda thunk?

Microsoft, I get it. You're trying to get that sweet sweet sellout casual cash. It's the new trend, and Sony seems to be out advertising you, anyway.

But, try to keep us core gamers out of it. We just want to play Fallout or Castlevania or Dead Rising or Vanquish with our ancient controller that we have to use with our hands. Leave us alone and you'll still get the dedicated audience playing your games. At least you made the controller your primary device, and the motion thingy an add-on, unlike a certain other console.

[Lox]

If anything, I think Microsoft is out marketing Sony. Microsoft is smart. Instead of just running commercials on TV, they've got the Kinect on Oprah, on Ellen, on Jimmy Fallon. That's much more effective advertising and I think it's working (gotta find the latest sales numbers).

[SineSwiper]

I guess it depends on the audience. I've never seen any of those shows, but I've seen plenty of Sony commercials. (Yeah, I know; I'm not the target audience, but still...)

[Lox]

Yeah, that's what I mean. Microsoft is marketing it to mom's with Oprah and Ellen. That's a pretty good move, imo.

[Zeus]

If anything, I think Microsoft is out marketing Sony. Microsoft is smart. Instead of just running commercials on TV, they've got the Kinect on Oprah, on Ellen, on Jimmy Fallon. That's much more effective advertising and I think it's working (gotta find the latest sales numbers).

Original shipment appears to be mostly sold out here, but I would doubt that it's much more than 300-500k total units. I'm thinking that they'll get through the first two waves no prob, like the Move, there's lots of early adopters in the gaming crowd. But we'll see what kind of legs these things have. The Wii has proven it has legs (only $50 price drop in 4 years; unheard of) but these add-ons? I'm not so sure

[Julius Seeker]

They hope to capture a chunk of the Wii crowd in which case they haven't been using a controller for 30 years. They might need it.....at least that's what they think. They are after all the dumb Wii non-gamer audience you always bitch about.

Hmm, Microsoft changing something to look more like a product everyone's forced to use. Who woulda thunk?

Microsoft, I get it. You're trying to get that sweet sweet sellout casual cash. It's the new trend, and Sony seems to be out advertising you, anyway.

How is Microsoft "selling out"? This seems an odd term to use for product diversification.

[SineSwiper]

Actually, that is the exact definition of selling out. Do you call it "product diversification" when your favorite indie band decides to go commercial and increase their audience to 14-year-old girls?

Oh wait...I forgot who I was talking to.

[bovine]

Microsoft is an indie band?

[Zeus]

Oh wait...I forgot who I was talking to.

You know, the Shrine is a fuck-lot better with Seek on your banned list :-)

[Kupek]

Microsoft did not "sell out." Maybe you confused Microsoft with your friend because you liked their platform and the games that came for it, but their goal has always been the money. It's Microsoft. That's what they do. They went into the console business because they saw potential for profit. You can't fall down when you're laying on the floor, and you can't sell out when you've always done it for the money.

[Shrinweck]

You can't fall down when you're laying on the floor

I have a recurring dream that would attempt to refute this.

[Julius Seeker]

Actually, that is the exact definition of selling out. Do you call it "product diversification" when your favorite indie band decides to go commercial and increase their audience to 14-year-old girls?

Sine, I am going to let you in on a little information which you may find SHOCKING!

Microsoft is NOT an indie band, they are ACTUALLY an international multi-billion dollar corporation with a market cap worth over 200 billion USD. They are in fact, NOT releasing an album on a mainstream label, they are ACTUALLY releasing a peripheral for their existing console under the exact same label that they have been using since April 1985.

[SineSwiper]

Microsoft did not "sell out." Maybe you confused Microsoft with your friend because you liked their platform and the games that came for it, but their goal has always been the money. It's Microsoft. That's what they do. They went into the console business because they saw potential for profit. You can't fall down when you're laying on the floor, and you can't sell out when you've always done it for the money.

I had no illusions that Microsoft isn't it for the money. Jesus, you think I've been promoting open source and think that Microsoft is my friend? Hi, Kupek, and welcome to the Shrine. My name is SineSwiper, in case you haven't heard of me, because obviously, you haven't before.

But, you can still sell out by ditching a core audience for something else, even if your original motives have always been about money. Sure, it's more predictable at that point, but still selling out. Besides, I wasn't saying that they were actually "selling out", just that they were "trying to get that sweet sweet sellout casual cash". The modifier is on the word cash, not the company.

(Is there some rule of the Internet that says when English is brought into the argument that the argument must immediately be dropped, because it's become really fucking retarded?)

[Tessian]

what gives you the indication that Microsoft will be "ditching a core audience for something else" ??

How does adding a new type of games to your system ditching someone else? I seriously doubt you'll see fewer FPS's or RPGs. This will result in MORE games, not fewer, so your hardcore gamer can decide to just ignore the Kinect and nothing else will change.

It's like saying when VW added jacks in their cars for MP3 players that this somehow meant they were ditching their older customer base

[Julius Seeker]

You're forgetting, Sine is the sort of guy who will disagree with solid reason and logic, and irrefutable and factual information in order to allow his biases to shine forth; and make them appear as unquestionable truth. He spends his days across Internet forums, ceaselessly writing on topics about things that he claims to despise, and yet somehow can never stop discussing.

While normal people see Microsoft continuing the route of product diversification; such as they did when they released the Xbox in the first place; Sine will only see this: "Microsoft is abandoning me! They're getting that sweet sweet sellout casual cash! This is just like when my precious Indie bands sell out! Microsoft needs to only be for MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! They're sellouts!!! SELLOUTS!!!!!!"

[SineSwiper]

That's not what I was saying, but it doesn't matter. This argument is stupid, blown way the fuck out of proportion, and I don't give a flying fuck, anyway.

[Mully]

I haven't download the new dash. Any screenshots on it...hoping someone else will do the research for me...pleasse?!

[Shrinweck]

Just do a Google image search on new xbox 360 dashbaord. It basically functions the same way except it's white.

[Flip]

I cant wait for WWE Raw Kinect!

[Zeus]

I cant wait for WWE Raw Kinect!

I'd much rather have The Playboy Mansion: Kinect :-)

[SineSwiper]

I cant wait for WWE Raw Kinect!

I love how the commercials for Dance Central basically show them doing the same embarrassingly stupid dance moves, basically saying "This is all our Kinect can do"