'Playroom' tech demo shows off PS4's PlayStation Eye

It was with interest that we got to see a tech demo of the new PlayStation Eye in action coupled with the new DualShock 4 controller.

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It may not come bundled with the PS4, but Sony also has a next-gen camera in the works. PlayStation Eye for PS4 will be available as a $59 peripheral, but what can it do? We got to see a tech demo called "Playroom" to see the possibilities.

A Sony representative said the demo was simply a way of showcasing how the new DualShock 4 worked in conjunction with the Eye. On the TV, a floating AI robot appeared, pouring a bunch of smaller robots into your controller. If you put your ear to the speaker you could hear little sounds supposedly coming from inside. The controller would rumble as the robots jumped inside the controller.

Like with previous Eye games, the showed an augmented version of the real-world room that we were in. Swiping up on the touchpad numerous times hurled the smaller bots out of the controller onto the floor, allowing me to interact with them with my hand. Pressing down on the touchpad, I could vacuum them all back into the controller.

Clearly, the Eye offers some sort of body-tracking, as I could interact will the AI bot by tickling its feelers, or batting at it. There's also some level of face-tracking: if all the people in the screen covered their faces, the robot would become sad, waiting everyone to come back and play.

The demo also offered a chance to play an AR hockey game, where the glowing strip on the controller acted as the paddle on the screen. Unfortunately the second controller did not work properly so we couldn't really test it out.

"Playroom" is not a product per se, and a Sony rep did tell me that the company currently has no plans to release it. However, Super Rub a Dub proves that Sony will eventually find a way to repackage and distribute this demo.

Contributing Editor
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From The Chatty
  • reply
    June 12, 2013 11:00 AM

    John Keefer posted a new article, 'Playroom' tech demo shows off PS4's PlayStation Eye.

    It was with interest that we got to see a tech demo of the new PlayStation Eye in action coupled with the new DualShock 4 controller.

    • reply
      June 12, 2013 11:08 AM

      I see the snack is so excited for this they're speechless.

      • reply
        June 12, 2013 11:20 AM

        I think it's awesome, but doubt we'll ever see any great retail titles using the technology.

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      June 12, 2013 1:07 PM

      I really feel like this was going to be a much bigger part of their plan going forward since it was shown with the controller at the launch event. The first pictures released of the console even had the thing in the, as in it was going to be in the box. I think when Sony made the decision that they HAD to at a lower price point that the eye was the most effective way to cut production and allow them to come in under the Xbox One price. Very shrewd move on Sonys part but one that has absolutely worked, at least so far.

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      June 12, 2013 1:11 PM

      The clawwwwwwwww

    • reply
      June 12, 2013 2:02 PM

      On stage demo: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvpCdtjTrAo

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      June 12, 2013 10:18 PM

      the 4th dimension is the blue vs red controllers?

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      June 12, 2013 10:21 PM

      i swear to god if everyone is like "this is amazing"...

      kinect does ALL of this and it has even more tech in it. do you think these types of applications won't be possible there? or are we just happy that sony didn't bundle in the eye?

      honestly if eye was included at $399 we'd probably hear no negatives because people are so head over heels about the DRM situation.

      but really...this is not unique to playstation.

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