Sunday, November 7, 2010
By: Matthew Doucette
Our first look at Kinect, Kinect Adventures, Your Shape Fitness Evolved, and Dance Central:
Notice: I was only able to setup the Kinect sensor 1.5 feet off the ground, instead of between the 2..6 foot suggestion. This may be responsible for some Kinect glitches shown in these vidoes, such as a slight clipping of the feet and head. Despite this setup, Kinect seemed to work very well.
Kinect 1 - Your Shape Fitness Evolved - Testing The Sensors.
This is me and a six year old testing the Kinect sensors.
Kinect - Your Shape Fitness Evolved -Virtual Smash
Me playing Virtual Smash game mode for the first time. Very intuitive.
Kinect 3 - Dance Central - Lady Gaga - Poker Face
Me dancing for the first time in my life. Be kind. The fact that I danced at all means Kinect is worth billions.
Kinect 4 - Kinect Tuner - Testing Kinect Hand & Head Tracking
Me testing Kinect's hand and head tracking. Note how I try to fool it and test its reacquire speeds. Very fast.
Kinect 5 - Kinect Adventures - Reflex Ridge - 2 Players
Me and a friend playing Reflex Ridge game mode. Wait for the pictures at the end!
Kinect 6 - Kinect Adventures - Living Statues
Warning: Explicit Content. Me and a friend testing out the living statue awards.
Consclusion:
Kinect blew me away. I used the word "connect" fifty times the first night I played it, oblivious to the fact it is called "Kinect". You feel connected to the game. In Your Shape Fitness Evolved, as you sway back and forth the screen does so as well. Your on screen character sways too, of course, and the ultimate result is a feeling of strong connectivity.
I was worried about the lag. I thought I would buy Kinect and dismiss it for casual gamers only. I love 60 FPS arcade-style quick-reflex action games too much, and I am critical about lag. And, although lag existed, it was minimal. I found that some games were causing the lag more than Kinect was. JoyRide especially in its menus. I wanted to know how laggy Kinect was, hence the Kinect Tuner testing video above. It was very fast. It is not 60 FPS, that I know. Maybe 30 FPS? It's hard to tell. I also tested the ability to reacquire my hands, when I forced them off screen, and it was faster than I could bring my arms back to my sides.
Overall, very impressed. Just check out my Facebook page, I'm bragging about it up and down.
Microsoft, great job. Ubisoft, great job on Your Shape Fitness Evolved. I can see it being a top seller along side of Dance Central (by the makers of Rock Band, Harmonix).
About the Author: I am Matthew Doucette of Xona Games, an award-winning indie game studio that I founded with my twin brother. We make intensified arcade-style retro games. Our business, our games, our technology, and we as competitive gamers have won prestigious awards and received worldwide press. Our business has won $190,000 in contests. Our games have ranked from #1 in Canada to #1 in Japan, have become #1 best sellers in multiple countries, have won game contests, and have held 3 of the top 5 rated spots in Japan of all Xbox LIVE indie games. Our game engines have been awarded for technical excellence. And we, the developers, have placed #1 in competitive gaming competitions -- relating to the games we make. Read about our story, our awards, our games, and view our blog.