In an interview with Andy Robertson (of Family Gamer TV), Creative Director of thatgamecompany Jenova Chen has said that he's impressed by the new version of Kinect that will come with the Xbox One, and has some ideas for the kinds of positive gaming experiences the camera could allow for.
“A while back, someone was asking me what I was looking for. I said I wanted to have an input device that captures the player's facial expressions and gestures and fingers so that they could actually go into a virtual world and talk to someone, and see their emotions, without necessarily knowing who they are, and I think the Kinect 2 seems to be finally there.”
Chen says that he finds the handheld controllers we have now too restrictive, despite their many buttons. He wants to see technology that allows us to express emotion, to make more interesting games like a version of online poker in which we'll actually be able to analyse our opponent's poker face. That kind of ability, he thinks, will allow us to learn the kinds of skills in social interaction that will actually prove useful in real life.
While Chen says he's still keeping an eye on Kinect 2 to see how it turns out, it's interesting to hear him think aloud about what kinds of things the camera could be used for, especially when you consider that thatgamecompany has completed its three-year contract with Sony. As Robertson explains in the Telegraph, the company's next game is funded by venture capitalists and will be designed to have mass appeal. Could we see the project come to Xbox One?
