Depending on your cynicism levels, you might go so far as to say that Kinect is completely, utterly dead. If that’s the case, how exactly are Kinect-oriented developers supposed to react? Well, Xbox head Phil Spencer intends to address just that, staring with renowned (and Microsoft-owned) UK studio Rare.
Rare has worked mainly on the Kinect Sports series lately, shipping Kinect Sports Rivals this past April. Despite gamers’ sentiment that Rare has been made to do Microsoft’s bidding in recent years, Spencer emphasized that this is simply not the case.
[Rare has] just come off the successful launch of Kinect Sports Rivals. I think I’ve heard a few times from people asking about Rare — they’re in the process of evaluating what they want to do next, and we’re working closely with them to see what their new project will be.
And I’ve also laughed when people have tried to use the word, what I ‘force’ them to do — if you’re around any independent studio, or like Rare a studio that’s independent-minded, you’ll know that forcing a studio to do something is never a successful equation. So they’re free to look at all different kinds of opportunities, they always have been, and we’re having a great time trying to work out with them what their next game might be, but we have nothing to announce right now.
I actually agree with Spencer on this one — claiming that Microsoft forced Rare to work on Kinect Sports Rivals is a bit rude, especially if Rare chose it of their own accord. Is that any way to treat a game that, for all we know, the folks at Rare are perfectly proud of?
Regardless, the Kinect-less Xbox One means Rare will need to shift gears. Let’s hope they can tap into the creative juices that brought about Viva Piñata, or better yet, their 90s classics.
[Via: Polygon]
