Microsoft Kinect

Thursday at lunch I picked up Microsoft's new motion sensor for the Xbox 360 called "Kinect". In it's developement stage this was called "Project Natal" a bit before launch the name was changed to "Kinect". My guess is that Project Natal didn't mean anything to the average person and was not as marketable as Kinect.

This allows the "gamer" to interact and control games without the use of a controller. Unlike the Wii and Playstation 3's "Move", you need nothing in your hand. It is very cool! It is really the stuff science fiction is made of. You can control menus on the Xbox 360 with the wave of a hand or use voice command. Start, stop movies and control Xbox with hand gestures or voice commands. "Kinect" employs cameras, mics and a motorized base for the sensor all in one neat little package. It comes packaged with a game called "Kinect Adventures" which is a lot of fun for parties, kids and adults alike.

The whole package is futuristic and way cool for us tech guys who love this sort of stuff. Now, the casual gamer can play a game on the Xbox 360 and not be intimidated by a controller. My wife LOVES the bowling on Kinect Sports. You reach your arm out to the right or left and a virtual ball is put in your hand. Then you swing your arm and if preferred take a step and let the virtual ball go. It travels down the alley and strikes the pins. You can even put spin on the ball, control it's speed and obviously and most importantly the balls direction. My wife was comfortable with it the first time she played it.

I bought a fitness game, racing game, sports game and have the "Kinect Adventures" game that came with the "Kinect" bundle. There is no question that this will be a hit. If you can afford it, run don't walk to your nearest Best Buy, Game Stop, Walmart, Target...etc. and grab one of these. You and your family will love it!