RIP Kinect

https://www.polygon.com/2017/10/25/16543192/kinect-discontinued-microsoft-announcement

Personally, I'm bummed. Always liked the Kinect and using voice commands.

[waves to NSA]

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https://www.polygon.com/2017/10/25/16543192/kinect-discontinued-microsoft-announcement

Personally, I'm bummed. Always liked the Kinect and using voice commands.

Me too. I wonder if the remaining ones are going to be dirt cheap, or get more expensive?

I might pick up an extra in case one of mine ever breaks.

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https://www.polygon.com/2017/10/25/16543192/kinect-discontinued-microsoft-announcement

Personally, I'm bummed. Always liked the Kinect and using voice commands.

[waves to NSA]

I wonder how things would have turned out if:

Microsoft didn't force that trash on everyone, and sold the Xbone at a much lower price. They definitely would have had a chance at having the higher sales figures this generation, since they had the more successful exclusives at the time...

Or
They stuck to their guns like they said they would, and continued to bundle the Kinect with the Xbone. Their sales would be even worse than they ended up being, but the Kinect would still be supported by devs, likely leading to some truly unique and fun experiences and implementations.

The path they took was definitely the worst of both worlds, and here we are, with the "essential" accessory that made the Xbone stand apart from the PS4 dead before the mid-gen console is even released.
It's weird to think that the Kinect had a strong (and arguably negative) impact on the state of Microsoft's gaming division, especially when you consider how hard they plugged it:

"Xbox One is Kinect. They are not separate systems. An Xbox One has chips, it has memory, it has Blu-ray, it has Kinect, it has a controller. These are all part of the platform ecosystem," -Phil Harrison ,MS Corporate VP

Personally, the Kinect (and the way MS latched features to it) was always dumb, and it surprises me that it took this long to die. Voice commands just seem really stupid to me when they replace one or two simple button presses... Maybe I'm just old.

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The Kinect wasn’t that great and didn’t do much to improve games, so nobody wanted it, and few supported it.

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OR

The Kinect wasn’t that great and didn’t do much to improve games, so nobody wanted it, and few supported it.

Tell that to my wife who plays Fruit Ninja. She will fight you for days.

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OR

The Kinect wasn’t that great and didn’t do much to improve games, so nobody wanted it, and few supported it.

Tell that to my wife who plays Fruit Ninja. She will fight you for days.

I still say if Xbox One had launched with an updated version of Kinect Party (formerly Happy Action Theater), the new Kinect might have had a chance. There wasn't a single game on Xbox One that worked as well with the new Kinect as Kinect Party worked with the 360 Kinect.

-Disciple

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OR

The Kinect wasn’t that great and didn’t do much to improve games, so nobody wanted it, and few supported it.

Tell that to my wife who plays Fruit Ninja. She will fight you for days.

I still say if Xbox One had launched with an updated version of Kinect Party (formerly Happy Action Theater), the new Kinect might have had a chance. There wasn't a single game on Xbox One that worked as well with the new Kinect as Kinect Party worked with the 360 Kinect.

-Disciple

I think one of the problems is that there was very little games or the lack of distinguished games. I really wanted (several times) to look in the games stores for Kinect only games. There was no way to do that! That alone spoke bounds as to how much emphasis that put into the Kinect. None.

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I think one of the problems is that there was very little games or the lack of distinguished games. I really wanted (several times) to look in the games stores for Kinect only games. There was no way to do that! That alone spoke bounds as to how much emphasis that put into the Kinect. None.>

Agreed. I have numerous nephews needing non-controller native inputs. The only options are Fruit Ninja, a comic book game, and Just Dance.

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OR

Implying that your following statement is relevant to the two possibilities that I listed, when it could apply to either, but is a totally separate point.

The Kinect wasn’t that great and didn’t do much to improve games, so nobody wanted it, and few supported it.

This just in! Water is wet!
Brilliant investigative work, man. This is an issue that Kinect had since day 1, yes. It's why MS's mandatory inclusion of it caused a lot of headscratching, and why it never felt like something that anyone really needed.

"BUT THE VOICE COMMANDS DURR!" People have cried for years.
First of all, Kinect has far more tech in it besides a microphone.
Secondly, there is zero reason that voice commands had to be tied to the Kinect, no matter what mental gymnastics people have employed to convince themselves otherwise.
Microsoft could have given their headsets that functionality, or they could have added a microphone to their controllers (Even Nintendo figured that out years ago), especially if it was such a vital part that "if you didn't get it, you don't really have an Xbone".

Also, yes, the implementation in games was weak, but the second the Kinect wasn't mandatory, it guaranteed that it would never really get better, because developers had to design their games around the assumption that people did not have it. Not even First-party developers could risk making it a vital part of the experience. If MS was still shipping it, then it would have been a completely different story, and who knows where we'd be right now (there was a hint of greatness even as the Kinect was being lowered into the grave).

I dunno. Hopefully things turn out better for Hololens and Windows VR (though things don't look that great from the get-go).

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I’m not sure unbundling Kinect really killed it. It was mostly DOA. I doubt most devs would have used it beyond the token voice commands anyway. Multi-platform games were never going to use it, and unless it was Kinect only, I doubt many first party games would have invested much into either. We certainly didn’t see much investment in the year that it was bundled anyway.

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I dunno. Hopefully things turn out better for Hololens and Windows VR (though things don't look that great from the get-go).

That's a bit disingenuous an example to use regarding Windows VR. The platform is the important bit, not anything made for it by 1st party devs. I was a bit skeptical about the MR headsets, but I heard a lot of good things about them at PAX. Games like SuperHot VR and Space Pirate Trainer were on display, for example. I think that's a very good sign for the Microsoft Mixed Reality vision.

Disclaimer: MS employee, opinions are own, etc.

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https://www.polygon.com/2017/10/25/16543192/kinect-discontinued-microsoft-announcement

Personally, I'm bummed. Always liked the Kinect and using voice commands.

[waves to NSA]

I wonder how things would have turned out if:

Microsoft didn't force that trash on everyone, and sold the Xbone at a much lower price. They definitely would have had a chance at having the higher sales figures this generation, since they had the more successful exclusives at the time...

Or

They stuck to their guns like they said they would, and continued to bundle the Kinect with the Xbone. Their sales would be even worse than they ended up being, but the Kinect would still be supported by devs, likely leading to some truly unique and fun experiences and implementations.
The path they took was definitely the worst of both worlds, and here we are, with the "essential" accessory that made the Xbone stand apart from the PS4 dead before the mid-gen console is even released.
It's weird to think that the Kinect had a strong (and arguably negative) impact on the state of Microsoft's gaming division, especially when you consider how hard they plugged it:

"Xbox One is Kinect. They are not separate systems. An Xbox One has chips, it has memory, it has Blu-ray, it has Kinect, it has a controller. These are all part of the platform ecosystem," -Phil Harrison ,MS Corporate VP

Personally, the Kinect (and the way MS latched features to it) was always dumb, and it surprises me that it took this long to die. Voice commands just seem really stupid to me when they replace one or two simple button presses... Maybe I'm just old.

I'm older, and I still use voice commands to launch most things on the Xbox. Haven't gotten the hang of it on the Playstation, else I'd do the same there.

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Yep. Xbox On is the best f***ing thing ever.

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No snap, Kinect is gone, no invite only on in game parties, wtf m8. Snap was a killer app!

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No snap, Kinect is gone, no invite only on in game parties, wtf m8. Snap was a killer app!

You sure about invite only? Pretty sure I've seen that feature recently.

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In game parties, like a destiny fireteam, don't seem to have the ability to invite only. I noticed this in Destiny and 2 Halos and one Borderlands. I might be an idiot on the Halos, but I know for a fact it's a removed feature from the Xbone Destiny, and almost positive it's gone from Borderlands.

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In game parties, like a destiny fireteam, don't seem to have the ability to invite only. I noticed this in Destiny and 2 Halos and one Borderlands. I might be an idiot on the Halos, but I know for a fact it's a removed feature from the Xbone Destiny, and almost positive it's gone from Borderlands.

I think some games had those options "in game", but I'm not sure I ever knew this was a thing in the XB1 UI.

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Party. Were you talking about "join/invite to game" options? (Which is right next to, but very different from the Party system.)

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In a game, you have a party, and you can set it to invite only or closed. In the Xbox One you can't do this, even if the game is the same as the one on the 360, which has the feature.

I gather it's a limitation of the new Xbox Live they use on the Xbox One.

It has nothing to do with the Xbox UI. It's the in game party control, a removed feature from the 360.

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In a game, you have a party, and you can set it to invite only or closed. In the Xbox One you can't do this, even if the game is the same as the one on the 360, which has the feature.

I gather it's a limitation of the new Xbox Live they use on the Xbox One.

It has nothing to do with the Xbox UI. It's the in game party control, a removed feature from the 360.

I could have sworn it was there during the Beta. Yeah, it was stupid in Destiny 1, and I have no idea why they made that a mandatory thing on Xbox. Seemed like a significant downgrade over the Open/Clan/Friends/Invite/Closed setting on PS4 (and now PC).

But yeah, I remember being happy about it being fixed in the Beta...

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We could test this, but I'm pretty sure if you set your chat party to private, no one can join in game.

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WELCOME TO (fuzzy recall) SECOND HAND WAR STORY THEATER!

TODAYS TOPIC: STARWARS KINECT!

A.K.A -

Due to it being a small industry, I was able to talk to some of the Terminal Reality DEVS who made STARWARS KINECT. This is a few years old. and I'm pulling from recall. All in all, I reserve the right to be horribly wrong.

So after the successes of "Ghostbusters: The Video Game" (A.K.A - The ACTUAL Ghostbusters 3 Movie), the DEV Team was brought into a room, and told to be excited. They had no idea what the next project was going to be. When they found out it was to be a STARWARS Game, well... to say that the DEVS were hyped is an understatement. OMG They were going to make a Starwars game! Then came the other shoe, and it was revealed that this game was going to be a showcase for some upcoming technology for the Xbox. The KINECT.

As hyped as they were for being paid to make Starwars anything, the response for the KINECT was less then ideal.

Who in the hell is going to get off their couch, and flail their body around for any more then 10 minutes at a time. No one! It's a gimmick. Fun for a few, then that's it.

Kinect was a full body deal, aimed at gamers. It was never going to fly. It didn't matter HOW MUCH MONEY Microsoft pumped out to market otherwise. It was a cool idea, that doesn't work in practice for the marketed group. And we were making a game for that.

Then there were also stories of the Q & A Team. I'll let Kahzgul interject here. Imagine Kahzgul... you have to Q & A a KINECT game. Hours of Days of Months of Years of just moving, making sure every motion worked. Do you survive? Based on what I was told, that is also probably a factor in why there were so few KINECT games. I'd bet money on it, if I was up for that sort of thing.

The final tidbit I shall impart; The Devs knew that their STARWARS KINECT game (as was published) was shit. So they got together, and brain stormed ideas to make it better. They wanted to make it better. So they got a big presentation made, brought in the money, they pitched the idea, and needed 9 months.

The moneys response: Nope.

All Jaws hit the floor. Why?

This is Starwars, It's good enough. It will sell with the name alone.

In other words, the sooner they could get it out, the sooner they could make money.

TO say this destroyed morale of the whole studio is an understatement.

... and the rest is history.

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Which is funny because I've seen documentaries and educational science type shows where "they" were using a kinect as basically robotic eyes, or for medical purposes.

(Don't ask for sources because I can't provide, I just remember more than once watching a documentary and saying "hey...that's a freaking kinect!)

Edit: found this with a super quick googling.
https://blog.robotiq.com/bid/40428/Using-The-Kinect-For-Robotic-Manipulation

Same with Xbox controllers being used in military applications.

https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/19/16333376/us-navy-military-xbox-360-controller

So MS video game accessories not so good for video games...but good for science?

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Same here; I still use my Kinect for voice commands and Skype calls all the time. Maybe it wasn't a "Wii killer" controller replacement, but it is superb technology and I wish I could use it with Cortana. (Which curiously still hasn't launched here in the Great White North. Why'd that be, eh?)

Curiously the hardware and software behind Kinect is still in demand; if I have it quite right, Apple licensed the tech to miniaturise it and put it into the iPhone X's "slot".

-- Steve'll keep using his so long as it holds together and the hardware supports it.

PS: Pity the Windows version didn't take off. It'd be great for replacing really crappy teleconferencing gear I've been stuck with before...

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Curiously the hardware and software behind Kinect is still in demand; if I have it quite right, Apple licensed the tech to miniaturise it and put it into the iPhone X's "slot".

That's not really accurate. This is pretty much all that is known publicly about it, but there is no reason to think Kinect tech went to Apple. A third party company that did many computer vision things including that they helped with the Kinect was later bought by Apple. That's all.

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I was unaware voice commands on my future XBONiX would require a $50 adapter. I say they are useful, but this really puts a value test on that.

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I haven’t owned an Xbox One in over a year now, so I haven’t kept up, but I thought they separated voice command functionality from Kinect a while ago. Maybe I’m misremembering.

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I haven’t owned an Xbox One in over a year now, so I haven’t kept up, but I thought they separated voice command functionality from Kinect a while ago. Maybe I’m misremembering.

I believe you are correct, but I’m not positive,

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You can use Cortana through a headset. But if you're like me and don't want to say "hey Cortana" Everytime I want to pause my show, you still have to use Kinect.

I am really glad the IR blaster got implanted into the actual S and X box.

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You can use Cortana through a headset. But if you're like me and don't want to say "hey Cortana" Everytime I want to pause my show, you still have to use Kinect.

I am really glad the IR blaster got implanted into the actual S and X box.

I never knew that the subsequent updated hardwares included an IR receiver in the system. That is a pretty cool and a very understandable plus understated addition. I'm totally ok with that feature even though it is something I will never take advantage of utilizing.
Reminds me about how I also did not know about the removal of the Optical out on the Slim[PS4-added link], which I learned about here on DBO from SpeedRacer or Kermit or somebody.
It is cool to learn these little 'under the radar' details.

On the other hand, in this age of in your face overly intrusive technology, I'm terribly glad that all the Kinect hardware was not integrated inside the Xbox system and that it was a completely optional, independent, & separate peripheral that was not required for basic system/software operation. I fear we will not be so lucky in the near future with whatever their next great idea might be, and instead it may be forced upon consumers with no alternative option.

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I was unaware voice commands on my future XBONiX would require a $50 adapter. I say they are useful, but this really puts a value test on that.

To Microsoft's credit, they did give you one for free for a little while.

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RIP Kinect (Gaming)

RIP Kinect

RIP Kinect

RIP Kinect

RIP Kinect

RIP Kinect

RIP Kinect

Lurn 2 Read

Lurn 2 Read

Lurn 2 Read

RIP Kinect

RIP Kinect

Xbox has slowly killed all good features.

Xbox has slowly killed all good features.

It's still there. I used it last night.

In a game or in Xbox party?

Definitely there in Party; just checked the Windows app

Right, that hasn't changed.

Right, that hasn't changed.

In a game or in Xbox party?

I'm talking about the ability in game

I'm talking about the ability in game

I'm talking about the ability in game

Yes please! We should.

Some knew this day was an eventuality, on day one.

RIP Kinect

Yes!

RIP Kinect

RIP Kinect

Grrr.

Grrr.

Grrr.

Kind of...

Kind of...

Grrr.