Microsoft's hands free games controller, Project Natal ironically has a problem with Black people.

Named after the last place in the world with legislated apartheid. Project Natal has been receiving high mark in terms of innovative technology and unique ideas. But it seems the controller has a few problems when it comes to users who are not white.

Dan Hsu on Bitmod noticed that when game consultant and former Newsweek writer N'Gai Croal gave Paradise a test drive, however, the game had trouble reading his steering actions. While it could read his feet, which were covered in shoes, Project Natal would not let him steer the car.

However there was no problem when another driver was at the wheel. True, Croal does have dreadlocks but if that was a problem someone with long hair would also send Natal into a spin. Apparently it might be a problem with the near-infrared spectroscopy, which has a problem detecting darker skinned individuals.

The NIRS device failed to register tissue saturation values at some point in nine of seventeen volunteers. It seems that when it is used in hospitals patients with a dark pigmented skin, NIRS StO2 measurements should be interpreted with caution, as melanin clearly interferes with the quality of the reflected NIRS signal.

It could mean that black people have to play with their Xbox with gloves and a paper bag on their heads.