Kinect technology may sense tone of voice and body posture in future

Microsoft’s Kudo Tsunoda, today, has elaborated on the Kinect technology’s future; with plans that the new edition will be able to do more with emotion and user interface.

“We’ve done so much work just with software to enhance Kinect’s abilities over time,” said Tsunoda. “Since it came out, we’ve been able to do a lot more seated play, let people scan in objects and have the game recreate them. Even Kinect Rush scans in players and turns them into Pixar characters, which is awesome.

“What we’re really interested right now is creating experiences that help you develop real world skills that help you in other parts of your life,” he continued.

Mass Effect 3 was a test at blending core and casual gaming, offering core gamers a unique way to use Kinect. Whilst reviews labelled it as less than successful, the path highlighted the lifelike experience that Kinect has to offer.

“We’re also looking at how we can make people more like actors within a narrative. I think the work done in Mass Effect 3 has been awesome. We want to get to the stage where not only can Kinect detect what you’re saying but also tone of voice and body stance, and work that into the narrative. There are some really compelling experiences to be gained from that,” he said.