Kinect Changes Nothing.

Kinect, it's everywhere, I can't step into a game store without the words "have you pre-ordered yours yet?" hitting me with a condescending tone. With every poster, advert and overly pushy sales person I can see Microsoft's $500m ticking away, like coal on the fire of ignorant consumerism.

There's something very dirty about the marketing for Kinect, as if the boundary between the manufacturer and consumer has broken down, making it look almost like Microsoft is paying the consumer to buy their product. This is made even more sickening by the fact that 99% of pre-orders are by people who have never actually played on it. Add to this a ridiculous review embargo and it makes me think MS have something to be ashamed of and, maybe, they do. Everything from the TV ads with little to no actual game footage to staged circus showings are all threads in the metaphorical wool that MS are pulling over the general publics eyes. It's a very sad day when an unproven, laggy, twitch-filled, limited piece of tech like Kinect can be sold on mass with nothing but sheer force of money.

Not only that but MS have made some outrageous claims, which, to my utter disbelief, a lot of people have just swallowed e.g:

Kinect is "next generation experience now" - Aaron Greenberg
http://n4g.com/news/568613/...

"Biggest platform launch in history" - Microsoft Game Studios VP Bill Spencer
http://n4g.com/news/636257/...

"Biggest Innovation In 20 Years" - Peter Molyneux
http://n4g.com/news/588688/...

The last one is my favorite, it's downright laughable when you consider what has come along in the last 20 years: HD graphics, wireless controllers/internet, Online gaming, 3D, 7.1 surround sound, dual analogue sticks, rumble etc.

OK this is probably starting to sound like another Kinect hate-rant but I am coming to my point soon, honestly. Also, unlike a lot of the haters, I HAVE tried Kinect out and in more depth than most. I compare it to the first time you walked past an electronics store and saw yourself in the TV. At first it seems really fun and has you dancing and pulling faces and such but it soon wears thin (unless you're really narcissistic) and you move on. Admittedly the media functionality would be handy but also has its limits (text/number input?) and sometimes(most times) it's just easier to press a button.

This is where I explain the title (finally) and give my prediction/opinion on the impact Kinect will have on gaming. As far as 'controllerless' gaming is concerned Kinect doesn't bring much new to the table. Depth tracking is only useful, in gaming, if it is accurate enough to allow developers to do something interesting with it. For example when playing Playstation Moves' Tumble you can reach into the screen with pinpoint accuracy to 'thread' the onscreen controller though a small hoop. When testing out Kinect I thought it would be good to see if I could do the same, albeit with an imaginary hoop. Turns out you can't, it picked up my depth OK but the onscreen avatar twitched so much that I couldn't be sure that I would hit the same spot twice, like trying to find a keyhole in the dark... with a jellyfish. I left dissapointed and I'm pretty sure that's how most GAMERS will feel come launch day.

It's this dissapointing feeling that makes me believe that the MASSIVE hype surrounding this device will come crashing down on top of it when people realize it's limitations. I'm not arguing Kinects worth to a casual non- gamer but, for the real gamers out there, it changes nothing, there will always be alternatives as long as we are here to demand it, even if we have to buy a different console. 'Core' games will never disappear for good as long as we chose to play what we WANT to play and not what is thrust in our faces by Oprah.

Down with casual shovelware, long live the gamers!

[dc1]

The Kinect launch figures will be tremendous.
We will all have to wait to see if the product will sell itself once the financial and marketing push subsides. Not the end of gaming.. just another option for the casual market.

With that said..
I'm going to make a conscious effort to read the "blogs" more often (360 & PS3 base).

[PostApocalyptic]

Nothing.

The whole idea of controller-less motion tracking is a fail. There is nothing immersive about it since you remove the whole idea of force feedback or tactile response. You lose the sense of actually feeling an object in your hand whether it be a wand, sword, or gun.

The initial reaction that people have regarding hand and body tracking is a novelty. Once you use it for a few hours the allure wears off since it's nothing more than a prototype gimmick minus any of the tactile feedback you'd get from normal controller based motion systems.

The games will be limited to the lag oriented casual games, yet the casual consumers that buy it on impulse will start to learn the annoyances of the device once they get it home and use it for a few hours or days. That's when reality will hit them that they just wasted $150 for a paper weight.

As far as hardcore gamers? The only they are interested in is the voice and menu system. But that's it. Forget about hardcore games. It just becomes a side-tech.

[darthv72]

I would suggest you step outside of n4g and go looking for something. Track down the multitude of marketing ads for the various consoles and peripherals from generations past. Then come back here and address us with a summary of the information you have found.

You will be amazed at how much more OTHER consoles/accessories had portrayed themselves to be capable of doing. More so than even Kinect. Marketing is the key to a "successful" product. Successful in the sense that it sells and makes the shareholders $$. Not in the sense that it actually works as described.

There is to much one dimensional thinking with a two dimensional view of a three dimensional world.

The last part really has nothing to do with my comment. I just like the sound of it.

[PostApocalyptic]

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

You said,

"Marketing is the key to a "successful" product. Successful in the sense that it sells and makes the shareholders $$. Not in the sense that it actually works as described."

No, marketing helps an already solid technology. But if there aren't enough software to support the "claims" of said marketing then it wont matter how much marketing you pile on the product it will struggle to sell. Word of mouth will be the bane of the Kinect. So, brisk "marketed" sales will generate the people that will actually turn on the product; buyers remorse.

Remember, Sony has marketed their Move as an improved hardcore/casual motion controlling device.

Microsoft has marketed their Kinect as "Minority Report" in the home!

Now, which one + marketing + reality is more prone to failing so much to the promise that even the best PR marketing can't save it? Do you understand now? Sooner or later you have to call BS when you see it.

This is the same problem that Zune, MSN, .NET and Tablet PC suffered from. Marketing promises and hype which never delivered those promises. Even in light of the billions of dollars M$ poured into those projects.

[darthv72]

but it really doesnt help your argument. Watching a video of the worst consoles means nothing when it comes to the entire history of console gaming. Why have there been consoles who have succeeded when clearly inferior to others? Why have there been marketing campaigns that failed? Why are there ones that worked?

There are so many pieces of this puzzle worth finding just to become more knowledgeable of the history of gaming in general. 2600 vs colecovision. NES vs Mastersystem etc. Advertising, word of mouth, now the internet.

Its all marketing and having the right content to show off. It isnt just limited to gaming mind you. I wish I could get a hamburger that looked like it does on tv from the same vendor.

Its funny you bring up MS related goods/services. Sony makes a line of MP3 players under the walkman brand. That is a brand name certainly more synonymous with portable music than any other brand. Zune is an excellent portable media device. I dont know what kind of promises were made for that but I am certainly satisfied with mine.

MSN, .NET, tablet PC...um, what exactly is an IPad again?

I think you are trying to read to much into something that clearly doesnt define your generation of entertainment. It is quite ironic how acceptance of one does not correlate to another.

The Wii was panned until it became a hit and still panned until move comes along. Its ok for move but not for wii. Now we have kinect and its flat out pure 10 times the hatred that wii received and its just an accessory.

I dont know if you are trying to educate the consumers or hide it from yourself at the potential change this generation is bringing. Since 1979 I have played games the traditional way. I welcome change. I like the wii, i like the move, I am sure i will like the kinect.

[-Alpha]

"It's this dissapointing feeling that makes me believe that the MASSIVE hype surrounding this device will come crashing down on top of it when people realize it's limitations"

I don't know if this is true. Yes, the limitations are evident, but I don't think the Kinect market will be aware to care.

Because when I see Kinect I don't see it through the N4G/internet gaming community perspective. You have to detach yourself from this because Kinect is detached from this too. Kinect is a casual product. It's a product that isn't meant for us, as evident by the marketing and thematic push MS is giving it.

However, in our Internet Gaming Community, Kinect is largely scoffed. Even the hardcore 360 fanboys speak of how well it will sell, but never about their experiences or their intentions with the product.

I think Kinect has the potential to alter a lot for MS. I won't be surprised if the 360 widens its gap with this thing. It's significant. Not to me, but to Microsoft definitely. This is my problem. I find that they are so over-invested in it that I don't see a good future for the MS that I would expect something from.

I don't think the Kinect market will see the hype "come crashing down". I don't think they care. I don't see them going on the internet to give us their opinion on the future of the 360 or where the industry is headed. That world doesn't exist to them.

They buy the product and they either love it or hate it, or get tired of it. I can't really scold them for that, but I do resent the path MS is taking and I am aware that this new audience is going to take them there.

[PostApocalyptic]

Well, that's just it. They, being the casuals, that end up loving it at first start to get tired of it later when they actually get it home and play it for a few hours.

All this talk about "Minority Report" is like advertising for a James Bond like car with machine guns, missile turret, waterproof submarine ability, oil slick, and mines. Then you get the car home and it's just a regular car.

Let down.

[-Alpha]

"Well, that's just it. They, being the casuals, that end up loving it at first start to get tired of it later when they actually get it home and play it for a few hours."

And how do you know this?

Perhaps they enjoy buying titles every so often, who is to say that they aren't entitled to being gamers in that way?

[baasa36]

a summery of what was said. THE KINECT WILL TURN THE XBOX360 INTO THE NEW WII

[xXxSeTTriPxXx]

^^ can you give me an example of how a deep mech game is going to work on kinect?...what gesture do you us for shooting and switching inventory?

whats the gesture for walking, sprinting etc?

or is it just going to be a steamlined rail shooter, with dumded down gameplay?

[coolbeans]

"Give me an example of how a deep mech game is going to work on kinect?"

How can anyone give you examples when the product hasn't even released yet?

To be fair, it's safer to wait on some gameplay vids before assuming it's going to be an on-rails shooter.

[RedSky]

I checked Molyneux's claim. He didn't say it was the biggest innovation in 20 years, he said it was the "biggest innovation to hit the GAMES INDUSTRY in the last 20 years". Not that that's any more true but there's a distinction.

[The-Tentacle]

Fixed ;)

[DelbertGrady]

"There's something very dirty about the marketing for Kinect"

Not as dirty as this: http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[Tuxedo_Mask]

Thank you for sharing that, I've never seen it before and it's so bad it's good, but I doubt Sony spent as much money on that as Microsoft is spending on Kinect's advertising. If they did though it was money well spent!

[edgeofblade]

Yay... counterhype.

[Milky]

Who is actually buying Kinect? The press is saying its sold out everywhere but I haven't actually seen anything about it here in the UK, no signs or promotions in any of the high street stores near me(unlike the Wii which had a lot more advertisement by retailers at launch). I am skeptical that it is selling as well as Microsoft is trying to make out, the kinect sensor is currently 114 in the PC and Video Games bestsellers rank on Amazon UK. At the moment it doesn't seem like its selling out any time soon...

[Raf1k1]

I've seen plenty of promotions for Kinect here in West Yorkshire but nothing more than what you usually get for a game like CoD. In the US it's a completely different story. The US I think has the largest 360 install base and is where most of the money is being spent to market Kinect.

[Dnied]

good post.. sums up my thoughts anyway lol

[Killed4Less]

Your post would mean so much more if you were actually a concerned 360 gamer. But you are just yet another PS3 zealot crying about a device because it's not on your platform of choice. Mask it however you want..

Where is your rant against GARBAGE like Start the Party, TV Superstar, Kung-Fu Rider and the absolute pile of sh*t that makes up most of the Move titles?

Your history of trolling Kinect and the Xbox in general here has killed any idea that you looking at this from a non-biased perspective.

The outrageous claims are all part of marketing and hyping the product. And you need to stop pretending you have even the slightest idea of how this product will be used and it's level of accuracy and how developers can apply it new games.

And last but not least IT IS A OPTION! Nobody is forcing you to buy it, as if you would but you can tell you've already ran out and bought the Move. Even after Wii/motion games were proclaimed to be the death of the core when the Wii launched.

Nah, you might have some valid concerns but it is overstated greatly.

[DJMarty]

May sell, with 500 million behind it.

Brain washed sheep, will buy into MS lies.

1.It's new, nope = EyeToy says hi, done 7 years prior.

2.Controller free gaming using a camera is new, nope = EyeToy says hi, done 7 years prior.

But if it don't work, expect returns to be high.

Limited use without BUTTONS, doesn't help.

Pew Pew Pew. says it all. LOL

[darthv72]

You still holding on to the "who did it first" way of thinking.

In business, it isnt about who did it first. It's about who can sells it better. AMD beat Intel to the coveted 1000MHz and yet Intel is the one more people know and love.

This camera may do things eyetoy did first but it also does things it cant. Like be backed by a major marketing campaign from MS. Believe me, if Sony had the $$ to throw behind eyetoy 7 years ago, it would have been given the support it deserved.

Pew Pew Pew is right...old ways of thinking sure stinks.

[JonnyBigBoss]

Good post. Kinect really shouldn't be on the 360. I have no idea what Microsoft is thinking.

[Incipio]

Fantastic blog post. Good read, good points.