This morning Owen Good told me someone from Microsoft assured him that Kinect Fun Lab's Build-A-Buddy application had "advanced penis recognition heuristics that will reject the shape". I decided to test that claim using a purple grape-scented vibrator we just happened to have on hand.

What, don't tell me you people don't have emergency vibrators in your homes. What if there's a flood? What will you do then? How would you find it in the dark if it isn't grape-scented?

As you can see in the video, Build-A-Buddy not only created a new friend for all the good little boys and girls, it augmented it beyond my wildest imagination.

Perhaps I'll try to scan the cat next.

[Update] Contrary to what Owen was told in the booth yesterday, Microsoft has followed up to clarify that there are, in fact, no restrictions on which shapes one may scan in, animate, or give a cowboy or clown's personality. "However, if the content is deemed inappropriate or violates the Xbox Live code of conduct, it will be removed from Kinectshare," a spokesman said.