[#Gary]

When this came out I was just like "meh, another crappy gimmick blah blah blah" but for some reason I'm really considering buying it now - probably just for something a bit different.

So, do any P&Bers have it?
Is it worth it or is it still more of a novelty thing that'll wear off within weeks?
If it is worth it, what are the best games out for it just now? Or coming out this year?

[forameus]

Rudy, on 04 January 2012 - 15:55, said:

When this came out I was just like "meh, another crappy gimmick blah blah blah" but for some reason I'm really considering buying it now - probably just for something a bit different.

So, do any P&Bers have it?
Is it worth it or is it still more of a novelty thing that'll wear off within weeks?
If it is worth it, what are the best games out for it just now? Or coming out this year?

I think there's already a topic on Kinect, but not sure. Will answer this one anyway.

I got a Kinect for Christmas after being really impressed with the technology behind it. At Uni (Warning, Boring Shit Alert) I did a final year project with a few others on using Wiimotes for Full Body Interaction. In layman's and literal terms, we strapped Wiimotes to people and tried to make something that translated body movements into input. After doing that, I was very interested to hear about Kinect and how it would completely do away with controllers altogether.

I've finally got one, and I've got to say that despite a few niggles, it's been extremely impressive.

The good points
- it is eerily good at modelling what you're doing on screen. If you move your arms or legs, or move around within the visible area, it will do the same. Witchcraft
- it's fairly responsive. I read a lot of reviews that criticised the responsiveness to your movements, but I've not been convinced by them having played it. I will admit, if you need to jump to avoid something, you need to train yourself to jump slightly before you would if you were jumping over something in real life, but the difference is negligible and easy to get used to.
- it beats the Wii at it's own game. The Wii has been the king of interactive sports games for a while now, and I've lost a lot of hours to Wii tennis over the years. But at the end of the day, you're still holding a controller, and you can still sit on your arse and just move your wrist every so often and get the desired results. With Kinect, you are far more involved, to the point where some of the games end up pretty demanding physically
- Party mode. Get 4 or so friends around, drink a lot and then play Kinect Sports Party Mode. You might spew from over-exertion, but it's the most fun I've had playing an Xbox since I got it.

The bad points
- the games selection. A pretty big one too. The technology is fantastic, and has absolutely fantastic potential, but it's being let down at the moment by the lack of games. I've had a look at the near future in releases, and none are really jumping out as being a killer app. Don't get me wrong, the games out now for it serve a purpose, and when up against Wii games of a similar nature, they destroy them, but there's not that game that makes you think "I have to get a Kinect". Nothing totally new. I have full confidence that it will happen though, it's too good a technology not to explore
- accuracy on some games. Some games can end up being a nightmare to use if you don't have patience. A lot of them don't allow a normal controller as a secondary input, meaning if your Kinect spazzes out and can't see you, you'll have to retune until it can. In most games it isn't a problem (and in some the interfaces are an absolute joy to use, so kudos to them) but in some it's a big one. Low lieing buttons on the screen are big offenders.
- space. I live in a fairly small city center flat, and I have JUST enough space to use it, and that's only using the Nyko Zoom adaptor which cuts down the required space by about 40%. If you have a small room, you might not have as good a time using it.

That's pretty much the big points of the impression I've got of Kinect so far. If you've got any more questions, just ask.

[SaltyTON]

I got one and a few games for £60. Kinect Adventures and Kinectimals (have got 1000/1000 for it) are really fun, but everything else I've tried has been shit. Including Brunswick Pro Bowling which I got from LoveFilm and sent back in the same day, not remotely fun at all!

The £60 was worth it for those two games, but I wouldn't recommend it if you had to pay full price.

[StandFree03]

Kinect sports is tremendous fun, the bowling is absolutely brilliant.

[Dindeleux]

I was going to come and ask this today too.

I'm thinking of buying 1, and I need to ask if anyone could recommend either the UFC trainer thing or the new sports fitness thing as the best workout thing to buy?

[jm1]

forameus, on 04 January 2012 - 17:16, said:

- space. I live in a fairly small city center flat, and I have JUST enough space to use it, and that's only using the Nyko Zoom adaptor which cuts down the required space by about 40%. If you have a small room, you might not have as good a time using it.

I'm also interesting in getting one, but I'm unsure if there's enough space in my flat.

How far away are you from the sensor when using it?

[Just a bairn]

Get Kinect sports 1 for the table tennis alone. I've had some epic battles against the champion level AI

[Father Dougal McGuire]

I found it similar to the wii in that once the novelty wears of it becomes very boring. Don't get me wrong, it's miles better than the wii, but after a long day i would rather sit down with a controller and play away than jump about like a dafty.

[forameus]

jm1, on 04 January 2012 - 18:56, said:

I'm also interesting in getting one, but I'm unsure if there's enough space in my flat.

How far away are you from the sensor when using it?

I didn't notice until someone pointed it out, but whenever there's an advert for Kinect, you see people playing it in lovely, spacious New York style loft apartments. Sneaky.

Microsoft recommended 6 feet, but with the Zoom, that brings it down to 4 feet (allegedly). That's only for one player too, obviously since 2 players would be standing side by side, they need more space away from the camera so they can see both, so probably up to 8 feet for 2 player.

There are ways to get around it though, and a lot of the early things you'll do with Kinect is finding out exactly where best to put it. I initially had it on top of the TV, as it claimed it was the best place but apart from it falling off regularly (it "adjusts" its view on its own by tilting the unit up and down) it struggled to keep me in view for more than a few minutes at a time.

From experience, I would say put it as low as you can get away with. It supposedly needs around 2 feet of clearance off the ground, so if you can get it working around that area and you're not freakishly tall, you'll probably get a good performance out of it. I've got it under the TV, sitting on 4 or so of my least popular XBox game boxes. Works a treat.

[LarkyTon]

I've had one for a year now. Kinect Sports is amazing.

[gypsymuffin]

I've got one. Really glad I got it.

Some good games I've played on it, like kinect sports 2 and fruit ninja.

Best game I've played on it though is The Gunstringer - amazing!

[#Gary]

Cheers lads. I think I'll go for it but have realised I'll likely need a new TV first as I'm still playing on an old 19" computer monitor since my last TV broke and I don't imagine it being much fun on such a small screen. I better get saving.

[Dindeleux]

I bought this today and I'm well impressed. Got the adventure game with it and bought UFC trainer and both are pretty good. Going to buy Kinect Sports tomorrow.

[Dindeleux]

Ok, so the Kinect is great.

If anyone is looking to get fit I'd suggest getting one and getting UFC Trainer - I've been gyming it for about 6 months and after 2 days of the training program I'm in agony - its a great workout, totally different.

Great piece of kit

[SaltyTON]

Rudy, on 08 January 2012 - 00:15, said:

Cheers lads. I think I'll go for it but have realised I'll likely need a new TV first as I'm still playing on an old 19" computer monitor since my last TV broke and I don't imagine it being much fun on such a small screen. I better get saving.

I'm using an old 24" CRT for my Freesat and my 360 (my flatscreen is connected to DVD player) and it's sufficient. If you can get an old CRT off Freecycle or something then do so as it's much better for Kinect as you can sit the sensor on top of it, giving you a better scanning height.

I know it sounds daft but it's worth the hassle, and the graphics on the Kinect games aren't good enough to make HD etc a necessity!

This post has been edited by SaltyTON: 10 January 2012 - 13:01

[#Gary]

Dindeleux, on 10 January 2012 - 01:58, said:

Ok, so the Kinect is great.

If anyone is looking to get fit I'd suggest getting one and getting UFC Trainer - I've been gyming it for about 6 months and after 2 days of the training program I'm in agony - its a great workout, totally different.

Great piece of kit

I'm an unfit b*****d. This could be helpful.

What about things like EA Sports Active, Biggest Loser, and Your Shape Fitness Evolved ? Would anyone recommend them for a fat unfit c**t?

And no, I'm not buying Kinect simply for exercise ... I do plan on hitting the gym!

[SaltyTON]

Rudy, on 10 January 2012 - 16:51, said:

I'm an unfit b*****d. This could be helpful.

What about things like EA Sports Active, Biggest Loser, and Your Shape Fitness Evolved ? Would anyone recommend them for a fat unfit c**t?

And no, I'm not buying Kinect simply for exercise ... I do plan on hitting the gym!

9 stone 8, one round of Biggest Loser nearly killed me... make of that what you will!

[ayrunitedfw]

Ive got it but never actually played it. How easy is it to set-up ? is it just a cause of turning tht Board thing on and away you go ?

[SaltyTON]

ayrunitedfw, on 10 January 2012 - 20:43, said:

Ive got it but never actually played it. How easy is it to set-up ? is it just a cause of turning tht Board thing on and away you go ?

It's a long plastic sensor on a stand that lets it adjust itself to see you properly.

Plug it in to the socket, and another end into the USB port of your 360 and then follow the on-screen instructions. It's not an instant thing though, you'll have to set it up through a few recognition tests.

[forameus]

Rudy, on 10 January 2012 - 16:51, said:

I'm an unfit b*****d. This could be helpful.

What about things like EA Sports Active, Biggest Loser, and Your Shape Fitness Evolved ? Would anyone recommend them for a fat unfit c**t?

And no, I'm not buying Kinect simply for exercise ... I do plan on hitting the gym!

I've got the Your Shape one (I also am an unfit b*****d these days) as well as Dance Central 2 (which was given away free with the Kinect when I got it, don't judge me). YourShape is pretty comprehensive, and there is a massive amount to do in it. There's yoga and tai-chi if you wanted something gentle, right up to a digital personal trainer screaming at you about how useless you are during particularly intense bouts. You can tell it what you want to do (lose weight, work on cardio, legs etc) and it'll tell you how long it thinks you should be working, how often, and what activities you should be doing. I was pretty impressed with it, although I haven't really used it much (early week Football took precedence).

Dance Central 2 has a fitness part built in too, and according to the missus it's far better. Apparently it's a lot easier to lose yourself in it and do more exercise, rather than getting bored doing the same thing and stopping early. So if you like dancing to sub-standard pop and RnB, go get Dance Central. If you want a lot to do, buy YourShape. And if you hate yourself, by the sounds of it, get UFC. I know I will be.

[Dindeleux]

Going home for some ski'ing tonight

[Andy C]

I got an XBox with Kinect yesterday. Brilliant being able to voice operate the tv although I've cracked my head on our living room light this morning when playing the boat game with the bairn.
Away to give Fifa12 a wee blast the now but that's a story for another topic...

[smac1968]

Got Xbox 360 and Kinnect as family present from Santa. Really good. Sports and sports 2 are really good. Kinnect adventures came with it, not that good IMHO. Would recommend it to anyone thinking off buying one. You need about 5 to 6 feet of space for it too work right.