MS files patent to potentially ban fat gamers

[hawkie]

Taken from Slashdot

"A newly disclosed Microsoft patent application — Avatar Individualized by Physical Characteristic — takes aim at fat people, proposing to generate fat avatars in gaming environments for individuals whose health records indicate they're overweight, limiting their game play, and even banning them. From the patent application: 'An undesirable body weight could be reflected in an overweight or underweight appearance for the avatar. Only requisite health levels are allowed to compete in a certain competition level. A dedicated gamer could exercise for a period of time until his health indicator gadget shows a sufficiently high health/health credit in order to allow reentering the avatar environment.' Linking one's gaming avatar to one's physique, explains Microsoft, will produce healthy and virtuous behaviors in individuals. Microsoft also proposes shaping gaming experiences by using 'psychological and demographic information such as education level, geographic location, age, sex, intelligence quotient, socioeconomic class, occupation, marital/relationship status, religious belief, political affiliation, etc."

Link to the patent: http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-...DN/20090309891

Can you lie to Natal?

[Atreides]

great, now all the black gamers are gonna have to sit in the back of the warthog

[xopher]

Wow, that is an incredible response.

[Kyo]

I guess the gays wont get to ride at all.

[Ragnus]

For some reason I'm not against this...

[wipers]

Terrible idea. Doesn't MS know that fat gamers make up 95% of the people they sell games to ?

[Elcura]

I lol'd, great stuff, great topic.

[Katlan]

Next is gonna be the Jews!

[Valkrish]

it should be done.

[MF Perm tha Fineass]

Awesome idea

[Nitsuki]

so in all seriousness, how the hell is ms gonna determine your weight based on your avatar? if this is the case, why not everyone make their avatars skinny?

if microshit made the avatars to be a depiction of your actual self irl, then why the fuck do they add pure white skin (past albino) skeleton makeup, and other stupid shit?

also, if that would be the case, people will prolly boycott the natal and other possible peripherals that determine this.

[Dmitry]

This seems like it would be something that uses Natal, so making your avatar really skinny wouldn't matter if that was the case.

[BRP]

It is not enough that MS has forced everyone to create and use this useless thing, now they want to insult fat people with it. Truly glorious bastards.

[dejet]

ALink this to the wii so that if youdo not spend 30 min on wii sports a da you can not play any other games. Love the idea! What if you are a body buildder you are sorta out of weight

Hope this is a troll, was to lazy to hit the link and read it. To late.

[Atreides]

what

[dejet]

what

Lol it has to be a joke or maybe just one game or something then again I did not read it so maybe it is for everything. Oh the lawsuits.I hope they do follow up it, looks like the news could have fun with this one

[Elcura]

what

[Nitsuki]

developers developers developers

[Qalbert]

I'm thinking its more of an optional thing, like set a goal, and it keeps you from backsliding/giving up. Idk though, just a thought.

[Kuya]

It sounds like MS has so much money that they don't even know what to do with it.