Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Why Does Everyone Want the Xbox 360 Kinect?


In this article I plan on sharing what exactly the Kinect for Xbox is and why it has become so popular.
Motion sensor games have really taken off over the last few years and it was actually led by the Nintendo Wii, then of course Playstation followed up with the Playstation Move and now Microsoft has completely taken it to a whole new level with the Kinect for Xbox.
If you do not know what motion sensor games are it is basically where YOU are the controller and the use of old school button controllers are not needed. Although with the Wii and the Move there is a "wand" your movements are still what control the game.
Now what exactly separates the Kinect for Xbox from it's competitors? Well the kinect DOES NOT require any controller or wand whatsoever. Your complete body is the controller.
You see Microsoft has really stepped their game up and created a whole new innovative accessory for the Xbox that picks up your every move.

This means that every time you jump, swing, sit, or run the Kinect picks it up and transfers it onto the avatar you are playing with on the screen.
You may be asking yourself how exactly does this work? Well let me get into how the Kinect sensor works.
The sensor has a total of 3 cameras which is what picks up your every move. It has one color camera for image recognition and two monochrome cameras which are responsible for picking up your actual body movements.
This powerful sensor tracks the movements of your arms, legs, hips, feet and head so it is sure to get everyone off the couch and have a good time.
I think this is one of the reason's why this game has become so popular because you can actually get a great workout in while playing a game.
And if you are a parent you can get your kids to still play video games while staying active. We all know how dreadful the old school game consoles can be and have people sitting on a couch for hours on end. Well not anymore thanks to the Kinect.
One thing I do want to mention is the Kinect IS NOT a stand alone console like the Wii. It is an accessory to the X-box 360 so you DO need an X-box to hook it up to.

Another reason why the Kinect has become so powerful is all the amazing games that are available to play.
They are not making just your average gun game. They are creating games that keep you active and entertained.
Kinect has games like:
Kinect Sports which is an all in one sports game where you can play thing like table tennis, track and field events, soccer, and bowling.
Kinect Adventures which is basically a level game where you work your way through different adventures in exotic locations and you navigate through roaring rapids, challenge obstacle courses or save a leaky underwater laboratory.
Dance Central which is a HUGE hit and the title says it all. This game is all about breaking it down on the dance floor!
These are just a few games out of the 17+ games currently available and more set to be released later this year.
So as you can see Microsoft has really stepped their game up and shows no sign of slowing down.
I really do think Motion sensor games are the future and the Kinect is just the beginning.

1 comment: