Tag Archives: Wii-mote

A Wii-mote controls game & people in real life (a comedy sketch)

London-based comedy sketch group Idiots of Ants is here to show us just how realistic the controls are for Medieval Swordfighter 3 using a modern Wii-mote + nunchuck setup.  It’s not too long before the game starts bleeding into the real world.  …They’re British and funny so watch it!

[Via Gizmodo]

A virtual window into a scene you wish lived outside your home

One Ryan Hoagland has a created a DIY virtual window of sorts using two 46-inch Panasonic plasma displays, a Mac Pro workstation, a Wii-mote with a custom-built IR-emitting necklace, Bluetooth, and custom software called Winscape.  If everything is implemented correctly, it should result in two large virtual windows that could theoretically project any scene you’d like.  And thanks to headtracking technology, the windows will create an illusion that you are actually peering inside this virtual realm.  Oh, and you can control scene selection with an iPhone app.  Intruiged?  You can build one of your own virtual landscapes come this July when Hoagland plans to sell basic kits for under $3000.  Look after the break for a timelapse video of its construction.

[Via RationalCraft; Engadget]

Continue reading A virtual window into a scene you wish lived outside your home

Project Natal is so good, even Johnny Chung Lee backs it

Johnny Chung Lee is a Microsoft researcher and a recent graduate at Carnegie Mellon University with a PhD in Human-Computer Interaction.  He is an insanely smart individual who has influenced the creation, manipulation, and eventual final product of Microsoft’s Project Natal for Xbox 360.  He recently said:

“The human tracking algorithms that the teams have developed are well ahead of the state of the art in computer vision in this domain. The sophistication and performance of the algorithms rival or exceed anything that I’ve seen in academic research, never mind a consumer product. At times, working on this project has felt like a miniature “Manhattan project” with developers and researchers from around the world coming together to make this happen.”

To quote Gizmodo‘s Mark Wilson, “That quote’s more than just hype—it’s educated hype.”  Back in 2007, Lee created a headtracking simulation with the Wiimote, creating an stunning 3D realm into a different realm (in this case, for video games).  The video above is Lee’s creation with a commentary that explains his genious work.  The point of all this…Microsoft has managed to employ Lee to help the company create and complete Project Natal, a technology that may forever change the way developers and consumers create and play video games.  Exciting stuff.  Check after the break for two additional videos of Lee’s past creations, “tracking fingers with the Wii-remote,” and “low-cost multi-point interactive whiteboard using the Wii-remote.”  Interesting how Microsoft and not some other company whose console relies on motion controls happened to employ such a marvel in innovation.

Continue reading Project Natal is so good, even Johnny Chung Lee backs it