Home Gaming Microsoft wants to bring your living room to life

Microsoft wants to bring your living room to life

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25

Roomalive

Remember a while back when Microsoft’s mad scientists from their R&D department  first showed off it’s proof-of-concept IllumiRoom? It utilised Kinect and a projector to create a sort of whole room augmented reality experience. Turns out that was just the beginning. It’s still research, but it’s come a long way. This is IllumiRoom 2.0: RoomAlive.

RoomAlive takes the established IllumiRoom concept, but dials it up to eleven by extending the gaming environment to the entire room. Much like Illumiroom, it’s a proof of concept – but it looks rather incredible, giving players an entire, wholly interactive room. Players are able to reach out and touch objects in the digitally textured environment, or control traditional game characters across the entire room’s surface area.

While Virtual Reality is likely the next big thing, it’s a very closed off affair. This maintains the social aspect of videogames. Problem is, is that it’s not in any way feasible. Right now, the system requires 6 Pro-cam projector-depth camera units: essentially an unholy union of  Kinect and a projector – just to track and display everything properly.

RoomAlive’s video projectors and Kinect combination is far too costly and large for living rooms right now – but Microsoft is looking to the future with this R&D.

“There’s still lots to explore with RoomAlive as a gaming platform,” says a spokesperson from Microsoft Research. “We envision a future where games can use physical objects as part of the game.”

It’s a cool concept, but I just don’t see it breaking free from the confines of being a fun R&D project. Check it out.

Last Updated: October 6, 2014

25 Comments

  1. Admiral Chief 0

    October 6, 2014 at 10:39

    Give me a G
    Give me a IMMICK
    .
    ..

    XD

    Reply

    • ReaperOfSquirrels

      October 6, 2014 at 10:42

      I think we need to add a word to replace the word gimmick when we think it’s a really bad gimmick. So we go with FIMMICK… NEW WORD! o/! It obviously means F***ing Gimmick.

      Reply

      • Sgt. M

        October 6, 2014 at 11:24

        Change Approved

        Reply

      • Danie Nell

        October 6, 2014 at 11:28

        Shimmick?

        Reply

  2. Hammersteyn

    October 6, 2014 at 10:41

    We’ve been having it. It’s called LSD

    Reply

  3. RinceThis

    October 6, 2014 at 10:43

    Bring our living room alive? So what, when they do their 180 it’ll be a killing room?? 0_O I’m sold…

    Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      October 6, 2014 at 11:02

      That sounds great…

      Reply

      • RinceThis

        October 6, 2014 at 11:09

        Yeah. Now many up and do the flipping TMNT review!

        Reply

        • Alien Emperor Trevor

          October 6, 2014 at 11:26

          More than once? :/

          Reply

  4. Ceyber, Hans

    October 6, 2014 at 11:02

    Why the greed?! X-Box One is actually pretty great but with nonsense like this? Microsoft can schnarf my bum fluff.

    It’s not like Samsung isn’t making them bucket loads of cash anyway…

    edit: If hyperlink doesn’t work: http://qz.com/276242/microsoft-makes-more-money-from-samsung-than-from-skype-windows-phone-and-xbox-combined/

    Reply

  5. Alien Emperor Trevor

    October 6, 2014 at 11:09

    Yay, finally I can invite my real friends over without having to wear my rift.

    Reply

  6. Sageville

    October 6, 2014 at 11:14

    Header should have read: “Microsoft wants you to destroy your living room furniture.”

    Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      October 6, 2014 at 11:21

      Not mine, it’s all rubber anyway. Wait… damn it!

      Reply

      • Sageville

        October 6, 2014 at 12:56

        I said “Furniture”, somehow you must have read “Clothing”…

        Reply

        • Alien Emperor Trevor

          October 6, 2014 at 12:59

          Don’t gimp my jokes :'(

          Reply

          • Sageville

            October 6, 2014 at 13:25

            MMrrrrmmmphh! Rrmmmmaaaamwarrrr!

  7. Whoami Idonno

    October 6, 2014 at 11:19

    This is surely just the begenning, think of the possible applications for this, e.g. the movie Gamer not the game they play as such but the kids room with displays on all walls, could be nice foe Social media, video etc…
    I think this may be a giant step in to the future…

    Reply

  8. HvR

    October 6, 2014 at 11:24

    All a ploy by MS to get enough cameras in your living room to create “bullet time” fapping videos.
    http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view/106449/trinity-kick-o.gif

    Reply

  9. WolfyZA

    October 6, 2014 at 11:32

    Looks like every first world home has these massive living rooms design for these quick cash-ins

    Reply

  10. Mike

    October 6, 2014 at 11:44

    It’s a proof of concept. It might look like a gimmick now, but it’s stuff like this that will lead to the Star Trek holodeck. Also as a theme park attraction (haunted house) or arcade game it could work.

    Reply

    • Jedi Consular Kromas

      October 6, 2014 at 12:27

      I am sorry but the only futuristic theme park I would want is one where they clone raptors that eat Samuel L Jackson. 🙂

      Reply

  11. konfab aka derp

    October 6, 2014 at 13:27

    They have already given everyone a preview 0_o

    Reply

  12. Jim Lenoir (Banana Jim)

    October 6, 2014 at 14:05

    So incredibly … LAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

    Seriously Microsoft, stop fucking around, and invest in some decent games. Give me a reason to buy your crap box.

    Reply

  13. Sir Rants A Lot Llew

    October 6, 2014 at 21:06

    Oh yay. Full room screensavers

    *confetties*

    Reply

  14. Whosecter

    June 22, 2015 at 13:28

    < ??????.+ spectre+ ********* ….. < Now Go R­e­­a­d M­o­r­e

    49

    Reply

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