When it first became known that Nintendo’s
Wii would feature motion-sensing remote controls the response from its
competitors ranged from dismissive to downright imitation (though still no one
at Sony will admit that it is the highest form of flattery). But as the sales
of Nintendo’s latest console continue to climb Sony has to be wondering if
their tilt-sensing SIXAXIS controller is going to be attractive enough to
innovative developers. And Microsoft, well they might just have to reconsider
their whole perspective on the matter and if the persistent barrage of rumours
over the past year are any indication, they’ve already started. But the
freshest batch out of the mill puts an interesting spin on the whole debate, one
that could potentially catapult the Xbox 360 past the Wii in the ‘innovative
controls’ department. Couple this with Microsoft execs hyping up a “big
presence” at E3 and you have a rumour worth looking into.
The scuttlebutt on the web stems from
images picked up by a technology website showing a Xbox 360 hooked up to what
appears to be a sensor-bar peripheral sitting below a television. On screen is
a familiar sight to those calibrating motion or stylus controllers; five
points, on in each corner and one in the center imposed on a back screen.
Admittedly, it’s not much to go on. But it’s not the photo that has everyone
talking, it’s accompanying description that proclaims the device is capable of
full 3D motion capturing, enabling gamers to control on-screen actions via real
life gestures, sans controller.
In order to contextualize this rumour we
must first go back to CES 2008 where a company by the name of 3DV demoed some
very interesting proprietary technology. On display at the relatively small
company’s booth was the ZCam [pictued above]; a web-cam like device capable detecting movement
and interactive gestures in 3D space. Like a camera with depth perception, this
device, paired with software, was able to interpret the movement of a player,
from thrown punches to pinching gestures. Those that attended the demo report
that the demoed ‘boxing match’ worked exceedingly well, to the degree that it
may just have turned some very big heads.
In February of 2009 Reuters began reporting
that Microsoft was in talks to purchase 3DV.
Back to the present. Some Microsoft big
wigs are talking tall about this summer’s E3. Senior vice president for the
Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft Don Mattrick recently said “Microsoft
is gearing up for a big presence at E3 which will completely transform how
people think about home entertainment,” while another executive believed they’d
be presenting something “gaming changing” come June’s expo.
So, Microsoft, having recently purchased a
technology that was exceedingly intuitive and fully functional over a year and
a half ago believes they’re going to blow the doors off E3? Interesting. Then
rumours surface detailing a Microsoft technology that fits the exact
description of the ZCam? Regardless of what
Microsoft unveils at E3, it’d best be good, because the thanks to the rumour
mill and some ramped up PR, the (sensor) bar has been set high.
