Editorials

Kinect may not be for life but it’s definitely not just for Christmas!

December 8, 2010, Author: Ray Willmott

A few weeks back, my colleague, Neil Hughes, stated that Kinect is not for life and just for Christmas. You can read his piece here in case you missed it.

However, I’m of a different opinion and think Kinect really does stand a chance of keeping fresh and exciting throughout its projected five-year lifespan.

How is that possible? Why not found out…

Kinect has already revolutionised and changed the way the Xbox 360 is handled in many ways. The Xbox 360 is a very different console to how it launched five years ago thanks to Kinect, and some changes are more subtle than others.

For one, it has eradicated the need for headsets. Why? Because when the camera is on and active, it will pick up anything that is said in the room, meaning, Kinect will pick up full conversations at one time. We had three of us in the same room playing Halo Reach last night, all in the midst of a conversation and Kinect got it all and transmitted it to all the other players in our party. Gone are the days of covering the microphone on your headset to talk locally to someone when you want some privacy and don’t want to tell others your business. You’ll actually need to go out of your way to mute Kinect or leave the room. You may even need to talk quieter. Of course, this has advantages and disadvantages, but it will make the gaming experience something completely different than ever before. Natural, flowing conversations are now possible and no longer feel stunted. This was not possible before.

Secondly, you can navigate the menus of your Xbox much differently, using your hand gestures to select your choice. No longer do you need to use your pad to get from A to B, you can now use your voice and hands to get to your games, videos and music at any time. Once again, some may see this as a bad thing and are not entirely sold on the concept, but eventually this could be the way navigation is handled for all technology in the future. Especially if some are touting Kinect or like-minded tech to overturn the need for a mouse in the future. You can even pause video with the sound of your own voice, something that many of us have dreamed of from when we were young.

Thirdly, the system tracks all aspects of your body and eradicates the need for a controller. The Wii and Move are reliant on you having something in your hands to dictate the actions on the screen, Kinect just needs you. Having played Kinect quite a bit now and observed the ways people play it, the amount of times I’ve seen people hunch up as if they’re playing with a pad and not using their body to the full to play the game is becoming extravagant. It’s a natural reaction coming into Kinect. If you’ve been any kind of gamer, there seems to be a tendency to pretend as if you’re using something to control the actions on screen. I’ve even done it myself whilst playing Kinect and noticed it particularly in Joy Ride where I really clasped my hands together as if I’m driving with a pad or attempting to mimic a wheel.

Also, unlike the Wii, Kinect isn’t the console, it’s part of the Xbox experience. The Xbox does other things aside from Kinect gaming, you could turn it on to play Halo or Gears or Fable and Kinect will still be on in the background, still being used while you’re gaming.

Kinect offers more freedom than any other gaming experience we’ve ever known. This is the closest we’ve been to the Virtual Reality Worlds that were touted in the late 80’s/early 90’s but without that big, daft black and yellow helmet stuck over our heads. We’ll even be able to cross over with the core games and have Kinect work alongside a controller to create even more innovative ways to play games, making possibilities almost endless!

Kinect represents the technology we’ve been waiting for. It is the natural evolution of games rolled into a small rectangular camera. Naturally, in years to come Kinect will be bettered, improved, and likely remembered as the groundwork from which all of our ingenious future computer systems spawned. However, it’s still not the total revolution from which all things will be operated. Even though it offers mounds of freedom, it is still very limited, both in the things that it really can accomplish and in the products that will be designed for it. The problem Kinect faces is the same problems that plagued Wii upon its launch. Developers don’t quite know what it can and can’t do yet. They are still learning to look past the joypad and onto the things our bodies can accomplish within a gaming world. For that to ever be truly appreciated, everything will need to be looked at differently and that will take time. Kinect may not be able to give you the best possible gaming experience on some current genres but it may be able to create all new ones.

Inevitably, the fate of Kinect will be absolutely 100% determined by the quality of titles it is given and these first few months after its launch will be vital. Microsoft need to prove that A: They are working on cutting edge titles that use the Kinect tech in new and exciting ways, and B: They need to ensure the market isn’t saturated with party escapades and fitness extravaganzas in order for the technology to be taken seriously. So far, the fate of Kinect is a mixed bag. We’ve had the likes of Kinectimals, a clever, lovable title that allows you to interact with wild creatures in ways that would normally provoke them rip you to shreds in the real world. We’ve had Joy Ride, a sub-par racing experience that has led many journalists to claim ‘racing games will never ever work on Kinect’, and we’ve had Dance Central, a product that can, in theory, teach you how to dance and ‘get loose’.

Then there’s Your Shape, The Biggest Loser, EA Sports Active 2, Get Fit with Mel B and Zumba Fitness; five fitness games already out for Kinect making up almost half of its current catalogue. Not to mention three different Sports titles, including Kinect Sports. While they’re interesting and innovative in their own ways, on paper, it would appear the marketing strategy for Kinect is targeting a familiar audience akin to the Wii and that may put people off from the outset.

Jumping for joy?

When you look at what Sony have done with Move, you can see they have shown solid support for the Move product from the very beginning, even going as far as to add Move support to older games such as Resident Evil 5 and Heavy Rain. Then you’ll see all of their forthcoming feature line up, titles such as Killzone 3, Little Big Planet 2 and Gran Turismo 5 are supporting Move. This is something Microsoft have been hesitant to do and have held back on up to this point. Naturally, this is concerning. With the continuing pressure from Sony and seeing Nintendo use more and more of their feature licenses on Wii with returns from Kirby, Donkey Kong and the classic Goldeneye, Microsoft really do need to have something up their sleeve to prove Kinect is an ‘essential purchase’ for those homes it hasn’t reached yet.

Looking to the future, we have Child of Eden from Ubisoft, a game that Ubi reps were extremely excited about at Eurogamer and many press members have tried out and loved. We have Michael Jackson the Experience, allowing you to sing and dance to the tunes of Jacko just as if you are the King of Pop, the Forza title announced at E3 earlier this year, which we know next to nothing about, although if  some journalists are correct, it won’t work right anyway. Then there’s the Star Wars game that come next Christmas will have you serving as a Jedi mastering the use of a lightsaber. We’ve also got dark carnivals, we’ve got mechs and flying dragons, but as for what else the future holds, who knows? A Gears of War title has been rumoured for Kinect and Halo talk has surfaced, but there are also the numerous developers that have announced they’re supporting Kinect and are apparently working on games to support the tech.

For now, I trust Microsoft. The evolution of the 360 has been remarkable and the Xbox brand has gone from being a distant second to Playstation to the more desirable console, nabbing most of the exclusives Sony obtained during the PS2 era and creating an online gaming experience that is unrivalled. With the amount of time and money they’re investing into this project, surely they have big plans and a lot of faith in Kinect? Surely they know what they’re doing?

Whatever the case maybe, I feel that Kinect has a lot to offer you in the coming months and will definitely have a longer shelf life than a few weeks. This one, at least in my opinion, isn’t just a Christmas novelty.

Tagged , , , , , ,