Kinect and Move: moving quickly out the door!

Alex Zaharov-Reutt
Saturday, 20 November 2010 17:46

Your IT - Entertainment

Microsoft and Sony have finally jumped into the Wii-inspired world of motion gaming, with all three major systems now offering to track much more than just the movement of your thumbs on buttons, with each system having strengths and weaknesses all their own.

If you want fun, casual and easy gaming that anyone in the family can enjoy, at an affordable price, the world has known that Nintendo and its Wii have been the winners for some time.

With Nintendo's improved motion sensing and the widest library of motion enabled games, with many no longer at original premium pricing, Nintendo's console is still a great family choice for families that don't already own a Wii console or need another one so different sets of kids and friends can all play at the same time.

While Nintendo had cornered the motion market, everyone knew that Microsoft and Sony would have to respond eventually.

Finally, in late 2010, this has finally happened, with Microsoft's Kinect and Sony's PS3 Move now available in stores.

Well, if you can find them. Reports say that both new motion systems are selling out, something the Wii initially experienced, and something that Apple knows only too well, too.

You do have to wonder if some of these shortages are 'manufactured', as such, to heighten demand, but with both motion systems genuinely being excellent additions to each platform, it's not surprising they're popular anyway, especially at this time of the year.

Escapist Magazine quotes GameStop president Tony Bartel saying: "Not only are we excited with Kinect and Move in very short supply, but we also like the fact that they are bringing in an expanded audience.'

But not everyone is kinvinced! ZDNet lists 8 interesting reasons why you might not want to buy a Kinect right now, including the fact it appears to need a lot more room that does the Nintendo Wii, and presumably the Sony PS3 Move, with Microsoft's instructions for you as Kinect Adventures loads to even 'move the couch' out of the way.

If this is true, I wonder how well it will do in tiny Japanese apartments? Perhaps those apartments are bigger than people in the west are led to believe!! :-)

 

Kinects keep moving on page two, please read on!