The Kinect was discontinued in October last year, but now the final nail has been struck into its coffin. The Kinect adapter that was offered for free with the Xbox One S (however not with the Xbox One X), has been discontinued, too.
It’s a shame that Microsoft didn’t try to keep working on the Kinect to make it the best it could be, but it was doomed even before its release, as the first announcement was seen as Microsoft trying to force users to always have the Kinect on while using the Xbox One.
This is especially dismaying for those who wanted to use the Kinect on PC but hadn’t bought an adapter yet, as well as those who bought a Kinect with the Xbox One S but didn’t know that they needed an adapter.
On top of all of this, Microsoft is even letting Xbox One players use USB webcams for livestreams and video chat, as well as letting users say all Cortana commands except “Hey Cortana, Xbox on” via the microphone on their headphones.
Some Kinect-only games have been re-released without the Kinect features, really showing that Microsoft has given up on what used to be one of their main selling points.
There are already scalpers selling the adapter for several times its original price, which means the Kinect is slowly but surely on its way to become an obscure accessory of the past, like the Virtual Boy or the light sensor cartridges for Boktai on GameBoy Advance.
The Kinect has died, and Microsoft is not trying to salvage any of it anymore.
If you want to have a good look back at last year and reminisce about the good parts, check out the 50 Best Games of 2017, but if you want to leave that behind just like Microsoft did the Kinect, check out the Biggest Games of January 2018.
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