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Kinect is $149.99 (£129.99 / €149.99), includes Kinect Adventures - thoughts?

UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
edited October 2010 in Games and Technology
Because the game industry thread isn't the sole realm of gaming news...

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/20/kinect-priced-at-150-includes-kinect-adventures/
The question of Kinect pricing is over ... insomuch as there was any question. As was widely assumed – and widely listed on retailers, from GameStop to Microsoft itself – the Xbox's newfangled motion-sensing camera will retail for $149.99 this fall.

There's also an answer regarding the pricing of Kinect retail software. While most stores have been listing Kinect software for the usual $60 Xbox asking price, Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg told Joystiq, "All of our Kinect retail games, from a first-party standpoint – Kinectimals, Kinect Sports, Kinect Joy Ride – will all be retailing for $49." Microsoft later followed up, letting us know that Dance Central, Harmonix's Kinect-powered rhythm game (and arguably the most well-received title in Microsoft's Kinect launch lineup) will also match the $50 first-party pricing.

That $149.99 hardware price also comes with a copy of Kinect Adventures, the casual title from Microsoft's Good Science Studio, formerly known as SpawnPoint Studios. Microsoft promises that those who pre-order Kinect or the $300 Xbox 360 Kinect Console Bundle "today" will "receive a token to download three exclusive game levels for Kinect Adventures." Before you get to that, why not let us know where you stand in our highly scientific poll?

Update: @AceyBongos (think Major Nelson, but with an accent) just let Twitter know that the European prices are "149.99 Euro for the camera + Kinect Adventures, 299.99 Euro for the 4GB console bundle." Some quick Google math puts those prices at roughly $200 and $390, respectively.

EDIT: You people and your crazy currencies.
The standalone device will retail for £129.99 and will include a copy of Kinect Adventures in the box. In Europe it will cost €149.99 and in the US $149.99.

In addition, a bundle containing Kinect, the game and the new Xbox 360 4GB will retail for £249.99/€299.99/$299.99.

Microsoft has also confirmed that Kinect-only titles will carry an RRP of £39.99 – between £10 and £15 less than ‘proper’ Xbox 360 titles.

What do you think of this? What has Microsoft done well with Kinect, and what could've been handled better? How successful do you think it will be, and will you be buying it personally?

I think the price is too high for what they're offering, but that's only because I know what they're offering. I don't know if parents will have the same knowledge, or if they'll buy into the marketing mentality of a holodeck for your home.

Part of my personal hangup is that I don't feel like I know how well it will work yet. Statements about standing vs. sitting are still vague and up-in-the-air; while I don't doubt that it's possible to take advantage of Kinect while sitting, I don't think it will allow for the full imagined capacity of replacing a standard controller, pulling a trigger on a virtual gun, etc.

And there is a steady stream of demo videos like these (skip to 4:40 to see the software you'll be getting with it):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrRl0CWFv3M&feature=related

I just don't know.

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  • One Thousand CablesOne Thousand Cables An absence of thought Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I'm interested in it, if only for Dance Central. That game looks really fun.

    Everything else? I dunno.

    One Thousand Cables on
  • CouscousCouscous Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    150 dollars is too much. I could get a 360 slim arcade for only 50 dollars more.

    Couscous on
  • LotharsLothars Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I still have no faith in Kinect and for a 150 bucks confirmed, I don't think it's gonna do anything at all. might sell out the initally launch but I don't suspect it will do anything special, it's just to expensive.

    Lothars on
  • belligerentbelligerent Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I'm sorry, Microsoft. I really wanted to get this. But I already have a wii, and I don't use that anymore. I'll wait till after the holidays/reviews of games to see if there are any must have titles, but I just changed the list I'm keeping for Santa Claus.

    belligerent on
  • The Dude With HerpesThe Dude With Herpes Lehi, UTRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Yeah I honestly just can't see the practical application of Kinect for the average gamer.

    I think the wii is about the extent of flailing around that most are willing to put up with.

    I think Kinect would be good for kids or depending on the fidelity of it, disabled gamers; but the price puts it well outside the range at which most kids can get (you can buy a wii for the same price...), and well outside the price range of someone who has a 360 and is just curious.

    Sad to say, I honestly think this is going to fail miserably, and it's going to be a thing that both Nintendo and Sony trumpet from the rooftops every chance they can get, when it does.

    If it comes integrated into their next console, sure. go for it. As a standalone, for that price, this late in this generation?

    Nope. :(

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  • CowSharkCowShark Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I want to Dance Central. I have to keep playing the new Hamronix games.

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  • finnithfinnith ... TorontoRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I don't really see any of these control scheme accessories getting any third-party support, especially not triple-A games. Most publishers are already taking a huge risk by making triple-A games anyways, so restricting your game to a subsection of a subsection of one market seems sort of silly. And it's going to take a while for devs to figure out Kinect.

    That said, I would consider a purchase if enough third-party devs put minor Kinect support into their games, like head-tracking in a shooter game or using the 360 controller as a wheel so you have buttons as well as motion control. The Dance game from Harmonix also seems really promising.

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  • UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Yeah I honestly just can't see the practical application of Kinect for the average gamer.

    I think the wii is about the extent of flailing around that most are willing to put up with.

    Yeah.

    Well, I think when the technology is perfected and we can build a really good 3D skeleton of a person and account for baggy clothes, dresses, etc., if we can make it work demonstrably well under all conditions, then the world will be ready for it. Because we won't need to flail, we'll be able to flop on the couch and shoot people with subtle movements.

    But even then, it's probably a mistake to completely remove hardware from the equation. We need hardware detecting hardware on both ends, primarily because we can disengage from physical controllers, set them down. If you scratch your butt, even with a perfect version of Kinect, what will your avatar decide to do with that movement? Pull a primed grenade from your pocket?

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  • cloudeaglecloudeagle Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I'm glad Microsoft included a pack-in game and was savvy enough to not make it a complete Wii Sports knock-off (like Sony's doing for the Move), but it's still too expensive.

    It also has the problem of not really having compelling software beyond (maybe) Dance Central that'll really convince people this is a different experience from the Wii.

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  • RainbowDespairRainbowDespair Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Kinect will get crazy amounts of 3rd party support if they let XBLIG developers use it. If not, well, we'll just have to see if it sells or not.

    Walmart is doing a special where if you buy the Kinect bundle & a Kinect launch title, you get a $30 gift card.

    RainbowDespair on
  • Wet BanditWet Bandit Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    cloudeagle wrote: »
    It also has the problem of not really having compelling software beyond (maybe) Dance Central that'll really convince people this is a different experience from the Wii.

    Dance Central, Your Shape, and Kinectimals I think are legitimately very good games. The problem is I don't think those alone are worth a whole new multi-hundred dollar thing.

    Wet Bandit on
  • FalkenFalken Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Hey!

    You still don't have a SEGA CD?

    Falken on
  • SynthesisSynthesis Honda Today! Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    People complain that there's not much to be had for $150.....very reasonable, and I agree.

    That being said, if developers are able to utilizes this a few months down the line, different story. Of course, that won't change a weak launch.

    Synthesis on
  • The Dude With HerpesThe Dude With Herpes Lehi, UTRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Yeah I honestly just can't see the practical application of Kinect for the average gamer.

    I think the wii is about the extent of flailing around that most are willing to put up with.

    Yeah.

    Well, I think when the technology is perfected and we can build a really good 3D skeleton of a person and account for baggy clothes, dresses, etc., if we can make it work demonstrably well under all conditions, then the world will be ready for it. Because we won't need to flail, we'll be able to flop on the couch and shoot people with subtle movements.

    But even then, it's probably a mistake to completely remove hardware from the equation. We need hardware detecting hardware on both ends, primarily because we can disengage from physical controllers, set them down. If you scratch your butt, even with a perfect version of Kinect, what will your avatar decide to do with that movement? Pull a primed grenade from your pocket?

    And this is my biggest concern.

    In order to have it not be a flailing machine (which virtually all videos showing it being used seem to imply) it has to have a level of fidelity in its recognition of the user to make simple gestures good enough to do what you want.

    And as you said, if you need to scratch your ass or pick your nose, what will the system make of that? If it is detailed enough to accept slight movements instead of flails, you would have to sit damn near perfectly still in order to have things not flip the fuck out (as we've also seen). And if they limit what it recognizes to very specific gestures that translate into specific actions on-screen then all we have is waggle 2.0.

    I'm just not seeing the middle ground in what the system can accept between flailing and limited recognition.

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  • UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Kinect will get crazy amounts of 3rd party support if they let XBLIG developers use it. If not, well, we'll just have to see if it sells or not.

    That is true, I bet a lot of people will want to get their hands on it just to experiment, even if it doesn't set the world on fire with sales.

    Are you saying it will get a lot of support because you're going to be making those games? :)

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  • cloudeaglecloudeagle Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Wet Bandit wrote: »
    cloudeagle wrote: »
    It also has the problem of not really having compelling software beyond (maybe) Dance Central that'll really convince people this is a different experience from the Wii.

    Dance Central, Your Shape, and Kinectimals I think are legitimately very good games. The problem is I don't think those alone are worth a whole new multi-hundred dollar thing.

    Also that Just Dance, Wii Fit and Nintendogs exist.

    cloudeagle on
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  • RainbowDespairRainbowDespair Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Kinect will get crazy amounts of 3rd party support if they let XBLIG developers use it. If not, well, we'll just have to see if it sells or not.

    That is true, I bet a lot of people will want to get their hands on it just to experiment, even if it doesn't set the world on fire with sales.

    Are you saying it will get a lot of support because you're going to be making those games? :)

    Yeah, part of me wants to get my hands on it just to see if I can make a really cool non-casual game that could only be done with something like Kinect.

    What I'm afraid is going to happen though is that Microsoft will add Kinect functionality to XNA and then the current glut of bad avatar games is going to turn into a glut of bad Kinect avatar games.

    RainbowDespair on
  • UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    cloudeagle wrote: »
    Wet Bandit wrote: »
    cloudeagle wrote: »
    It also has the problem of not really having compelling software beyond (maybe) Dance Central that'll really convince people this is a different experience from the Wii.

    Dance Central, Your Shape, and Kinectimals I think are legitimately very good games. The problem is I don't think those alone are worth a whole new multi-hundred dollar thing.

    Also that Just Dance, Wii Fit and Nintendogs exist.

    I was just going to ask, what's the big difference between these two sets of games? I suppose as an informed gamer you could point at specific things, but how do those impact the nebulous "fun level," or how the public perceives them?

    Just Dance only shows a video of someone dancing and tells you to make some arm movements, and grades you on how closely you matched them. Clearly that's not as exact as what Kinect can do, but does it really matter? People just want an excuse to dance at parties and be graded on their performance.
    Yeah, part of me wants to get my hands on it just to see if I can make a really cool non-casual game that could only be done with something like Kinect.

    What I'm afraid is going to happen though is that Microsoft will add Kinect functionality to XNA and then the current glut of bad avatar games is going to turn into a glut of bad Kinect avatar games.

    Do you have any ideas based on what you've seen it can do? I can understand if you'd want to keep them private, just wondering.

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  • Wet BanditWet Bandit Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    cloudeagle wrote: »
    Wet Bandit wrote: »
    cloudeagle wrote: »
    It also has the problem of not really having compelling software beyond (maybe) Dance Central that'll really convince people this is a different experience from the Wii.

    Dance Central, Your Shape, and Kinectimals I think are legitimately very good games. The problem is I don't think those alone are worth a whole new multi-hundred dollar thing.

    Also that Just Dance, Wii Fit and Nintendogs exist.

    That's what I mean.

    Even though those particular Kinect games are better than those particular Nintendo games, that's all that Kinect really has going for it, and I can't really see that being enough for it to catch on.

    Wet Bandit on
  • SigtyrSigtyr Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    That video..wow.

    And that's the finished product huh?

    Sigtyr on
  • slash000slash000 Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Kinect will get crazy amounts of 3rd party support if they let XBLIG developers use it. If not, well, we'll just have to see if it sells or not.

    That is true, I bet a lot of people will want to get their hands on it just to experiment, even if it doesn't set the world on fire with sales.

    Are you saying it will get a lot of support because you're going to be making those games? :)

    Haha no.

    But just look at how many Avatar games there are on XBLIG.

    If Kinect is open to XBLIG, I guarantee you we'll see a great big flood of games that use it off the bat.

    slash000 on
  • KlykaKlyka DO you have any SPARE BATTERIES?Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    150€?

    Hahahahahahaah.

    Yeah,no,sorry. This thing is dead on arrival.

    Klyka on
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  • skibo8826skibo8826 Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    My thoughts on the Kinect and at this...

    No

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  • ValleoValleo Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Garbage.

    Consoles and their peripherals are just video game delivery devices to me. Until they make a compelling argument in the way of an awesome game that I absolutely need to play, its $150 of completely irrelevant.

    Valleo on
  • RainbowDespairRainbowDespair Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Yeah, part of me wants to get my hands on it just to see if I can make a really cool non-casual game that could only be done with something like Kinect.

    What I'm afraid is going to happen though is that Microsoft will add Kinect functionality to XNA and then the current glut of bad avatar games is going to turn into a glut of bad Kinect avatar games.

    Do you have any ideas based on what you've seen it can do? I can understand if you'd want to keep them private, just wondering.

    No, not really. I mean, I thought some sort of 3D space strategy game might be cool, where you're moving menus and controlling ships with arm motions and shouted commands could be pretty neat, but I haven't actually put much serious thought into it. To be honest, I'm not even sure if I'll bother with Kinect development at all, but it might be fun to mess around with it.

    RainbowDespair on
  • UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Sigtyr wrote: »
    That video..wow.

    And that's the finished product huh?

    Yeah. Here's another one from 5 days ago:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txo6lTfDl-8

    And here's a GAFer's impressions from a quick demo:
    Didn't get to play for long, but here are my impressions.

    They let me play the ball game and almost the river rafting game. I tried to get the guy to hold my iPhone and film me and he just kinda said "No, we were actually specifically told not to do that."

    Okay, so, load up the game and it shows a picture of me and asks me to stand in the silhouette so it can sync. Not a problem. I do and....nothing. The guy looks at me, I look at him, and he says "Oh...your shirt is kind of dark."

    Which, well, it's not. So after some finagling and me going out to my car to grab a bright red hoodie I have in there, it finally worked. So I start the ball game.

    For the first minute or so, it really is minority report but real. It does not feel nearly as floaty as I assumed it would and at times I was getting the kind of precision I'd expect from a Wiimote pointer or even a mouse. Then that kind of goes to hell once you, you know, move. The ball game seemed to only see me on a 2D plane, so the second I stepped forward to hit a ball (dodgeball strategies rushing back!), the game assumed I got way taller for no reason. When I stepped back, my legs desynced and they were literally floating above the ground.

    The guy tried to shift me back to the ideal position, at which point Kinect fixed itself, but for the life of me I saw nothing that would indicate what that position was, save for a black piece of tape on the floor.

    I couldn't tell if it was sensing depth or not. I didn't see a difference in velocity or angle when I'd try to, say, punch a ball down. It just bounced off my fist like I force pushed it back.

    So that was oddly tiring. I wanted to start up the river demo, but the guy said it was time to pack up and it's only really fun with two people, so it would be a waste of my time. I told him fair enough and came back.

    So my overall impressions: If they can repeat that moment of "Wow, this is cool" throughout a gameplay experience, then it will probably be a worthwhile idea. If not, and that is an immensely tall order, then they might have gotten the technology ready without really being prepared to do something with it.

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  • T4CTT4CT BAFTA-NOMINATED NAFTA-APPROVEDRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I was only going to buy it so I could navigate menus with my hands

    if it's costing me $150 I'll just navigate them with the controller thanks

    T4CT on
  • The Dude With HerpesThe Dude With Herpes Lehi, UTRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Sigtyr wrote: »
    That video..wow.

    And that's the finished product huh?

    Yeah. Here's another one from 5 days ago:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txo6lTfDl-8

    And here's a GAFer's impressions from a quick demo:
    Snip.

    That's....just embarrassing.

    What the hell is Microsoft thinking here?

    Between pricing it that high and seeing how poorly it currently works the only thing that comes to mind is that they realize they've got a flop on their hands so they're making the price so absurdly high so they can kill it asap and move on.

    This shit is bizarre.

    I mean, if setting it up and making it behave properly is outside the realm of possibility for your average kid, what you've got is totally worthless.

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  • CouscousCouscous Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Proof it is too expensive:
    custom_1279642602412_kinect_pricing_new.jpg

    custom_1279642607279_kinect_pricing_existing.jpg

    Couscous on
  • The Dude With HerpesThe Dude With Herpes Lehi, UTRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Haha, whoever made that should get fired.

    Even an idiot can see how many things are wrong with that.

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  • Casually HardcoreCasually Hardcore Once an Asshole. Trying to be better. Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Amazing, for $150 I can have my very own Microsoft Wii and play a bunch of gimmicky games that'll involve the same 3 motions.

    No.....

    Casually Hardcore on
  • UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    At least they are being honest in only adding a second player.

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  • Nimble CatNimble Cat Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I played Dance Central at a Microsoft Store about a month ago and watched my brother play Adventures. I could definitely see myself buying Dance Central, but not for $200.

    For what it's worth, I didn't notice any bugs when playing Dance Central, or when watching my brother play Adventures.

    Nimble Cat on
  • The Dude With HerpesThe Dude With Herpes Lehi, UTRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I love how they inexplicably "require" Wii Fit to play Wii mulitplayer.

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  • UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I disagree with adding it, but I could rationalize the balance board as "part of the full package of motion control you need to compete with Kinect®."

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  • KlykaKlyka DO you have any SPARE BATTERIES?Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I disagree with adding it, but I could rationalize the balance board as "part of the full package of motion control you need to compete with Kinect®."

    Yeah,that's how I see it too.

    It's kinda like "if you want to do this,you only need Kinect,but on the Wii you need a balance board too."

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  • CouscousCouscous Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I disagree with adding it, but I could rationalize the balance board as "part of the full package of motion control you need to compete with Kinect®."

    But the Kinect can't weigh you.

    Couscous on
  • LemmingLemming Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Couscous wrote: »
    I disagree with adding it, but I could rationalize the balance board as "part of the full package of motion control you need to compete with Kinect®."

    But the Kinect can't weigh you.

    Sure it can. If it doesn't work then you must be too tall or fat, and therefore weigh, like, a lot.

    Lemming on
  • cloudeaglecloudeagle Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Wait wait wait.

    MICROSOFT made that comparison chart?

    Oy.

    cloudeagle on
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  • UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Also, the tag on the left that says "controller based" and "controller free" as if that distinction proved superiority.

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