CES13: Microsoft debuts IllumiRoom technology

Microsoft takes the Xbox one step closer to the fabled Star Trek ‘Holodeck’ with IllumiRoom. Get ready to be impressed.

I am not, in any way, taken with gimmicks as far as gaming goes. In all honesty, I’m a pretty traditional mouse & keyboard or gamepad kinda guy. That said, it’s extremely hard to be anything other than blown away by IllumiRoom. The new tech that Microsoft is showing off at CES incorporates your entire play environment in major and minor ways while you play- to some pretty incredible levels.

As intriguing as that demo video is, technically this is still just a ‘concept’, so gamers probably shouldn’t get too excited just yet. It’s also hard to picture just how (and in what form) IllumiRoom would be brought to market at present or in the near future too. I imagine the device would be a ceiling(or back of room)-mounted gizmo and it’d probably have to communicate wirelessly with the next Xbox (or whatever it’ll be called).

As MCV points out though, in an era where people might be questioning the ‘need’ to upgrade to a new generation of hardware, IllumiRoom might just be the much sought after ‘killer app’ that a new Xbox might need to really pack a punch at retail.

A new console is widely rumored to be announced at this June’s E3, so we might not have to wait too long to find out if we’ll be inviting IllumiRoom into our collective homes anytime soon.