Taking on the Wii with Kinect XBox
At last year’s E3, Microsoft debuted a new motion sensing device that would forever change the way the world thinks about motion-sensing devices. The Wii revolutionized the control scheme and made it feasible to use in the mainstream, but the Xbox 360 Kinect fine tunes motion control by not even requiring a controller.
Many people ask themselves why they need the motion control offered by Xbox Kinect when the Wii does the same thing. However, the quality of games available on the Wii is something many people do not consider. The Xbox 360 is a superior system due to it high definition graphics which is something the Wii cannot do. The Wii’s success has not come about by offering a superior gaming experience, but instead, a more family oriented one through multitudes of party games.
The 360 has a ton of great games, but most are aimed at the core gamer, someone who enjoys first person shooters or hardcore role-playing games. The Xbox LIVE Arcade has opened the platform to a more casual audience, but the Kinect will take this further by opening the device to the Wii audience. Several of the Kinect games that will be available at launch mirror Wii titles, but with the improved Kinect control scheme, it is clear Microsoft will have an advantage over the Wii on its own playing field.
A good example of this imitation is Microsoft’s Fitness Evolved game, which mimics Wii Fit. However, unlike the Wii version, the Kinect game does not require any controls, and all actions performed for the game are actually done by you, so jumping, boxing, and other activities need to actually be performed instead of swiping your arms or standing on a balance board. There are other Wii imitations too, as Joy Ride is clearly the answer to Mario Kart Wii. Kinectimals is Microsoft’s answer to virtual pet games like Nintendogs, featuring such exotic pets as lions and tigers.
The main drawback to owning a Wii is the graphics processing power is simply not up to snuff when compared to both the 360 and the Playstation 3. The clear advantage in this situation was the motion control scheme that many people enjoy, however with both Microsoft and Sony stepping into this territory, the Nintendo Wii is fast losing its value as a primary gaming console. Instead, it is being replaced by Microsoft Kinect, a device that does motion control so much better than Nintendo.
The Microsoft Kinect debuted as Project Natal at last year’s E3, but this year it was dubbed Kinect and received a generous showing. Microsoft has a clearly innovative product that will overshadow the Wii in just a few months time after release, since many of the titles are nearly identical and offer much better functionality than the original version on Wii.
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