Future Kinect may sense voice tone, body stance, says Tsunoda

Kinect creative boss Kudo Tsunoda has said in an MCV interview the future Kinect tech could sense the tone of voice and the body stance of the person playing it.

"We’ve done so much work just with software to enhance Kinect’s abilities over time. 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," said Tsunoda.

"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.

"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."

Tsunoda added the reason it brought Kinect Star Wars to retail than as a digital download was a "logical" decision for such an "iconic" name.

"This is a super huge product, it’s one of our blockbuster games and it’s got a really iconic IP," he said.

"That said, I don’t think there’s anything that necessarily makes something a boxed product or a download. So much entertainment is now available via both.

"With this title, we decided the most logical way to release it was in store. The IP’s widespread appeal means it made sense to have it on the shelves where people buy Kinect."