Cool News
A Look At HARRY POTTER FOR KINECT For The XBOX 360!!
I'm a huge believer in the potential of Kinect for XBOX - although I don't feel it has completely found its footing yet. It excels as a UI control / voice activated device, and a few select games (the highly uneven KINECT STAR WARS, for example) hint tantalizingly at Kinect's ultimate potential. I do feel Kinect is far more than the mere "novelty" some folks profess it to be...I truly think there is tremendous potential here, and believe that said potential is nothing short of wondrous. I just don't think it's "there yet." As a result, many Kinect games don't fee as fully realized as they otherwise might...resulting in product which often feel more like a demo or tease than fully developed releases. Word is the upcoming next generation XBOX will feature a significantly amped up Kinect functionality...I'm very much looking forward to seeing how this unfolds first hand.
While HARRY POTTER FOR KINECT is certainly no wash out by any measure, it may be difficult for more serious gamers not to mull the matters above when making their way through it. Asking its players to pursue relatively simple objectives within abbreviated level structures, HARRY POTTER FOR KINECT frequently feels more like a youth-based HARRY POTTER simulation than an in-depth gaming experience. And if one is considering HPK for younglings who are, say, around 5-10 (despite its 10+ rating)? HPK might/should work very well for them indeed.
HPFK asks its players to (virtually) plant screaming and wiggling Mandrake roots...
...deploys participants to chase Snitches in heated Quidditch matches (during the competition, the player's broom rider must kick and punch opponents via Kinect - this interactivity works particularly well)...
...and asks that potions be delicately mixed - less they explode in our face. It's fun stuff to be sure, and will almost certainly catch the attention of HARRY POTTER loving youth. But unlike, say, some of LEGO's console product...cross-generation interest is likely to be slim.
While actual gameplay mechanics should be more or less manageable by kids accustomed to XBOX and/or Kinect, they'll likely need some help with some earlier set-up/menuing, which is laid out logically but not entirely intuitively.
Recommended emphasizing the caveats mentioned above, HARRY POTTER KINECT is now available for the XBOX 360 HERE.
___________
Glen Oliver
Readers Talkback
comments powered by Disqus-
+ Expand All
-
Nov. 28, 2012, 8:55 a.m. CST
Hmmmm, looks like Merrick's getting paid for game reviews now
by D.Vader
Or to advertise games it seems. At least they're all movie related.
-
Nov. 28, 2012, 8:58 a.m. CST
What's with Harry's 'Jeremy Beadle' hand on the cover?
by KEVIN_COSTNERS_RECYCLED_PISS
I used to be a games tester and worked on some of the Potter movie tie-in games, they were dull and generic but at the end of the day it was an easy job where you could just recline with the controller in your hand and go through the motions. I seriously pity the poor saps who had to test this game with all the hand waving and leg kicking that's involved.
-
Got it for my kids last Christmas and it mostly collects dust. The sensor is unreliable, it requires way more room than I have and they basically stopped making games for it. I have no interest in "motion gaming" myself but even the kids find it frustrating.
-
Nov. 28, 2012, 9:01 a.m. CST
Malfoy! Watch where yer' pointin' that thing, bubba...
by obijuanmartinez
-
Nov. 28, 2012, 9:03 a.m. CST
horrible box art.. what the hell? was the grass and logo more important than the bodies?
by zom-bot.com
..faces pasted on unnaturally posed bodies holding wands in a way that isn't possible from the torsos. and yet i cannot find a packaging design job.
-
Nov. 28, 2012, 9:05 a.m. CST
Is Harry's spell in that last one supposed to look like he's pissing on Voldemort?
by terry1978
I'm sure it is, I just wanted to verify it.
-
keep it up
-
Did I miss it???
-
.. and i still have to move the couch to play kinnect. I agree there is something there but it's just a drag to move shit around then put it back after a play. Easier just to sit on the couch and play xbox how God ment for it to be played!
-
PJ posted a new video blog 2 days ago and this site hasn't even mentioned anything Hobbit related but they post a lame advert for a crappy HP game? This site gets worse and worse,I'm thinking Weta haven't paid aicn or haven't sent Harry any pwesents
-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5v2vfbH6Dg
-
I am starting to think this will be a turning point for this sorry excuse for a site. Yes, it IS getting worse and now we have lame fucking video game reviews. In the future people will say, 'It all changed for AICN when Larry Hagman died!' People, this site is DEAD.
-
the inevitable Daniel Radcliffe auto-biography called "I am not Harry Potter!" comes out?
-
Nov. 28, 2012, 9:59 a.m. CST
The Kinect has not found it's footing because it doesn't work.
by MrWug
It might have worked if Microsoft hadn't crippled it to meet a price point, but as it is it's useless.
-
-Lag. Kinect by itself has over 100ms of input lag, not including what your HDTV will introduce into the equation. You can't rely on timing for your commands, and games are extremely casual to compensate. -No buttons = you aren't controlling your character. Nearly every Kinect title is an on-rails, flail your arms at the screen affair. Without controller integration, you have no reliable way to control your character. -Weak hardware. Microsoft gutted the Kinect of key components including an internal processor to cut costs. The Kinect leeches off 360's processing power instead, games are unable to take full advantage of the 360 and it shows. The technology is there, Microsoft just half-assed it. You'll still need buttons for more advanced applications.
-
..what where you searching for on youtube to "cum" onto that... sorry..
-
Just wondering cos the lack of Hobbit build up and coverage of the premier is odd, don't y'think?
-
HA!! F**s!
-
I'm surprised they didn't make XBox 360 in brown.
-
is the type of bullshit you're covering?!?
-
It was up on giantbomb.com, they mentioned it on their podcast too. HONEST!
-
His name doesn't sound familiar enough to waste space for a fookin obit. But then again they waste it for every hint of a rumor they hear and all these crappy video game/comic reviews.
-
You may 'believe' in the 'potential' and 'concept' of Kinect all you want! The point is, Kinect as it is today doesn't work outside of slapping balls around.. Everyone got marketed and sold a broken product on the backs of sky high promises! I played with this thing at a trade show when it was called the Z-Cam long before Microsoft even had Kinect in mind and it was interesting but problematic then. Both Nintendo and Sony passed on the tech. Microsoft found a way to take lead and somehow fool a lot of people that it was gold with Milo AI and Minority Report bullshit that even looking at their reveal press conference at E3, anyone knowledgable knew it was a dog and pony show! Games 'journalists' however were all over that, and now mostly pretend they never fell for it while guzzling down their Doritos and Mountain Dew. Will AICN tell me how wonderful Kinectimals is next? How about that Star Wars Kinect? It's a shame we never got Star wars Lightsabering on PlayStation MOVE, as I bet that would've actually worked a lot better! Hell that magic game or whatever it's called on Move plays much better than this thing! Kinect could be much better if MS tied it in with an interface controller like Sony's Move. But I'd expect Sony to have PS4 with a 3-D camera and more improved motion controller for next gen. Kinect next gen should also technically get better with a more powerful system to proces the information, but I don't see it working outside of being a peripheral for extending traditional controller games.
-
Nov. 28, 2012, 11:41 a.m. CST
When you say "for Kenect" you don't have to type the words Xbox 360.
by Bandit 37
-
Nov. 28, 2012, 11:51 a.m. CST
There should be a whole section of AICN just dedicated to Hobbit news. Hell, use the space from the "Harry's Reviews" section that rarely gets updated
by kidicarus
-
Nov. 28, 2012, 12:53 p.m. CST
God what horrible graphics, this console generations needs to DIE already
by Seth Brundle
bring the XBOX 720 and PS3 now! WiiU doesnt count
-
Nov. 28, 2012, 1:21 p.m. CST
Just you wait - we will have the Holodeck one day in our living rooms...consider this the "Pong" of interactive gaming.
by Mephisto the Great
We'll start seeing things get interesting around 2025 or so - when Microsoft is finally dead, Apple gave up the technology business to run a small country, and all communication is controlled by the company that brought us "The Clapper."
-
Nov. 28, 2012, 2:24 p.m. CST
About time aintitcool started broadening their coverage
by theblackvegtable
For the life of me can't work out why they started with this particular game
-
Okay i cant view the videos here at work but brundles comments on the sucky graphics and the need to release a PS3 doesnt really make any sense. Seen the trailer for Beyond: Two Souls? The graphics are so bad that we definatly need more powerful systems......
-
just sit in a wheelchair and don't move or you lose!
-
Then you're an idiot. It's a broken controller. Anyone who knows anything about video games knows this.
-
If you need someone who owns all the console to sometimes play a game and write up a review, let me know. I'm a hardcore gamer. My wife is a casual gamer. Between the two of us, we can give the nitty gritty any game. Hell, you don't even have to buy the games. I've got 40 in my backlog.
-
Well, can you pepper your articles with completely unnecessary ellipses?
-
Alright, that joke went on a bit longer but the broken talkback (which has always been broken and will be forever) cut a couple laughs off at the end. Trust me, they were hilarious.
-
in my conservatory and it doesn't work in daylight. It's a bit of a problem to be honest.
-
Nov. 29, 2012, 7:07 a.m. CST
BTW folks, this is a paid advertisement disguised as a story
by Ricardo
Because AICN is run by fat fuck and company, desperate for web hits, cash and fame.
-
...is a pain in the arse. I had to pull the curtains every time i wanted to play, the neighbours probably thought i was having a wank, but i wasn't...i leave the curtains open for that!!
-
so I'm thinking of getting this console with Kinect for my kid. However, I've heard that you need to maintain a pretty significant distance from the sensor for it to work. And her room, probably won't allow for more than about 3ft of free space for this. Is that enough? or should I bag the idea all together?
-
The games i've played, you need to be about 6 feet away from the sensor,then you have to think about having some clear space all around you so you can play and enjoy the game without having to worry about banging into stuff. Depends on how the rooms laid out and how much space you can create.
-
Not Halo 4 write up, not Epic Mickey 2, not even COD: BO2. But fucking Harry Potter. PTW: It looks like Potter and Baldermot are crossing streams with their piss....
Top Talkbacks
- Spoilery early review of MAN OF STEEL!! -- 261 total posts 229 posts
- Holy Crossover!! Magneto’s Boy Quicksilver To Speed About In Whedon’s AVENGERS 2 And Singer’s X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST?? -- 298 total posts 86 posts
- A review of Refn and Gosling's ONLY GOD FORGIVES, direct from Cannes!! -- 95 total posts 76 posts
- Ron Howard's latest trailer sure is a RUSH!!! -- 62 total posts 33 posts
- Jon Stewart casts Gael Garcia Bernal for his directorial debut, ROSEWATER!! -- 33 total posts 31 posts
- Green-Band and Red-Band trailers for the new Jason Sudeikis & Jennifer Aniston VACATION ripoff, WE'RE THE MILLERS are here!! -- 121 total posts 29 posts
- Harry dives into STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS' spoilers to reveal the truth behind the blockbuster we're seeing! -- 1432 total posts 25 posts
- Papa Vinyard thinks that HANGOVER: PART III was a paycheck grab for a buncha people who are already rich!! -- 199 total posts 24 posts
- The METALLICA THROUGH THE NEVER Teaser! -- 205 total posts 20 posts
- That rumor about Sony selling SPIDER-MAN? Don't you believe it for a second! -- 447 total posts 19 posts