Man alive, Microsoft's RoomAlive system uses a lot of hardware to map out rooms. But the in-development prototype could deliver an immersive experience that rivals that of the incoming Oculus Rift.
An apparent extension of Microsoft's IllumiRoom project, RoomAlive takes the idea of using the Kinect peripheral to paint rooms with color and uses an array of projectors to enchant living spaces.
In a recent tech demo of RoomAlive, Microsoft showed how the system can paint walls and floors with overlapping images to turn rooms into interactive game worlds. The projectors are complemented by depth cameras, which enables the system to respond to user actions.
"Our system enables new interactive projection-mapping experiences that dynamically adapts content to any room," says Microsoft. "Users can touch, shoot, stomp, dodge and steer projected content that seamlessly co-exists with their existing physical environment."
In the tech demo, Microsoft showed off games in which players engaged in "whack-a-mole" with wacky moles that popped up on surfaces around the room. There were insects crawling on the floor, traps springing from walls and a river flowing across the floorboards.
The IllumiRoom offered similar immersion through augmented reality, but Microsoft said the tech was too expensive at the time and ruled out packaging it with its Xbox One console. The company even removed the consoles's Kinect unit to make the price of the Xbox One more competitive, though it ultimately brought the tech back.
The costs haven't stopped Microsoft Research from moving forward with its AR aspirations, because Microsoft says the way people play video games has evolved.
"We can now interact more naturally with the game world by moving our body (i.e., Nintendo Wiimote, Microsoft Kinect and PlayStation Move)," says Microsoft. "Coupled with new display technologies (e.g., Oculus Rift), we can now feel more 'in the game' than ever before. However, despite these advances, the game world is still distinctly separate from our real world. We may feel more present in the game world, but the game is not present in our world."
Microsoft says it intends to equip RoomAlive with support for multiple users and viewpoints, along with spatialized sound. There a lot of new avenues to explore with RoomAlive, says Microsoft.
"Imagine playing a video game in your living room without a television. Instead, the game happens in the room, all around you. When the game starts, the room magically transforms into an ancient castle, the walls turn to stone, and flaming torches emerge from the walls casting flickering shadows onto the furniture."
Check out RoomAlive's tech demo below:
