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

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  • King RiptorKing Riptor Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Yeah, a lot of lag, not precise at all.

    This would do badly against the wii alone, even if sony wasn't also releasing their upgraded clone at the same time.

    I like to think of the Sony Lolipop as less of an upgrade and more of a Bizarro clone.

    It's similar but oddly off putting and not quite right.

    King Riptor on
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  • Fizban140Fizban140 Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
    edited July 2010
    I just hate brutally excessive hype-mongering by empty suits trying to sell something of which they have only the most tenuous grasp.
    Seriously? Nearly every single thing advertised...ever...in all of history...fits that description.

    Fizban140 on
  • randombattlerandombattle Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Fizban140 wrote: »
    I just hate brutally excessive hype-mongering by empty suits trying to sell something of which they have only the most tenuous grasp.
    Seriously? Nearly every single thing advertised...ever...in all of history...fits that description.

    It's not like there has been any other add on pieces of tech designed to extend a console's life in the 150 dollar range.. Right? At least I don't remember any...

    randombattle on
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  • Zoku GojiraZoku Gojira Monster IslandRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Fizban140 wrote: »
    I just hate brutally excessive hype-mongering by empty suits trying to sell something of which they have only the most tenuous grasp.
    Seriously? Nearly every single thing advertised...ever...in all of history...fits that description.

    A modest proportion drown out the rest, while fine products are unjustly overlooked because the publisher/manufacturer either invested too little in their marketing, or didn't make an effort to understand their target audience and so made a half-hearted commitment.

    So instead of 1v100, we get Kinectimals.

    Zoku Gojira on
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  • BroktuneBroktune Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I doubt they're banking on gulling stupid kids into buying it.

    Especially because it's a $150 addon to a $300 system.

    Unless their market is kids who happen to be drug dealers on the side.

    Heh, well my kid's already named the fucking tiger that I have to buy this thing for. She saw a commercial and that was that. She's six. So I guess I was basing my thinking on my own situation...being that some gamers have kids these days and if they are willing to dish out a couple hundred every few months on their own games, what's another 150 for something the whole family can get into? I'll have impressions when it comes out.

    Broktune on
  • The EnderThe Ender Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Kinect is going to be another 32X.

    150 bones for a junk psuedo-wii that doesn't have an existing library of games. GEE WHIZ WILL PEOPLE BUY A 360 + KINECT OR JUST A WII?


    Honestly, if MS really wanted to go this route, they should've released the Kinect as a stand-alone console - maybe one that could optionally interface with the 360. That would've done okay (not great, because the Wii is entrenched already and the Kinect's interfacing isn't as nice as the Wii's).

    The Ender on
    With Love and Courage
  • LBD_NytetraynLBD_Nytetrayn TorontoRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I'm as interested in this as I ever was... just not interested in paying that much, certainly.

    LBD_Nytetrayn on
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  • KlykaKlyka DO you have any SPARE BATTERIES?Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I would really like to try it out. Just that at least.
    Then MAYBE in the future,when it's a bit cheaper and there is something I actually want to play with it, I will get one. And shout XBOX! TRANSFORM AND ROLL OUT!

    Klyka on
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  • Fatty McBeardoFatty McBeardo Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I would only buy one if there were a killer app.

    I'm genuinely concerned about what happens next if Kinect flops. Microsoft spent $Texas on this thing. They spent millions alone on deciding what to name it. There have been articles about MSFT facing internal and external pressure to kill or absorb the entertainment division. If Kinect fails it really puts the future of Microsoft as a console maker into doubt, IMO.

    Fatty McBeardo on
  • The EnderThe Ender Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I would only buy one if there were a killer app.

    I'm genuinely concerned about what happens next if Kinect flops. Microsoft spent $Texas on this thing. They spent millions alone on deciding what to name it. There have been articles about MSFT facing internal and external pressure to kill or absorb the entertainment division. If Kinect fails it really puts the future of Microsoft as a console maker into doubt, IMO.

    Well, you reap what you sow. The entertainment division at MS should've known better than to create a prohibitively expensive add-on that very few gamers would be interested in. If they wanted to appeal to folks who don't really think of themselves as gamers (and, as such, don't own 360 consoles), they shouldn't have released the thing as an add-on.

    Certainly not as a $150.00 one.


    that being said, XBox Live is a pretty nice cash cow, so I don't see MS's entertainment division going under from Kinect's impending flop. A lot of folks will probably get laid off (and a lot of them probably will not have had a whole lot of decision making power), and that always sucks, but I can't see MS just throwing in the towel after one failure. I mean, look at all of the peripherals that Nintendo spent all kinds of money on back in the day that just totally flopped (Power Glove, anyone? Maybe that's a better comparison than the 32X).

    The Ender on
    With Love and Courage
  • UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I think it'll sell just well enough that they'll be able to try and rationalize it as being decent. I guess you can't hide development costs from your own company, but they can spin a few million sales as being in line with other expensive peripherals like Rock Band which is of course considered a success story.
    The Ender wrote: »
    I mean, look at all of the peripherals that Nintendo spent all kinds of money on back in the day that just totally flopped (Power Glove, anyone? Maybe that's a better comparison than the 32X).

    The Power Glove was all Mattel.

    UncleSporky on
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  • The EnderThe Ender Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    The Power Glove was all Mattel.

    Oh.

    The Ender on
    With Love and Courage
  • Jam WarriorJam Warrior Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I'm torn. The part of me that sees this is an expensive waste of time is all snarky and wants to revel in the shadenfreude as it goes belly up, whereas the more philisophical side sees amazing future possibilities for the tech and fears it being sent out to die too early means it'll never get pushed to the point where it becomes something I do want in my life.

    Jam Warrior on
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  • KlykaKlyka DO you have any SPARE BATTERIES?Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I'm torn. The part of me that sees this is an expensive waste of time is all snarky and wants to revel in the shadenfreude as it goes belly up, whereas the more philisophical side sees amazing future possibilities for the tech and fears it being sent out to die too early means it'll never get pushed to the point where it becomes something I do want in my life.

    Hey Jam, are you my long lost twin?
    You can't be,you liked using lances :P

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  • The EnderThe Ender Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I'm torn. The part of me that sees this is an expensive waste of time is all snarky and wants to revel in the shadenfreude as it goes belly up, whereas the more philisophical side sees amazing future possibilities for the tech and fears it being sent out to die too early means it'll never get pushed to the point where it becomes something I do want in my life.

    I can't see any super amusing future possibilities for Kinect technology. Controllers are just better; there's the immediacy of your motions being translated into what's happening in the game world that just isn't there with movement capture technology, there's the ability to program in game functions that just don't have intuitive body motions (what's the body gesture for zooming in with a sniper rifle? what's the body gesture for going to your inventory screen? what's the body gesture for changing your job class? etc), there's the fact that the game controller is a much friendlier interface than a camera that expects you to flail around with exaggerated gestures when you've come home from work and just want to veg out on the couch, etc.


    It's just a dumb gimmick.

    The Ender on
    With Love and Courage
  • ValleoValleo Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    When I first heard of this, the first thing I thought of was that scene in The Island where Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson were fighting the air and their holographic avatars were kicking each others asses. If I remember, it even had an X Box logo on the holographic fighter machine. That could be cool.

    You could even sell a related game where some famous martial artist teaches you how to fight. I think a Kinect game where Chuck Norris teaches you how to fight (using Kinect to track if you're doing it right) and shouts instructions at you would be pretty cool as well.

    Valleo on
  • ghost_master2000ghost_master2000 Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    The Ender wrote: »
    I'm torn. The part of me that sees this is an expensive waste of time is all snarky and wants to revel in the shadenfreude as it goes belly up, whereas the more philisophical side sees amazing future possibilities for the tech and fears it being sent out to die too early means it'll never get pushed to the point where it becomes something I do want in my life.

    I can't see any super amusing future possibilities for Kinect technology. Controllers are just better; there's the immediacy of your motions being translated into what's happening in the game world that just isn't there with movement capture technology, there's the ability to program in game functions that just don't have intuitive body motions (what's the body gesture for zooming in with a sniper rifle? what's the body gesture for going to your inventory screen? what's the body gesture for changing your job class? etc), there's the fact that the game controller is a much friendlier interface than a camera that expects you to flail around with exaggerated gestures when you've come home from work and just want to veg out on the couch, etc.


    It's just a dumb gimmick.

    I wouldn't say it's the kinect technology that's the issue here. I'd say it's more the processing power that's available that's limiting. If, for instance, kinect was hooked up to a machine that had a 1 Terahertz processor it could be comparable or better than a physical controller simply because the machine could analyze all the data supplied to it by kinect, and translate that into something usable much faster, and more reliably than the 360 ever would be able to. You could probably have 1:1 movement for every joint in your body with that kind of power.

    I mean, the drop in functionality from the removal of the additional processor alone is pretty profound. One of the first demos of it involved you sitting down to drive in Burnout Paradise, but now it doesn't even work a lot of the time standing up.

    I'd have much rather paid $250-$300 for the thing if they had kept the processor, and maybe beefed up the resolution on the IR camera and/or beefed up the processor.

    ghost_master2000 on
  • fragglefartfragglefart Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Good point.

    They probably shoulda kept the processor and sold for $150.

    Or dropped it and sold for $100.

    fragglefart on
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  • The WolfmanThe Wolfman Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    The Ender wrote: »
    I'm torn. The part of me that sees this is an expensive waste of time is all snarky and wants to revel in the shadenfreude as it goes belly up, whereas the more philisophical side sees amazing future possibilities for the tech and fears it being sent out to die too early means it'll never get pushed to the point where it becomes something I do want in my life.

    I can't see any super amusing future possibilities for Kinect technology. Controllers are just better; there's the immediacy of your motions being translated into what's happening in the game world that just isn't there with movement capture technology, there's the ability to program in game functions that just don't have intuitive body motions (what's the body gesture for zooming in with a sniper rifle? what's the body gesture for going to your inventory screen? what's the body gesture for changing your job class? etc), there's the fact that the game controller is a much friendlier interface than a camera that expects you to flail around with exaggerated gestures when you've come home from work and just want to veg out on the couch, etc.


    It's just a dumb gimmick.

    There's nothing inherently wrong with the technology. Most everyone has been saying how this tech would be fantastic for real-world use. Computer use, user interface stuff, things like that. There are hundreds of practical uses this thing could have.

    As a video game controller used to slay the dragon, or shoot the bad guys though? Yeah, you're probably right, it's a gimmick that will likely fall flat, especially at that price.

    The Wolfman on
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  • UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I think what it really needs is a secondary camera so that it can triangulate and/or have a true 3D view of the body. We've seen the blobby view it has in software like the fitness game, another camera could easily fix that and provide a more accurate model to work with.

    However...
    I wouldn't say it's the kinect technology that's the issue here. I'd say it's more the processing power that's available that's limiting. If, for instance, kinect was hooked up to a machine that had a 1 Terahertz processor it could be comparable or better than a physical controller simply because the machine could analyze all the data supplied to it by kinect, and translate that into something usable much faster, and more reliably than the 360 ever would be able to. You could probably have 1:1 movement for every joint in your body with that kind of power.

    Who cares? What are you planning to do with that impressive big toe-bending detection? The flared nostril detection? Do we really want games where "raise eyebrow" is the button press that means "make snarky comment?" Do we want fighting games where you have to actually mime the actions you want your character to do? Or in the absence of that, do we want any games where you simply pretend to hold a controller and it detects button presses based on finger wiggles? Why waste our tech on that when there's a much more natural solution?

    That's the biggest problem, everything is still just a button press. While we have the raw power to detect movements and react to that data, we don't have the intelligence to use it in a fun, natural way.

    You've got to be kidding about it being better than a physical controller. We need a physical piece of hardware talking to another physical piece of hardware. Something like Kinect can have useful functionality, but it has to supplement a normal, reliable user interface. Just now I scratched my neck while I was typing and I am really glad that nothing stupid happened like increasing the zoom level on the browser.

    UncleSporky on
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  • Jam WarriorJam Warrior Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Do we really want games where "raise eyebrow" is the button press that means "make snarky comment?"

    Oh God yes we do!

    Jam Warrior on
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  • PacifistPacifist Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I'm interested to see how Kinect gets implemented into big games like the new Forza or COD on top of the silly stuff like dancing and miisports. If the Track IR5 can get away with being $130 and that only reads your head then the Kinect would actually be a damn good deal so long as it's accurate.

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  • a puddlea puddle Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    The Ender wrote: »
    The Power Glove was all Mattel.

    Oh.

    The Power glove isn't really a fair comparison.

    Microsoft isn't going to make a movie to advertise it. And no one in this not-made movie is going to say, "I love the Kinect. It's so bad!"

    a puddle on
  • Doctor DetroitDoctor Detroit Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    While the pricing does seem a little rich for my blood, I think I can see the reasoning, mainly that I think I'm in the target demographic for Kinect. I only have a 360, my wife talks about wanting Wii Fit, and I have a 3 year old. So I can shell out $300+ for a Wii and assorted peripherals, or I can spend half that (Or 2/3 that, adding in the Wii Fit clone).

    Anyone want to place odds on a Wii price drop this holiday season? $150 Kinect vs $150 Wii is a much more interesting choice.

    Doctor Detroit on
  • UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I think with the Wii's currently solid library of games vs. the small set that Kinect has which are of unknown quality, made for a device with a dubious future...it just seems like the Wii might be a wiser choice. It opens up a whole new realm of console exclusives, while Kinect is starting from square one and doesn't look to be getting off on the right foot.

    Using Microsoft's own comparison charts, for that $300+ you get three games instead of one, four games if you get that second controller with Wii Play. And while the balance board isn't a perfect gauge of fitness/health, it's still more accurate than anything Kinect can do. Kinect can't weigh you.

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  • LunkerLunker Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I think with the Wii's currently solid library of games vs. the small set that Kinect has which are of unknown quality, made for a device with a dubious future...it just seems like the Wii might be a wiser choice. It opens up a whole new realm of console exclusives, while Kinect is starting from square one and doesn't look to be getting off on the right foot.

    Using Microsoft's own comparison charts, for that $300+ you get three games instead of one, four games if you get that second controller with Wii Play. And while the balance board isn't a perfect gauge of fitness/health, it's still more accurate than anything Kinect can do. Kinect can't weigh you.

    But Wii Fit can't tell you if you're holding your arms in the right position, either. I got to see a live demo of Your Shape, and it's actually pretty impressive. If the yoga parts of Wii Fit are commendable for attempting to keep your balance on par, Your Shape goes a step further in the "making sure you're doing things correctly and not injuring yourself" category. Things like this:

    features-side-image.gif?1277921119

    And it does track calories, plus I remember people saying that BMI wasn't really all that great of a stat to use in the first place. Don't get me wrong; I still think it's foolhardy to try and out-casual the Wii, and anyone who thinks Microsoft is interested in taking Kinect further than a flailing machine for the first nine months or so is fooling themselves. But I think Your Shape is actually pretty good, if you're interested in a legit workout program.

    EDIT: I did also get to try Kinect Adventures, and the river raft game is as vapid and shallow as it looks on video, don't worry. :P I think it's kind of a shoddy pack-in title—something like Kinectimals or the Wii Sports knockoff would have been better, IMO.

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  • apotheosapotheos Registered User, ClubPA regular
    edited July 2010
    Broktune wrote: »
    ...what's another 150 for something the whole family can get into?

    An opportunity to teach the family about fiscal responsibility?

    apotheos on


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  • UbuRoiAAUbuRoiAA Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Is it bad if I only want to get it so I can yell lazily from my couch for my Xbox to start up?

    150 seems pricey but I did pay 110 for DJ Hero, so...

    UbuRoiAA on
  • Mr_GrinchMr_Grinch Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Bit of a reaction here if it hasn't been posted:

    http://www.mcvuk.com/news/40090/Lewis-defends-Kinect-RRP
    “Look at our pricing versus what we’ve seen from Sony,” he insisted. “If we take their US Move details for example – obviously we’ve not seen their Move price-points for EMEA – but we expect Move will cost €150. But when you look at a two player Move experience, we think we will be around €150 less for the equivalent two-player experience.”

    Is move massively expensive over in the states? Here in the UK there are stores doing the wand + ps eye for £40, then Toys r Us are doing the navigation stick for £22.99. I can't find the wand separate at the moment so let's say you get two bundles. I'll up the prices a little too to represent rrp a little better, so put the wand bundle at £50 and the sticks at £25.

    2 * PSEye + Wand = £100
    2 * Navigation Sticks = £50

    Total = £150

    Ok that's £20 over Kinnect but that's over estimating AND buying two bundles. I'm not sure where the $150 cheaper comes from...

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  • ZiggymonZiggymon Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Mr_Grinch wrote: »
    Bit of a reaction here if it hasn't been posted:

    http://www.mcvuk.com/news/40090/Lewis-defends-Kinect-RRP
    “Look at our pricing versus what we’ve seen from Sony,” he insisted. “If we take their US Move details for example – obviously we’ve not seen their Move price-points for EMEA – but we expect Move will cost €150. But when you look at a two player Move experience, we think we will be around €150 less for the equivalent two-player experience.”

    Is move massively expensive over in the states? Here in the UK there are stores doing the wand + ps eye for £40, then Toys r Us are doing the navigation stick for £22.99. I can't find the wand separate at the moment so let's say you get two bundles. I'll up the prices a little too to represent rrp a little better, so put the wand bundle at £50 and the sticks at £25.

    2 * PSEye + Wand = £100
    2 * Navigation Sticks = £50

    Total = £150

    Ok that's £20 over Kinnect but that's over estimating AND buying two bundles. I'm not sure where the $150 cheaper comes from...

    He is probably trying to include the price of the consoles its-self. You know when a PR bloke is instead of trying to tell consumers why kinect is so good, he is trying to convince others the competition is more expensive that you know whatever is coming out of his mouth is bullshit.

    Ziggymon on
  • PolloDiabloPolloDiablo Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    If you don't have a PS3, but you already have a few 360s, you can play kinect cheaper than you could play move. Plus, if you're getting a PS3, you might as well go for a 3DTV too, right?

    Obviously, kinect is the much better and more affordable option.

    PolloDiablo on
  • LunkerLunker Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    My favorite price chart was always Giant Bomb's Delicious Ham Sandwich one from January 2009:
    855758-xboxisfornerds.png

    Lunker on
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  • FiggyFiggy Fighter of the night man Champion of the sunRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I was playing games like this eight years ago on my webcam. That video makes it look so damn gimmicky. I knew it. I like where the guy can't do shit all once Adventures loads and the girl has to come in and help.

    100336848_d905fff87a.jpg?v=0

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  • DeadfallDeadfall I don't think you realize just how rich he is. In fact, I should put on a monocle.Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    On the topic of the Milo thing.....

    Granted I don't know much about it, save for what I've seen in small videos. But if they made some sort of update of Seaman, I'd be considering it so hard.

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  • PolloDiabloPolloDiablo Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I thought Milo wasn't real and is never coming out.

    PolloDiablo on
  • DeadfallDeadfall I don't think you realize just how rich he is. In fact, I should put on a monocle.Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Aw. Farewell dreams of Seaman.

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  • UncleSporkyUncleSporky Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I bet Milo is a prequel to Seaman.

    That can both be interpreted in a horrible way if read plainly or in a cool way if you know the story revealed at the end of Seaman.

    UncleSporky on
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  • FiggyFiggy Fighter of the night man Champion of the sunRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Deadfall wrote: »
    Aw. Farewell wet dreams of Seaman.

    Figgy on
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  • DratatooDratatoo Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Kinect is going to be another 32X.

    The Xbox already had one of those, HD-DVD drive. So that makes the Kinect the Sega CD? :P

    Edit:

    And I hate the european rape tax: $149.99 != €149.99

    Dratatoo on
  • The EnderThe Ender Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Dratatoo wrote: »
    Kinect is going to be another 32X.

    The Xbox already had one of those, HD-DVD drive. So that makes the Kinect the Sega CD? :P

    Y'know, I keep forgetting about the HD-DVD drive. My brother bought one just a week before the announcements went out that HD was being discontinued.


    I was amused. Him, not so much.

    The Ender on
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