During a Comic Con panel several details of the Xbox One's 'base level' features were discussed. The panel, hosted by Larry “Major Nelson” Hryb, involved a few game developers and Microsoft's creative director, Ken Lobb. During the panel, a few core features of the new platform were shown off.
First up was the Xbox One's ability to record gameplay. The unit will record five minutes of any game played, and can be instructed to records 30 second clips by simply saying “Xbox record”.
Controller recognition is an interesting feature which uses the Kinect camera to recognise who's actually holding the controller. If passed to a new person, the Xbox One will detect this and automatically switch control schemes for the new user. So, if you map your controls for Killer Instinct differently to your friend, and you pass the controller, they'll be able to jump in and play as they prefer, all without ever entering an options screen.
Some new Kinect features were further elaborated on, including the new sensor's ability to detect individual finger movements from within around three meters, and the minimum Kinect range is now one meter. So, if you've got a smaller living room, you'll actually be able to use Kinect properly, and issue that plagued the début outing of the tech.
Kinect will also be able to scan and create a full 3D image of your face, which can then be applied to your avatar. This personalisation will even extend to your BMI, which will be reflected by your avatar's body shape.
This face mapped to your avatar will also be a real time representation of your own mug, including your current emotional state. So, if you're happy, your avatar will reflect that. Start to feel the rage, however, and so will your digital doppelgänger.
Other features discussed included the ability to set up games with friends online using Smartglass, and the option to play another until everyone is ready, at which point you can instantly switch to the new game. Turn 10 also revealed new, trigger-mounted rumble devices which, in Forza, will be used to feel individual tire response.
These features, as stated earlier, are all considered base features, and are standard across the board, meaning they're open to any game.
Also discussed during the panel was Capcom's Dead Rising 3, which is looking very promising, offering a true, open world sandbox with no loading times.
So far, there are no details of a release date for the Xbox One, but Microsoft has said it'll reveal more during the summer, so stay tuned.
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