So, after many years with a PS3 (and one with a Wii -- but we sold it for being a bit rubbish), we've finally bought a 360. It was Kinect that drew my family in. Dancing with sticks just didn't do it for us -- Move has it's strengths, but dancing games isn't one of them -- so Kinect grew increasingly attractive. Finally, after some consideration, we ordered one today. Got a 250Gb 360 with Kinect Adventure, Halo 3, Dance Central, Kinectimals, and obviously, Kinect, all for a good bit under £300. Fairly happy with that.

So, why am I posting?

I need a little help from the Kinect krew (yes, I just did that with the 'k'). What are the best games for the device? I'm looking for quality family fun. I have two young daughters and, of course, my wife (the dancer rightly unhappy with the sticks). What would work for them? What games do you really like? Don't give me stuff that's forthcoming -- I can't buy that now.

As for me, I already have a bunch of games I want, but I'm open to suggestions here as well. I'm a fairly heavy PC/PS3 gamer, so I already have most multi-plats covered, but if you feel there are some forgotten 360 gems that I will have missed and should play, please drop me a recommendation or three. It will be appreciated. I play pretty much all genres.

Also, and I know this can be a hard question to answer, but I'm finding it really hard to justify paying for a Gold account. The more I look at it, the less I seem to be getting. Can any multi-platform owners give me some advice here? I just can't see how it is worth the money Microsoft ask for.

Other than that, thanks for dropping in. Any and all recommendations are very welcome.

dance central, too human, gears 2.

The only Kinect game you are lacking that is out right now is Kinect Sports. It's a good pick-up. Before I give you any more suggestions I'm going to need to know what kind of games you and your family like 

I already have Dance Central (if you check the OP).

Too Human I'm undecided about for a gazillion reasons, most of them review-based. As for Gears 2, it's a certainty at some point, I reckon. I've played Gears on PC a fair bit, and it'll be nice to play the sequel.

How is Kinect Sports? Do you (or anyone else) know how it compares to Sports Champions (the Move game -- I have that already)? If it's recommended enough, I'll certainly pick it up. Sports Champions, for example, is a brilliant little game.

As for what games I and my family like, well, that's hard to answer fully, primarily as our taste is wide. I play almost everything barring hardcore sports games. My game list on this site is fairly up-to-date, so it should give you an idea. My wife is a big RPG fan, and she also likes all manner of casual games (with a stress on dancing and singing at the moment). My kids are young (6&4), so are happy with almost anything kiddie-based. They both have IDs on our PS3 and play it a fair bit when allowed. As it stands, EyePet is my youngest's favourite; my eldest has a wider taste (LEGO games, Harry Potter games, Flower, dancing and singing games, the Undergarden, Joe Danger, Disney games, Eyepet, and the like).

In short, if a game is good, we'll probably play it.

EDIT: Oh, and both my kids adore LittleBigPlanet.

No, I have no idea how it compares to Sports Champions. I do know it's a blast to play though ^^ 

Well then, game recommendations coming(I have played all these and only recommend games that I enjoy) :D 

Alan Wake
Earth Defense 2017**
Too Human
Tales of Vesperia
Lost Odyssey 
Blue Dragon**(Kids might like it... I thought it was kind of juvenile)
Crackdown
Crackdown 2(Basically the same as the first. same gameplay same city. Just a continuation of the story. Buyer beware)
Fable II
Fable III
Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise(Can't recommend this game enough! :D) 
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts**(ditto^)
Kameo**
Halo Wars 
Beautiful Katamari**(though they released a new Katamari on the PS3, so you might check that out)

That's a good little list... Most of them can be picked up for cheap too!

Edit: I don't play XBL games so I can't help you there. Though you should check out the Rare remakes of Banjo-Kazooie**, Tooie**, and Perfect Dark

Edit 2: ** indicates good for children 

Well, that's exactly the sort of thing I'm looking for from Kinect. Fun. I know it's damned unlikely to match Move when it comes to tight controls, but I am expecting it to have a pretty damn good fun-factor.

Thanks. I much prefer recommendations based upon actual play rather than hype or whatever. I have a couple of specific questions and points, though (edited in to the list below and underlined):

If I've not asked anything about any of the above, it's probably because the title in question is already on my list of wants. :D

I think if you play online games as a solo experience there is not much of a difference. Live was really built from the ground up with the idea of groups of friends playing together. Because I'm a social online gamer I would rather pay twice the asking price for Live than have to go back to PSN because I'm so used to the features live gives you like Party chat, Cross game chat and the ability to join a friends gaming session in nearly every game. It's very well integrated/standardized in the online experience on the Xbox, so the best thing I can recommend is that you just use the free month's trial and try it out with some buddies over live.

Example:

I'm playing a game of 1943/anything online and I get a notification that my friend has popped onto live.

I send him a party invite and he accepts with a couple of button clicks.

*Bam* We're talking one to one just like that regardless of what he is browsing/playing.

He clicks 'join gaming session'

*Bam* he spawns beside me and already knows the score and tactics because I could tell him over live as his version of the game was booting up.

Another friend pops onto Live and within 20 seconds he could be our brother in arms.

*Bam* That one was just for show.

The best part is that because you are all in a party you can play uninterrupted by other people playing the game if you choose because it can be a private chat. It's not a giga leap over the PC to be fair, but it is leaps and bounds over the PSN for team based gameplay (which it really has to be because you pay for it)

This is just the opinion of someone who buys all their multiformat for 360 or PC if it has a multiplayer element.

Earth Defense is the equivalent of a B scifi movie. Spaceships appear all over the earth carrying with them Robots, giant godzilla things, ants, spiders, and flying things. What ensues is 54 levels of untold chaos. Some of later levels the screen is completely filled with blood, acid, and flying dead bodies. It was always fun when you looked down at your radar and it was just a complete red blob. It's a TPS which is also a blast in co-op

Too Human is either a love it or hate it thing. The first couple levels are great, but the last one is kind of out of place. It's a blast to play, and definetily worth it if you can pick it up for the cheap!

Blue Dragon is by the creator of Final Fantasy. It's a tight little jrpg, it's kind of slow(especially if you play it after LO). The story is kind of focused more on younger people. It's especially great if you love grinding like I do 

Viva Pinata: TiP is hard to explain. But if you wife likes casual games she will love it! It's kind of a garden simulator... where each pinata has a certain preresiquite in order to appear, visit your garden, then stay. I easily put over a hundred hours into the first one. The second is much more refined o.o. Again, can't recommend it enough 

Kameo is hard to put into a specific category. It's a platformer/brawler that you have to find little creatures that give you there powers. Then you can transform into animals, and all that. Some of the combos are great, transform into a squid spray a group of enemies with oil then transform into a dragon and set that oil on fire. It also has co-op play. Trying to get the highest rank on levels is very addicting ^^. It's a launch title where the graphics didn't age too well though :3 

Y'know, that's a pretty robust defence of the price. If I played lots of multi-player games, I'd almost certainly be sold. However, most of my gaming is single-player campaign games -- perhaps because of the communication limitations of PSN, I dunno (but I don't play multi-player on PC much, either). I shall ponder that, methinks. At the very least, you're absolutely spot on that I should try out that month of Live freeness to the max. I have a lot of 360 buddies already, so I'll be sure to check it out and send friend requests all over the shop. :D