Microsoft already pulled the plug on its motion-sensing peripheral Kinect back in October 2017 upon announcing that it's no longer manufacturing any more of them. However, the company just pounded the final nail on the coffin.
Microsoft is officially halting production of adapters needed to plug Kinect into newer Xbox models such as Xbox One, Xbox One S, and Xbox One X. This means owners of those consoles who don't have the aforementioned adapters won't be able to use Kinect at all. Windows 10 users are affected as well, since it also requires that adapter.
Microsoft Kinect
Kinect was introduced in 2010, a time when motion-based gaming was still all the rage. The Nintendo Wii was of course responsible for popularizing this gaming method, and it lead to over 100 million units sold. Naturally, both Sony and Microsoft wanted a piece of that pie, so they made their own versions: Sony unveiled the PlayStation Move and Microsoft released the Kinect.
Both weren't able to replicate the Wii's success, however. It was evident that Sony and Microsoft wanted to capture some of Nintendo's core audience. But it's clear they weren't able to do so, particularly because the gaming community has moved on from motion-based gaming. Nintendo's latest Switch console still uses it, though not as frequently as the Wii.
Microsoft originally bundled the Kinect adapter to every Xbox One S for free so players could easily hook up their Kinect to the newer version of the console. That promotion lasted for eight months. When the Xbox One X was released last November, there wasn't a similar offer, which should have been an indication that the company was getting ready to phase out the adapters.
In a statement to Polygon, a spokesperson said Microsoft is going to focus on manufacturing accessories that are more requested than the Kinect adapter.
"After careful consideration, we decided to stop manufacturing the Xbox Kinect Adapter to focus attention on launching new, higher fan-requested gaming accessories across Xbox One and Windows 10."
Kinect Adapter Is Hard To Find
It's been hard to locate the Kinect adapter recently. Big retailers such as Amazon, Best Buy, and GameStop have listed it as out of stock for months, which fueled speculation that the company was going to discontinue it.
It seems that's indeed the case. There are Kinect adapters being sold in third-party markets but they're incredibly expensive, going up to $300 at times, which is more expensive than an Xbox One S.
So long, Kinect. Here's hoping you're in video game heaven.
