Camera for PlayStation - while a toy, but with great serious prospects

As a matter of fact, this is not at all an idle question - why do I need to use the camera on the PlayStation, because the gadget is quite functionally self-sufficient, there is no special need to equip it with something else, God forbid, to enter into what is already.

But if you are a real gamer, then the desire for new mind-blowing opportunities, the expectation of them, is just in your blood. These are the opportunities and provide you with a camera.

A little history

To be more precise, Sony itself provoked interest in the cameras by offering some of its capabilities in PS2. They were still flowers, but they also awakened interest. Some applications could insert into their interior on the screen what is in the room around the player. For the time being, a very primitive camera could transfer the player’s appearance to the screen and offer its characters to it in the company.

But just as the PS2 quickly recovered under the onslaught of the 3rd version, the first options for using the camera with a prefix also quickly became outdated.

Using the camera in the PlayStation 3 has become wider, at least for the reason that the developer specifically developed this device for PS and officially called it “The Eye” - Eye

It cannot be said that the set of ideas for using “Eyes” has expanded, but the quality of the image and its subsequent adaptation to game situations have grown several times (in fact, this was the highlight of PS3, which instantly made the previous version obsolete). Still, the camera reads the player, the surrounding environment and embedded received in the game space. These, far from trivial tasks, could be performed by no means all games. But getting your avatar using the camera, even animated, has become a common practice for almost all programs (just like these animated views of players for 1-2 seconds before the Champions League matches).

PS3 introduced into the gameplay and its own nuance - the interaction of the camera with the controller Move. The camera could be guided by the Move luminous ball and would approach the control of the game by the player’s movements. In interaction with other sensors, a very good effect was obtained. Another thing is that both the PS3 and then the PS4 offer such a set of the coolest games that, by and large, they don’t need any additional accessories.

Maybe this is why the developers of PS4 did not include the camera in the standard package of delivery of the product, moreover, they simply named it - PlayStation Camera. Everyone can decide for himself whether he needs a camera or not. Some do not spend a day without it, constantly finding new ways to use it, and some throw it just a week after the purchase.

PS 4, Joystick and Camera

How it looks and how it can be used

Frankly speaking, the designers worked adequately on the camera and offered a very unusual look of it. It is necessary to guess that this black bar is the camera. The protruding retainer allows you to adjust the angle of inclination, and the fastening clip - to fix on anything (however, the clip is not included in the scope of delivery and is often not purchased).

Behind the black plastic “lining” of the PlayStation Camera are:

  • two lenses;
  • several sensors, including a range finder;
  • several microphones that allow you to control voice control - not every game comes to this, not everyone is able to offer decent algorithms for processing and reacting to voice, but the best options are very good today, and what will happen in the future!

All motion information is processed both by the firmware of the camera itself and by the games software PS4.

After connecting the camera requires its configuration. One of the most interesting is the face recognition function - it makes an impression on guests when the camera chooses its “owner” from the crowd. One problem - for confident recognition of the face should be sufficiently lit. If there is not enough light, the camera itself offers to pick it up and more accurately choose the distance in front of it.

There is another possibility - face recognition playing. Before the game, each camera gives itself to fix and in the future identification will take place without problems, one is bad - the process of primary fixation takes quite a long time.

Camera microphones are also involved - they allow you to control the console. All teams, and their set so far leaves much to be desired, in English, French, Spanish and German. There is no Russian, and in the near future its installation is not planned. Therefore, to turn off the console, you will have to say Shutdown, and to take a screenshot - Screenshot. The return to the game is performed with the phrase: "PlayStation, backtogame." Another thing is that practically no one uses voice commands - it is easier and faster to press a single button, and the voice control function itself has not yet taken root.

There is one more use of the camera, and many consider it the most sensible for today. With its help and with the help of the Twitch service, it is possible to transfer the course of the game to a visually distant interlocutor, and of course also yourself.

PlayStation Camera Usage Examples and Findings

To understand your new features, you can launch a “demo” toy. Everything in it really looks impressive. But the trouble is that the vast majority of modern PlayStation applications are still incapable of this.

At the disposal of the gamer while several interactive toys more for children from the older group of kindergarten. These games use the player’s scanned camera body and the surrounding space to play around with the little animals or robots. Most likely, full use will not happen soon, because the Xbox has much more experience in its use, but even it has not moved much further.

As a conclusion, we can draw the following conclusions:

  • To date, the camera for Playstation is not a very necessary device, it is not enough for what is suitable.
  • Its capabilities are involved in a very small amount.
  • If you try to answer the question of why you need a camera for the PS4, the answer will be as follows: for pampering, in order to be “on the crest of a wave” of development trends.
  • But, undoubtedly, there is potential for use and already, probably, in the near future, it will be shown.
  • In the meantime, apparently understanding the ambiguity of the device, Sony set a very suitable price on it - from 3.5 to 4.5 thousand rubles.

We also offer a list of games that at least somehow interact with the camera and brighten up the situation of disappointment:

  • The Play Room is just a demonstration of possibilities;
  • Just Dance - the movements of the "master" are transformed into dance;
  • Alien Isolation - the camera just keeps track of you and picks up the sounds around;
  • Tomb Raider: Definition Edition — voice control;
  • NBA 2k15 - creating your avatar as a player;
  • War Thunder - tracking the position of the head.

PlayStation VR

The camera has one more function - support for PlayStation VR. Moreover, as stated by Sony, and this is apparently the company's marketing pitch for promotion, the PS VR helmet will not work without a camera. And the greatest effect is to be expected from the joint use of the VR, the Move controller and the camera.