Every since Microsoft teased everyone with its*IllumiRoom concept, the idea has consumed people. One clever user came up with a concept that extends the idea of a synchronized gaming experience to the rest of the living room, with the help of some Philips Hue bulbs and an Xbox One.
Immersion is a powerful force in any video game or movie, and the world is filled with modders trying to figure out the best complete user involvement in their media. Some people grab three 30-inch monitors and a racing wheel in order to create the perfect driving experience on their PC, while others have recently taken to the Oculus Rift for that extra touch of realism. These all work well in very specific environments, but imagine if your whole living room was in on the action by setting the color tone for the entire room to match whatever is happening on the television.
[YT]Vgjm0xc4_M4[/YT]
The concept is relatively simple when you think about it. You can either take the dominant color on the screen at the time and have the Hue bulbs adjust to match, or you could look at specific elements and trigger them when relevant. White flashes like cameras going off to make you feel like you’re in the basketball arena or flashing red and blue lights to make it feel like the police are right on your tail. Everything that is happening on your television could bleed out to the rest of the room if this worked, and all it would take is the one thing that isn’t likely to happen.
Microsoft and Philips would have to seriously collaborate in order for this to work the way it was demonstrated in the video, and while that’s not impossible it also isn’t something you can expect to see anytime soon. Even if Microsoft was willing to play nice with the Philips API, or if Microsoft was willing to give Philips a backdoor to do all the heavy lifting off the console, it would take a great deal of cooperation between two companies that don’t really have much of anything to do with one another right now. Some sort of Philips Hue app on the Xbox One, or any console really, would be an incredible step forward for immersive gaming. All we have to do is get there.
More...
