Is Kinect Too Late?

There's been a lot of animosity coming since E3 toward Microsoft's Kinect, a peripheral that was highly talked about a year ago. Recently, Xbox Live's Stephen Tolouse made the statement that hardcore gamers have been wrong for the last 10 years, referring to the surprising success of Nintendo's Wii. I blame the sudden switch in gamers' attitudes to the weak performance by Microsoft at E3 this year, taking almost a step back as far as showing off what Kinect can do. With it Microsoft looking to take away Nintendo's lunch money, it makes me wonder if Kinect is just too late.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT KINECT

One of the criticisms about Kinect is the rumored price of $150 for the unit. A lot of people are commenting that it is too much of a buy in when you can get a Wii for $200 and have everything you need. But the problem the Wii has faced with many gamers is it's pretty much just a machine for party games. Most people I know who own one have it collecting dust and just get it out whenever a group of people get together. Since the Wii only comes with one controller, you end up having to buy or borrow 3 more. With Motion+, that comes to $70 a bundle, making the cost of the Wii $410 without a new game. So far Kinect has been shown to recognize two players and if it can pull off 4 that's even better. The potential cost for a new Xbox 360 and Kinect comes to $400. Even if it is only 2 players at a time, it's still not bad for a system you'll actually play any other time. If some parent asked me which one I'd recommend for their kid, I'd go with Microsoft based on it being the better value, but that's partially because I've always related the Wii to Apple, being a trendy electronic that's built on hype. I'm sure they're finding out now though they're not invincible.

Another aspect I like about Kinect comes from the buzz around it when it was first announced, the potential. Sure, Skittles didn't seem like much except fulfilling a secret fantasy to be Mike Tyson and own a tiger, but there's more to it than that. By recognizing hand gestures and finger movements new doors can be opened up with brand new elements of gameplay. It could be something small like in a game similar to Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time where the player would have to memorize finger placements to play a song, or it can be more involving like dribbling the ball in a basketball game. There's also the added advantage of returning to my youth and flipping the checkers board when I was going to lose. It gets to a point where a peripherals failure may not be so much on the manufacturer or console as it is developers not leaving their comfort zone to develop new software.

THE HURDLE

Microsoft's real enemy in all of this has been time. It's been years since the Wii was released and there have been enough purchased that I'm sure most of the people interested in motion control already have one. Their saving grace is the probability that any Wii that isn't in a retirement home or bar has another console with it. If they can launch Kinect with a strong line-up of games, then it stands a chance to dethrone Nintendo. They need to stay away from the piles of shovelware that has created 90% of the Wii's library.

Microsoft may think hardcore gamers have been wrong, but they still need them to succeed. Just look at the sales for non-Nintendo Wii games and you see where the strength of the industry lies.