Now, here's some Kinect functionality that I wouldn't mind in a video game. I could've used this when I reviewed that awful Steel Battalion game a while back.
This video from Microsoft Research surfaced a few days ago, showing off the continuing evolution of the company's Kinect motion tracking initiative. The system on display here is called Handpose and, using what looks like a standard version of the Xbox One's gesture sensor, it tracks finger movement with a high degree of accuracy.
As far as video games are concerned, Kinect hasn't quite been the transformative device that Microsoft hyped it up to be. The motion control it's designed for has enabled some unique and sometimes even fun experiences but has continued to feel like an aspirational—and not actually workable—consideration for video game design. Right now, Handpose looks like another in a long line of clever Kinect implementations that's designed to be used best away from video games. That's okay. But, if it does come as part of the software package for a Xbox One or PC, Handpose better let me express how I feel about motion control options when they don't work.