Author Profile
James started his career in video games as News Editor on Nintendo Life. Since leaving in 2012 to join Nintendo of Europe, James has risen through the ranks to become NoE's Senior Product PR & Corporate Communications Manager.
Rumour A New Lips Game is On the Way to Kinect
Another domain mystery
Earlier we reported EA may be bringing The Sims and SSX to Kinect, a rumour started by the registration of Kinect-related domains for both franchises. That's not the only Kinect web address registered this week though, as Microsoft also bought up KinectLips.com. Lips is Microsoft's karaoke title – its answer to SingStar, if...
Rumour EA Bringing The Sims and SSX to Kinect
Play the domain game
There may not be many official Kinect game announcements these days, but that doesn't mean there aren't Kinect games in the works, and EA may have a couple of big ones up its giant corporate sleeves. Microsoft recently registered several domains that point to Kinect-enabled versions of popular franchises The Sims and SSX:...
News EA Sports Looking to Bring Golf to Kinect in Future
But not this year
The bad news is that EA ran out of time to bring Tiger Woods to Kinect this year, but it's not game over for the idea of a hands-free golf game. Lead designer on Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters Mike DeVault spoke to Eurogamer about the sensor's potential, and although the didn't give any specifics it looks like future outings...
News Game with Olympic Fame in UK Kinect Sports Showdown
Competition commences soon
Feeling confident about your Kinect Sports prowess? Want to put it to the test? Microsoft UK is offering you the chance to do just that by taking on Olympic gold medal-winning sprinters Linford Christie and Mark Lewis-Francis. Winners of the competition will go head-to-head with the sprinters on Kinect's flagship sports...
Features A Guide to Kinect Fitness Games
Let's get sweaty
If you're looking to lose a few pounds as part of your New Year's Resolution, grabbing a fitness game for Kinect is a good way to go, but with so many out there how can you pick the one that's best for you? Here a brief rundown of all the fitness games currently available for Kinect, all of which we've exhaustively playtested and...
News Here's a List of Useful Kinect Voice Commands
Xbox, inform!
If your Kinect, like a naughty puppy, is failing to obey your simple commands then perhaps this helpful list of voice activation phrases for Kinect will help out. Most of these phrases are just for use in the Kinect Hub, though some are for use with Sky Player, for example. Remember that this is a partial list of phrases, so if you...
Review Game Party in Motion (Xbox 360)
Motional breakdown
Kinect's marketing would have you believe the system is a game-changer, bringing new ways of interaction to the home and banishing uninvolving, inaccurate and unplayable minigame compilations to the darkest depths of history. Then along comes Game Party in Motion, lurching to the sensor like a rotting cadaver, leaving only...
Review Zumba Fitness: Join the Party (Xbox 360)
Back of the class
There’s no shortage of good fitness games for Kinect from EA, Ubisoft and more, but Zumba Fitness: Join the Party is the only one based on a real-life dancing craze. For those in the dark, Zumba is a fitness programme based on high-energy rhythms that’s designed to be taken in large classes, but how does it translate to a...
News Become Tom Hanks in Big with Kinect's Giant Piano Hack
Heart and soul
Kinect can be used to create art but what about music? Yep, that too, with this Kinect piano hack letting players tickle the ivories with no keyboard required. As well as being able to project a piano onto a desk it can also be used to create enormous keyboards on the floor, not unlike the classic scene from Big. This is another...
Review Get Fit With Mel B (Xbox 360)
Hot and spicy
Kinect is already awash with fitness games from most major publishers – THQ’s The Biggest Loser: Ultimate Workout, EA’s EA Sports Active 2 and Ubisoft’s Your Shape: Fitness Evolved have all launched in the sensor’s first few weeks on sale, but now relative minnow Black Bean Games has entered the fray with Get Fit with Mel B...
Review EA Sports Active 2 (Xbox 360)
Fitness with a little slickness
This is the first time since Kinect’s launch we’ve had to say this, but when playing EA Sports Active 2, you’ll need a controller in your hand. Not to engage in any of the 70 exercises, which are all operated completely controller-free, but rather to navigate the wealth of menu and options screens that stand...
News You Can't Turn Your 360 On or Off with Kinect for a Good Reason
You're saving the planet
"Xbox, Dashboard. Xbox, Kinect. Xbox, turn off." That last voice command doesn't work and probably won't, as Kinect project manager Alex Kipman explained on Major Nelson's podcast this week. The reason the company doesn't allow you to turn your machine on or off with the sensor is very simple: it would mean your...
Review The Biggest Loser: Ultimate Workout (Xbox 360)
Let's get physical
It’s no surprise that plenty of developers have seen Kinect’s potential for fitness games, with Ubisoft’s Your Shape: Fitness Evolved, Zumba Fitness and more titles undoubtedly on the way. Now entering the mix is THQ’s The Biggest Loser: Ultimate Workout. Licensed by the TV show of the same name, it has a lot in its...
Review Sonic Free Riders (Xbox 360)
Free falling
Sonic Free Riders is the third entry in the hoverboarding offshoot of the hedgehog franchise, following on last generation’s Sonic Riders and follow-up Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity for Wii, both of which were poorly received by the gaming press and public alike. This latest iteration is revolutionary in that it ditches the controller...
News Harry Potter Casts Magic Spell on Kinect This Week
Today in the US, Friday for Europe
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I is an unexpected milestone for Kinect: it's the first title to be labelled as "Better with Kinect", rather than the usual "Kinect Sensor Required" tag on the box. Whilst the main game is playable with a regular controller, the Kinect-specific content...
Review Kinect Joy Ride (Xbox 360)
It'll drive you round the bend
Kinect Joy Ride started life as an Xbox Live Arcade title before Microsoft reworked it for Kinect and sent it to retail. As such it’s simplistic, accessible and entertaining, but whether it’s worth the money is debatable. Control in Joy Ride is as simple as can be: hold out your hands and turn them to steer...
Rumour Kinect Adventures Disc Loaded with Demos
Try out new titles with pack-in game
Everybody who buys Kinect will get Kinect Adventures, but there might be a hidden surprise in the game as well, with current rumours pointing to the disc containing three playable demos. Short bursts of Dance Central, Kinect Joy Ride and Your Shape: Fitness Evolved are all apparently featured on the DVD,...
News Get Extra Kinect Adventures Content with this Live Token
More levels available for download
It's the perennial Christmas quandary: what do you get for the person who has everything? That's the problem facing Microsoft and Kinect Adventures – if the game is included with every Kinect sold, what do you give to gamers who like it? The answer is the Kinect Adventures Live Token, of course. Essentially a...
