Report: Next Xbox to Require an Always-On Kinect

[Shawn Zipay]

Oh sweet merciful crap, please let this rumor be false. You know, I'm sort of ok with the blocking of used games. I've even come to terms with how garbage Xbox Live Gold is compared to PlayStation+, but crap here is just getting to be beyond annoying at this point. Yeah, apparently the new Xbox is going to require an updated Kinect to be always connected and always on.

A source, known as SuperDaE, has informed Kotaku of a number of details surrounding the next Xbox, codenamed Durango. How does he know? He apparently has one. He also was the person who attempted to sell a Durango dev kit on eBay last year before Microsoft stopped the auction.

Let's see, he says that Durango will require that an updated Kinect be plugged in at all times when playing games on the console. He also says that it is capable of running multiple games at once, and will require game installations. Oh, joy.

Perhaps most importantly, this isn't an optional accessory. It's mandatory. Not only does a Kinect ship with every console, but it must be plugged in and calibrated for the console to even function.

This requirement is due to the way Kinect has been integrated with the Durango; because every console can be guaranteed of having the camera, developers can now program every game with the peripheral in mind.

But wait, it gets better.

It's also because the Kinect will always be watching you. The new version of the camera is able to track up to six individual "skeletons" in the same room at all times. This has clear gameplay implications, such as allowing a game to instantly identify a person, but could also be related to a recently-patented Microsoft system for monitoring and maybe even charging users based on who is watching what. SuperDae's Kinect documentation also makes mention of automatic player identification becoming part of a gameplay experience.

The new Kinect will reportedly track 25 skeleton joints per player, support a color resolution of 1920x1080, a depth resolution of 512x424, a depth range of 0.5m to 4.5m, and active IR resolution of 512x424.

The hard drive will be 500GB in size, which may be sufficient if every game you purchase requires an installation. A bright spot here is that the installation can take place while you're already playing the game, eliminating that wait time prior to ever playing that the PS3 has.

The Durango also reportedly allows users to multi-task with greater ease. You can play one game and place it into a suspended state while you switch to another game, then return to the first game without issue. This is obviously something PC users and Smartphone users have had for quite some time.

More bad news comes from the new controller that may be used. While it will potentially resemble current 360 controllers, Microsoft says the Durango controller is a "natural evolution" of the controller. What's more is that it will include "new wireless technology" meaning old controllers won't work.

The more rumors I hear, the less interest I have in picking up a next-generation console.

(via Kotaku)

[cikame]

The more the consoles become less like consoles, the less interested i am.

[jimykx]

Everybody knows that people don't want to have a camera watching them while they increase their one handed skill in Skyrim

[K-16]

When I read "installation can take place while you're already playing the game," I assume they mean install 10% of the game, and then you get to play an incredibly laggy game as it loads the remaining 90%. This is assuming the installation requirement rumor is true of course, and thankfully it hasn't been confirmed so I can pretend a troll is messing with us until Microsoft says otherwise.

But IF all these rumors are true, then I will purchase this console for the sole purpose of having a professional quality motion-capture studio, crammed into a tiny box and sold at a fraction of the price. From there, I will happily download and install software mods to remove the privacy wrecking Big Brother, in favor of motion-capture applications. Sure I will get banned and will not be able to go on Xbox Live, but... So what? I don't want to play games on this suspicious looking thing (again, IF the rumors are true). If I can do something as retarded as this, I'll buy the console. Ironically, my idea STILL involves being watched. HAH!