GameCentral tests out the next gen version of the Kinect motion sensor and finds that the first wave of games are far better than you’d think.
I don’t like Kinect. I’m firmly against the idea of a controller without the ability to give physical feedback, but that’s not why I’m always so down on the original Xbox 360 version of the device. The reasons for that are much simpler: it doesn’t work. Not at all in the majority of living rooms I’ve tried it in, and in such an imprecise and unreliable fashion elsewhere that I’m still surprised it was ever released at all. The next generation Kinect though is a lot better.
Kinect Sports Rivals
Microsoft has been very quiet about Kinect (the new version doesn’t have a name, it’s still just ‘Kinect’) since announcing the Xbox One back in May. So much so that they never even mentioned Kinect Sports Rival in public and just let the game’s trailer quietly slip onto their YouTube page without ever bringing it up at the unveiling or at E3. But now that I’ve played it I’m convinced that does it a great disservice.
Even when they occasionally exceeded them developer Rare has never been able to avoid copying Nintendo, not just in broad strokes but down to very specific details. So I don’t know why I was surprised to find that Kinect Sports Rivals seems to take place on pixelated version of Wuhu Island from Wii Sports Resort. Not that it really matters, especially not when one of its six sports is the best sequel to Wave Race 64 that never was.
I’ve never been a big driving game fan but I’ve always loved the original Nintendo 64 jetski game, and it didn’t take much to get the attending developers to admit it was a huge influence on their game. In fact it feels almost like an HD remake, with waves rolling in that same semi-realistic way and your jet ski bobbing between them like OutRun’s long lost water-dwelling cousin. The track layout seems reminiscent too, with a half-submerged ship and a receding tide that makes a hidden sandbank much more prominent by the final lap.
Kinect Sports Rivals – better than Wave Race: Blue Storm
Of course what’s really important is how the game controls and I have to admit it works very well, even though you’re just standing there holding your hands out like you’re riding an invisible motorbike. I’ve no idea how a jetski actually works but apparently there’s a throttle on the right handle, so while you control direction by turn and leaning you manage acceleration by opening and closing your hand – all of which Kinect seemed to recognise perfectly.
There are also tricks while in the air, but I didn’t quite understand them and quickly abandoned them to make sure I still had a chance of winning. A turbo boost where you stamp your right foot on the ground worked fine though.
In fact the attendant developers were surprised I did so well, as apparently most other people try to control the game like it’s a current gen Kinect title – with wild movements and exaggerated gestures. Having listened to the initial advice to be more subtle and natural though I seemed to do well, never blaming my second place spot on Kinect despite considerable temptation.
I would still much prefer to control the game via a joypad though. It just seems so abstract and weightless pantomiming moves in front of a TV, but beyond personal preference I find no reason at all to criticise the Kinect controls. And I never thought I’d say that about any game.
In fact that’s not the only way Kinect managed to impress, as before the demo started I was made to sit down in front of it and tilt my head in various semi-specific directions. Although it took a while to happen (the system isn’t quite finished yet) the caricature you see above was created without any input from the developers beyond choosing the hair – and for better or worse (mostly worse) it does look worryingly like me.
The other five sports in the game are bowling, rock climbing, soccer, target shooting, and tennis. The only other one at Gamescom was rock climbing and although I didn’t have time to play it personally it seemed to work fine, even though it was naturally less complex – and to my mind interesting – than the jetski racing.
Formats: Xbox One
Publisher: Microsoft Studios
Developer: Rare
Release Date: 2014
http://metro.co.uk/2013/08/22/kinect-sports-rivals-and-fighter-within-hands-on-previews-it-actually-works-3933439/
