Microsoft's Kinect system is great for gaming, but the fact that it's (mostly) restricted to being used with an Xbox really sucks. Last night we got our first look at an unchained Kinect-type sensor controlling games on a PC, and it'll likely be coming to a computer near you.
PrimeSense, the people originally behind the system that Microsoft turned into Kinect, have just released their own version of the Kinect sensor designed for PCs. It's apparently called the "WAVI Xtion," and no, I can't pronounce it either. The hardware is pretty much exactly the same as the Kinect, so you won't be shocked to hear that the PrimeSense gaming experience is basically identical to the Kinect gaming experience.
When we tested it out, the system was having some issues with the excessively dark and dramatic lighting in the demo room, but we played through a game involving leaning and jumping to control a futuristic surfboard type thing, and it was effective and fun. To navigate the game menus we just had to wave a hand at the screen, and the sensor would interpret the gesture as a mouse movement. Making a pushing motion with an open palm turned into a click.
Via : dvice
PrimeSense, the people originally behind the system that Microsoft turned into Kinect, have just released their own version of the Kinect sensor designed for PCs. It's apparently called the "WAVI Xtion," and no, I can't pronounce it either. The hardware is pretty much exactly the same as the Kinect, so you won't be shocked to hear that the PrimeSense gaming experience is basically identical to the Kinect gaming experience.
When we tested it out, the system was having some issues with the excessively dark and dramatic lighting in the demo room, but we played through a game involving leaning and jumping to control a futuristic surfboard type thing, and it was effective and fun. To navigate the game menus we just had to wave a hand at the screen, and the sensor would interpret the gesture as a mouse movement. Making a pushing motion with an open palm turned into a click.
Via : dvice
