Microsoft puts forward Kinect - E3 2011 Press Conference Summary
Microsoft’s E3 conference went by predictably and smoothly. Few surprises, apart from maybe Halo 4, but not an overly offensive show either. The actors they put on stage were.. entertaining (pictured). Anyhow, here’s a list of what they covered, in order of most surprising or interesting, or really, whatever. Check back with this article later to find links to any trailers or demos that might grab your interest.
Minecraft’s console release is coming this winter, exclusive to Xbox and Kinect. It’s unclear whether or not this is a timed exclusivity deal, but I would assume that it is, based on the approach Mojang is taking with its mobile versions (exclusive to Xperia Play first, then other platforms).
Halo 4 is coming Holiday 2012 with the return of Master Chief. A teaser was shown with the man himself waking up to Cortana’s voice, prodding him from slumber to deal with the wreckage of his ship. Bungie will not be working on this game - Halo: Reach was their last approach to the series. It will be interesting to see how the new Halo studio "343 Industries" handles the IP. They’re going to have a hard time bringing a unique approach to the increasingly stale genre. Also in Halo news, the first Halo is getting an HD update with a bit more than updated textures - some remodeled environments along with other aesthetic changes and enhanced multiplayer offerings. These changes can be toggled between old and new, and the game will cost $39.
Mass Effect 3 on 360 will have Kinect support in the form of voice recognition. It seems like Microsoft handed Bioware a pile of money to bring relevance to the Kinect and make the 360 version somehow special, but the features seem like a waste. You can respond to dialog options by speaking your response, then have Shepard take over the conversation with his own voice. Also, during combat, you can call out your special abilities to use them instantly. There was a female Krogan in the footage they showed. Also Mordin.
The new Tomb Raider game is coming in Fall 2012, telling Lara’s origin story. There was a gameplay demo showing her get all sorts of beat up and panicky. If this game's story can effectively transition her from this loud, distressed girl to a hardened “tomb raider,” it might be worth some time - otherwise listening to her constant cries of pain might get annoying. The demo environment did a good job tapping into the nostalgia of old Tomb Raider games - somehow it captured that same ambience.
More, of course, on the full page.
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Possibly the coolest use of Kinect during the conference was for Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Future Soldier blah blah. It appears the entire game will allow you to use Kinect gestures for control, but that wasn’t the cool bit. There’s a weapon build screen where players can mix and match gun parts fully supported by Kinect. Minority Report-esque gestures can pull the pieces apart, letting you grab each one by one and drag them around. This is one of the first places I’ve seen that style of UI actually used effectively.
Gears of War 3 had a live demo with Cliffy B and Ice T. It looked quite good. There was not much more to see than you would expect from a Gears title at this point, besides more color in the environments and a mech suit. Ice T got his band Body Count back together to record a song for the game’s horde mode.
Dance Central 2 is coming with simultaneous multiplayer and track exports from the first game, giving it “the most music available for any dance game.” Harmonix is in a tough spot right now with the decline of the rhythm game genre, but Dance Central seems to be a rather strong, albeit niche series. I would get it if I had another reason to own a Kinect, certainly.
Double Fine’s Sesame Street game appears to be a solid title, aimed at parents and their young kids. Tim Schafer gets some leeway on the demographic-bending, but I do hope Double Fine finds their way back to titles like Psychonauts sometime soon.
Forza 4 is coming on October 11 with Kinect support of course. It looks pretty.
A Rome-set game “Ryse” is coming from Crytek with a tagline “You are the controller.” They showed players alongside gameplay swinging madly at the air for some gnarly combat.
The Fable title from this year was little more than Hero’s Crossbow Training - an on-rails shooter for Kinect. The story conceit seemed at least cool, and the gestures for magic were neat. “Fable: The Journey” is coming in 2012.
Kinect Star Wars came back this year with more than a tech demo, but the sort of gameplay that’s difficult to watch. Although thankfully not a railed experience, the environmental movement seemed a bit awkward. This game could be a neat thing to own if you have Kinect, otherwise... yeah.
Kinect Sports 2... Disney collaboration letting players experience DisneyLand virtually... bad child actors on stage... ah, Kinect Fun Labs. Although this title is nothing worth getting excited about, some of the possibilities of Kinect are explored a bit further. Capture an image with Kinect, then draw around it in 3D, scan an object from real life into the software... those kinds of things. There’s some automatic avatar generation somewhere.
The “Xbox Experience” is getting yet another visual upgrade to better coincide with Kinect voice support and such. Live TV is coming to Xbox as well, but few details were shared on exactly what types of shows would be available when and where. They did show Castle in the preview, so at least some mainstream programs could find their way to Xbox. I would not expect much in the way of cross-regional support, though. That’s coming this Fall. Oh, and Bing. UFC was there too.
