Xbox One and Kinect at E3 2013

Microsoft kicked off E3 2013 earlier today with a press conference heavily emphasizing games for the Xbox One. While Kinect itself took a backseat to more traditional gameplay, it's expected that it will play some part in most, if not all, first party titles.

Prior to the conference itself Rare unveiled Kinect Sports Rivals, an Xbox One launch title that sees the popular franchise brought to next gen with 6 sports, including some favourites from the first two games. Climbing, Soccer, Wake Racing, Bowling, Target Shooting and Tennis will utilize the new Kinect for advanced motion gameplay, including the ability to scan yourself into the game to play alongside friends via the cloud. Check out the trailer below.
 

There were also glimpses of Kinect in new titles including Project Spark, which allows players to create and design their own game using a combination of Kinect voice control, Smartglass and a controller. The latest game in the open world zombie killing franchise, Dead Rising 3, will have zombies reacting to sounds in your environment as well as allowing the player to control their posse or taunt the enemy using voice. The Witcher 3 is also confirmed to use Kinect voice recognition for spell casting and management.
Two Kinect games previously announced for the Xbox 360 also made an appearance having moved to the Xbox One. The infamous Ryse from Crytek was finally shown and will use Kinect in combination with a controller, and Crimson Dragon from the creator of Panzer Dragoon makes a reappearance, retaining its Kinect controls.

Of course Kinect dashboard integration is ever present, with a new demonstration showing Twitch support allowing gamers to instantly stream their gameplay live across the internet, as well as share their favourite moments using voice control and Xbox One's new Upload Studio.

Other exclusives announced for the Xbox One include Respawn Entertainment's TitanFall, a first person shooter from the creators of Call of Duty featuring mech robots, a new edition of Minecraft featuring bigger worlds and expanded multiplayer support, Rare's re-imagined classic fighter Killer Instinct and Sunset Overdrive, a comical and bright shooter from Insomniac.

Finally Microsoft announced launch pricing for the Xbox One which will be hitting stores this November for $499 in the US and €499/£429 in Europe.

Expect more Kinect and Xbox One news as E3 continues throughout the week, including a look at new third party titles like Harmonix's new Disney-licensed Kinect rhythm game Fantasia: Music Evolved and more.

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Kinect Sports Season 2 Gets New Free Challenge Pack

Rare have announced the release of a second challenge pack for Kinect Sports Season 2, featuring 6 new mini-games for each sport in the game.

• Receiver Fever (Football)
Dodge tackles and pass to pop-up receivers, not cheerleaders!
• Pitcher Perfect (Baseball)
Flex your throwing arm and start shattering the targets!
• Top Jumps (Skiing)
Thunder off the end of the ramp and see how far you can fly!
• Prize Driver (Golf)
Swing at prizes on the conveyor belt to boost your winnings!
• Red Rally, Yellow Rally (Tennis)
Pack two racquets to keep both coloured balls in play!
• Darts Vs Zombies (Darts)
Throw fast to protect your pizza from the living dead!

There is no confirmed release date, but it will launch for free very soon. Check out the trailer below!

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Kinect Sports Season 2 Gets 9 New Golf Holes

We reported last month that Rare has plans to support Kinect Sports Season 2 with DLC every month until at least Spring next year, kicking off the schedule with 6 new mini-games. Now the December DLC has been revealed in a new teaser trailer for the Maple Lakes Golf pack.

The pack contains 9 new holes totaling 18 in the game, matching a traditional golf course. One of the holes will be free to all players, though a price and date for the remaining 8 is yet to be revealed. Check out the trailer below!

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Rare's Scott Henson Details Kinect's Accuracy and Voice Improvements

Rare Studio Manager Scott Henson has talked to Eurogamer about Kinect, its future and the continued evolution of the tracking software. Starting with big, bold gestures in Kinect Sports, Kinect Sports Season 2 is the perfect example to show how Kinect has evolved over the past year.

"Last year we were throwing javelins and making big huge movements. This year we're throwing darts. From a consumer perspective, that's a fundamental difference.

The idea you move your hand that far and we can track it and it actually makes a difference, and we can track how the hand moves down or up, and that will change the trajectory the dart goes: pretty big deal." he said.

When it comes voice control, Kinect Sports 2 is taking a major leap beyond what has been achieved on Kinect before. Kinectimals currently has the largest implementation of voice control, containing 30 unique phrases. In the golf mini-game alone, Kinect Sports 2 supports over 300 phrases. It's all about natural communition, says Henson.

"You'll literally say something like, 'you know caddy, I think I need something that helps me with the wind conditions.' Then the caddy will respond with, 'well, it could be either a six iron or a seven iron.' And you say, 'oh, I'd like the seven iron.' It'll be that natural of a conversation."

In our game it will be, 'change club seven iron.' But absolutely, without question, the journey we're on is what I just described. That is where we will go. And guess what will be there? Software. Software will be the key that unlocks why that's possible. We already have the microphone there. Now we just need to continue to adapt and grow and build our software to make that better."

Henson also notes that Kinect Fun Labs is proving that Kinect has always had the potential to live up to its initial promises, showing off finger tracking and object recognition, and with upcoming titles like Ghost Recon: Future Warrior we're seeing Minority Report-style navigation done with ease.

Space limitation is also something being taken into consideration. "It comes down to what the activity is and how much space you need. With darts, we only need about a foot to play that sport.

Tennis is very different than darts. It's about making it feel like tennis. You do drop shots and cross-court shots. It's not a play space constraint, per se. It's really adapting to what the expectations would be around the experience you're trying to create. If you're just doing this [moves hand close to chest], that doesn't feel like tennis. We could do that by the way. We kind of did that with table tennis.

So what's next? Will we soon reach Kinect's hardware limitation and see software hit a wall? Not for a long time, says Henson. "We have far more ahead of us than we have behind of us. Far more. I wouldn't even want to begin to hazard a guess of when we think we'll hit the limits because we're just getting started.

"We'll see more this year. You'll see more titles. You saw quite a bit at E3. There's a whole bunch of stuff we didn't talk about first party. I'm sure there's plenty of stuff that hasn't been talked about in the industry. You've got years and years and years ahead of what was released last year."

"It's a long road ahead."

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Kinect Sports Season 2 Revealed - Debut Trailer!

Rare have revealed their sequel to the best selling Kinect game, Kinect Sports. Kinect Sports Season 2 will feature 6 new sports -- Golf, Darts, Baseball, Skiing, Tennis and American Football -- as well as many unique challenged and activities for each. Check out the full list of new features as well as the debut trailer below!

• A whole new ball game. “Kinect Sports: Season Two” features six full, new, team-based and individual sports — tennis, golf, American football, baseball, skiing and darts — with unique challenges and activities for each. With three difficulty levels ranging from rookie to champion, you can choose to hone your skills in a full-length game or just have instant fun with your friends and family in a Quick Play session — no setup required!
• New ways to play. As you experience each new sport, you’ll see and feel the latest advancements in the revolutionary Kinect technology at work. Whether you’re calling an audible in American football using in-game voice commands, or crouching down to get a detailed read of the green in golf, “Kinect Sports: Season Two” showcases the intuitive gameplay and effortless immersion that only Kinect can deliver.
• Anytime is game time. Can’t seem to find the perfect time to meet in person? “Kinect Sports: Season Two” lets you send a challenge for later. Get personal in a one-on-one showdown with your family, or send a challenge for your friends to tackle when they jump on Xbox LIVE later.
• Bring your A-game. “Kinect Sports: Season Two” is the ultimate party experience for friends and family of all skill levels; it also rewards those who want to take their game to the next level. With new Achievements, exciting activities and unlockable avatar awards, every player of every skill will find something to challenge and enthrall them.
• One for the highlight reel. Log onto KinectShare.com to download photos and videos captured in-game, and share them with your family and friends — and now, for the first time, post your sporting triumphs directly to your Facebook wall!
• Doing it for the fans. The only way is up! Every victory adds to your fan base, giving you the chance to see legions of new supporters beat a path to your door. Compare your fan-following with your friends’ to find out who’s the true sports star! And if you’ve played “Kinect Sports,” your fans are just waiting to make the journey into “Kinect Sports: Season Two” and support you in all the new sports.
• Go pro on Xbox LIVE. Through the power of the biggest gaming and social entertainment network connected to the TV, Xbox LIVE opens the playing field to the world. “Kinect Sports: Season Two” encourages you to connect and compete with friends and family no matter where they are in the world, as well as test your skills against millions of Xbox LIVE members^*.

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Rumor: Rare Planning Big E3 Demo Featuring Prominent Voice Control

Our friends over at 123Kinect have got word that Rare are planning to do a big E3 demo featuring much more prominent use of voice.

"[Rare's] working very hard on a big demo at E3 that will involve the voice aspect far more during gameplay." a source close to Rare told the website.

Rare are expected to unveil a sequel to their best selling Kinect launch title, Kinect Sports, at E3, but they're also rumored to be working on another secret game. Whether the voice demo is part of either game, or a more widespread announcement concerning all of Kinect is unclear.

Microsoft are also rumored to be unveiling Xbox Live Diamond featuring TV subscription services, and with limited voice support for the current Kinect Hub and its applications (Netflix, Hulu Plus), and a yet-to-be released update allowing voice support in more regions, voice control can and hopefully will be greatly expanded upon across the platform.

Whether true or not, Rare will almost certainly have a strong presence at E3. We'll keep you up to date with the latest as it happens next week directly from the E3 showfloor!

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A look at Rare's cancelled fitness game, Kinect Trainer

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Thanks to Unseen64, here's a glimpse at a fitness game Rare were working on prior to Kinect's release.

Although little is revealed about the game, screenshots show both realistic and Avataresque characters, highlighting the different design directions the game took throughout its development.

The title was cancelled mid-2010, allegedly due to the high number of fitness games in production from third parties (likely referring to Ubisoft's Your Shape: Fitness Evolved,  EA Sports Active 2 and THQ's The Biggest Loser).

What would you like to see from Rare next? Kinect Sports 2? An old franchise reimagined, or something new entirely? Let us know in the comments!

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