It looks like Microsoft has far from given up on the Kinect v2, which is obviously out for both Xbox One and PC.
This according to a job listing for Senior Software Engineer, that definitely gives the impression that MS are trying to form a top team to help push the Kinect and it’s tech. Now, this definitely comes at an interesting time, given that Microsoft just freed the seventh CPU core for devs to use on the X1. This extra processing power not only comes from the allocation for the Kinect, but also for certain custom voice commands. Not basic stuff like, “Xbox On”, but ones specific to games like we saw in Ryse Son Of Rome. So basically the choice is down the dev as to what that power is allocated to, so it seems odd to me that they are still pushing so much for Kinect.
Obviously, they spent a lot of time and money developing it, and I can understand why they don’t want to give up on it, but the reason it seems odd is that most developers are undoubtedly going to choose the extra processing power to squeeze out a few more pixels/frames per second.
Regardless, you can find the ad below, which makes for an interesting read, or you can just watch the video for an even more interesting take on it.
“Changing the world with technology takes a special kind of person in just the right environment. At Microsoft, Xbox and Xbox LIVE forever changed living room entertainment by connecting people with each other and the entertainment they love. Then we turned around and created Kinect, which redefines how people interact with their entertainment in new ways every day. And we’re just beginning.
A new team has formed in Microsoft’s Xbox division with a specific purpose: to push the envelope of today’s and tomorrow’s technology as we explore new ideas from the ground floor. It begins with veterans from Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, and Kinect. But we’re growing as quickly as our imaginations can be translated into code.Joining this team comes with risks. Most of what we work on is top-secret; you may not know what your new project is until you’ve accepted an offer.
Not all of our ideas will fly. We will fail, and fail fast, on some projects.We will celebrate those failures because they are vital to making sure the right ideas take off in a big way.If you want a comfortable, standard-role job at Microsoft with no ambiguity or risk, please don’t apply. But if you’re passionate about the potential for Kinect to continue to revolutionize entertainment and are a seasoned software engineer with the skills to prototype and build the future of premium Kinect-powered experiences, we have a growing team of talented people who want to take entertainment into the future.In this role your technical skills and creativity will be pushed to their limits as you weave together disparate technologies to tell the story of what the future of entertainment will look like.
You’ll learn more than you even knew existed about machine vision, data mining, AI, voice recognition, and embedded systems. You’ll become an expert in one or more of those areas. You will work on a truly agile team to build and iterate on prototypes to evolve and demonstrate our creative vision.You must have an outstanding track record for providing technical leadership, delivering quality code and shipping products, and should have experience in every phase of the ship cycle.
You need to have shipped at least one consumer-focused product (game, app, site or service), have multiple side projects (such as Kinect hacks, games or websites) that showcase your creativity. You need to be able to tell a story about your work and what you’ve learned doing it. You will work closely with artists and designers, and demonstrate a high degree of initiative. When you apply, please include links to published apps, videos or portfolios of work along with your resume.”
