[Newsbot]

Title: Will Microsoft's Kinect revolutionize videogames?
Category: Tech
Posted By: wildrosegirl
Date: 2010-06-14 16:47:50

[Benn]

So will this send the Wii the way of Wired TV remotes? Seems a similar comparison.

[xerxes]

It has a lot of potential but I'm not sold on it. It's a cool tech to be sure, but remember when you were a kid, playing Mario, and you'd lift your controller to make Mario jump? That's what it reminds me of; something I grew out of.

[Dragom]

So is this the start of the proliferation of Camera's throughout our homes and the quiet death of privacy where brushing your teeth for a full 3 minutes gets you 100 points towards a new tube of tooth paste?

[Public_Domain]

[Public_Domain]

[commanderkai]

Mr_Canada Mr_Canada:

xerxes xerxes:

It has a lot of potential but I'm not sold on it. It's a cool tech to be sure, but remember when you were a kid, playing Mario, and you'd lift your controller to make Mario jump? That's what it reminds me of; something I grew out of.

Yeah, I'd throw myself side-to-side while playing racing games. Always got hassled for that.

Just ahead of the game or something.

I'm glad I wasn't the only one.

[QBall]

This technology is untested and Microsoft won't release any units for scrutiny by reviewers. I'll admit if it works it can be revolutionary, however like most accessories I think the initial price will be high, the number of compatible games will be low and, as I said before, actual performance is unknown. XBox does not have as many family friendly titles as the Wii, plus I imagine Kinect will have a much higher learning curve than the Wii controller, which may limit it's appeal to casual and younger gamers (a market Nintendo has exploited quite well). Wait and see I guess.

[BigKeithO]

QBall QBall:

This technology is untested and Microsoft won't release any units for scrutiny by reviewers.

It's E3 dude, TONS of people have tested it out. Not sure what you are talking about here...

QBall QBall:

I'll admit if it works it can be revolutionary, however like most accessories I think the initial price will be high, the number of compatible games will be low and, as I said before, actual performance is unknown.

Microsoft announced the release date but nothing about pricing, I think you could be right about it being priced too high. GameStop (US version of EB Games) has it bundled with the new slim 360 for $400 right now. Purely guess work at this point since Microsoft hasn't announced anything. If true it seems a little steep when you can go out and get a Wii for $150.

QBall QBall:

XBox does not have as many family friendly titles as the Wii

That would be the point of the Kinect, no? To counter the Wii, or is that what you were getting at?

QBall QBall:

plus I imagine Kinect will have a much higher learning curve than the Wii controller, which may limit it's appeal to casual and younger gamers (a market Nintendo has exploited quite well). Wait and see I guess.

I fail to follow your logic. How can a camera that tracks your bodies movements have a higher learning curve than something with buttons? You move, your on screen character does what you do. It doesn't seem like it could get much simpler than that.

[Public_Domain]

[QBall]

BigKeithO BigKeithO:

It's E3 dude, TONS of people have tested it out. Not sure what you are talking about here...

So you can provide a link to a site that has done an independent test? I would love to see this.

QBall QBall:

XBox does not have as many family friendly titles as the Wii

$1:

That would be the point of the Kinect, no? To counter the Wii, or is that what you were getting at?

In the promo video back when it was Natal I remember seeing a race car came, a trivia game, a weird soccer style game and a trivia game that the people in the demo were playing. Family friendly needs to be simpler games children can play. XBox and Playstation's bread and butter are high end graphic games with intense action.

QBall QBall:

plus I imagine Kinect will have a much higher learning curve than the Wii controller, which may limit it's appeal to casual and younger gamers (a market Nintendo has exploited quite well). Wait and see I guess.

$1:

I fail to follow your logic. How can a camera that tracks your bodies movements have a higher learning curve than something with buttons? You move, your on screen character does what you do. It doesn't seem like it could get much simpler than that.

Take the racing game that was in the Project Natal demo. It had the person holding an imaginary steering wheel working imaginary pedals and shifter. Granted there may be options to allow even simpler controls (i.e. automatic transmission), however XBox tends to favor realism over user friendliness. My wife is the typical casual gamer. I can get her to play Mario Cart due to the simple controls on the Wii. I just can't see her being able to pretend to drive a car to simulate a race game (especially considering she doesn't drive in the real world). This is the person Microsoft needs to appeal to to make Kinect have any impact. If not then all they'll do is appeal to the more hardcore gamer who may or may not see the value in forking out the cash for this, especially if independent reviewers give it a thumbs down.