Even though Microsoft has now said that the Xbox One will work without the included Kinect sensor if it is not plugged into the game console, the company is sticking with its original message that the Kinect and the Xbox One are a team.

In an interview with Computer and Video Games, Microsoft Xbox exec Phil Harrison is blunt when it comes to the link between the Xbox One and the Kinect. He stated, "Xbox One is Kinect. They are not separate systems. An Xbox One has chips, it has memory, it has Blu-ray, it has Kinect, it has a controller. These are all part of the platform ecosystem."

Harrison added that he has an Xbox One in his home and claims that the Kinect sensor's features, including being able to launch the Xbox One and load his player profile just by the sensor "seeing" him is a "very magical experience."

In the same interview, Harrison said that they have yet to announce a specific launch date for the Xbox One, beyond just "November 2013", due to "a certain number of marketing reasons." Sony announced this week that the rival PlayStation 4 console will launch in the US on November 15th and in Europe on November 29th. Recently, Microsoft revealed that a number of European countries will have to wait until sometime in 2014 to get a localized version of the Xbox One.

Harrison would not comment on if the North American Xbox One bundle will get a free digital game like the company is offering in Europe with FIFA 14. Microsoft will also make more announcements about its non-gaming media partnerships for the Xbox One at a separate event in the near future, according to Harrison.

Posted: Aug 22, 2013 11:54 am
Related Forum: Xbox Forum

Source: http://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-xbox-one-and-kinect-are-not-separate-systems