Ubisoft’s Mission to Becoming the Biggest Biometrics Game Developer
This year we have posted a number of articles on Microsoft’s latest bid to join the world of hands-free gaming, controlling on screen avatars with the wave of a hand or the step of a foot. Microsoft’s dream has now become a reality as they enter the timeline for unveiling their new product, dubbed Kinect.
One company, Ubisoft, has become Kinect’s leading third party publisher, and at a Kinect sponsored event recently in San Francisco, President Laurent Detoc and Senior Vice President of Marketing and Sales, Tony Key, both spoke to joystiq.com about their strategy and efforts with Microsoft.
Over the past 20 years Ubisoft has been working on graphics and comfort, designing with 3D camera technology before Microsoft had even announced it would license PrimeSense’s 3D-sensing technology earlier this year.
It turns out that Ubisoft met with PrimeSense back in 2007 at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. They formed a working relationship between the two companies and soon found themselves working closely to develop 3D technology for the system.
The two created what they call “Player Projection”, a 1:1 relationship with the screen and player. Naturally, they created a fitness type game first and went from there, creating environments where a live player could move their body and control a digital avatar through a virtual world onscreen. The direct impact between player and screen is not necessarily revolutionary, but not many companies are doing it and these two companies have found themselves at the head of the pack.
Ubisoft has worked with 3D for quite a while now after beginning to notice that much of the industry was pointing towards technology: movies, television, virtual reality situations and so on. The article says that they have positioned themselves as a strong supporter of Microsoft’s Kinect system whereas other companies at this point have adopted an attitude of waiting and seeing.
As for the cost of the system, both Key and Detoc are not worried. They expect it to do well and sell quickly, so it is not surprising that it will cost around $150 for the system.
Ubisoft on becoming Kinect’s ‘top third-party publisher,’ and on its history with 3D camera tech
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- Microsoft Kinect: Biometric Devices Go Mainstream
- Biometric Devices: The Future of Microsoft’s Kinect and Gesture Tracking
- Biometric Devices: Microsoft Unveils Kinect
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