Thread: 360 Kinect vs. Wii

360 Kinect vs. Wii
The inevitable comparison.
June 14, 2010
by Lucas M. Thomas
IGN

After a full year of waiting since the original unveiling of the Xbox 360's in-development Project Natal, Microsoft's newly-renamed "Kinect" device has now had a more official reveal -- the look is complete, the branding's in place, and, most importantly, we now know several actual games that we'll be playing on the new peripheral. So, of course, it's time to begin the inevitable comparisons.

Kinect's motion-control concept has been contrasted against Nintendo's Wii since the start, and now with concrete information and media of just which Natal projects are set to become Kinect realities, we can begin placing similar game designs head-to-head. Will Microsoft's hands-free efforts really be different enough when compared with established Remote-controlled entries in the Wii's existing library? We're going to run through seven of the announced games in the lineup, put them next to the closest equivalents Nintendo's already offered, and then let you be the judge.

First up? Sports.

Kinect Sports vs. Wii Sports
Microsoft, probably wisely, isn't trying to hide how shamelessly some of its Kinect titles are copying the most successful designs from the Wii -- and Kinect Sports is the most shameless of all. As compilations of various real-world sports events made virtual, both Kinect Sports and Wii Sports attempt to transform outdoor activities played by running around and tossing balls into indoor fun played by simply moving your body around in the contained space of a living room.

Kinect Sports may set itself apart somewhat through its selected sporting events, as the soccer, track and field and volleyball events it includes don't have direct equivalents in either Wii Sports or Wii Sports Resort. The other three do line up, though -- boxing, table tennis and bowling -- and the one key game there, without a doubt, is bowling. Bowling has become the definitive design of Wii Sports as a whole, solidifying the motion-control concept of the Wii Remote more than any other included game. It's the game that the mainstream media continually points to when discussing Nintendo's machine, and the one that senior citizen centers across the US have had fired up for nightly tournaments for years now.

If Kinect hopes to succeed in capturing that same expanded audience for Microsoft, then Kinect Sports must sell its concept. And for that to happen, it must get bowling right.





Your Shape: Fitness Evolved vs. Wii Fit
The next million-selling success story that Microsoft's attempting to clone from the Wii's library is Wii Fit, the fitness-focused collection of exercise activities that has flown off store shelves and helped tons of Americans try to make a run at their New Year's resolutions since 2008. Wii owners had to wait a while past the launch of the console to get Fit, though, and its required use of the extra Balance Board accessory could give this new Kinect equivalent room to define its differences -- you won't need anything extra beyond the basic Kinect peripheral to start burning calories here.

Of course, Your Shape was already emulating Wii Fit pretty closely before "Fitness Evolved" -- the first Your Shape came out on Wii. Then there are the three other fitness games included in Kinect's announced launch lineup, most of which also already have Wii editions -- Zumba Fitness, The Biggest Loser, EA Sports Active. There may end up being a lot of different options to work your core with Kinect, but they're all likely going to also end up looking an awful lot like what Wii owners have already had for some time.





Kinect Adventures vs. Tons of Wii Mini-Game Compilations
The monster of motion-controlled mini-game compilations might be getting its start on the 360 with Kinect Adventures, which has presented itself as pretty similar to any number of ridiculous "50 games in 1" packages that have plagued the Wii's library for years now. The minis we've seen demoed so far are high-speed on-rails treks through cartoony environments, and Microsoft's brief gameplay trailer showed a happy, smiling family hopping up and down to get their on-screen avatars to jump -- which would seem to separate its overall concept somewhat. But then we also know that the E3 2009 "Ricochet" game is also getting tossed into this package, and that's not so adventurous. That's a dreaded added-on mini-game.

The closest equivalent to the on-rails action is hard to place precisely, as it strikes me as more similar to some past concepts that originated with the PlayStation's EyeToy. A Kinect connection could probably be found in certain mini-games contained with Nintendo's Party releases though -- Mario Party 8, or the upcoming Wii Party. It might be easier to draw a direct comparison, though, when we learn more later this week.





Kinect Joy Ride vs. Mario Kart Wii
First announced last year as a free-to-download Xbox Live Arcade racer meant to give your Avatars a way to stretch their legs, Joy Ride has re-emerged as the game that Microsoft now claims "will redefine the kart-racing genre." Well, the comparison here is an obvious one -- the game that defined kart racing in the first place. Mario Kart.

Mario Kart Wii is a clear inspiration for BigPark's upcoming effort, which has gotten the upgrade to a full-on retail release. The style is similar, the racing while pulling off stunts is similar, the wide variety of different vehicles is similar. But the most direct head-to-head bullet point has to be in the way you can put yourself into either game -- Mario Kart Wii introduced Mii support to the long-running series, and Joy Ride's got Avatars, so you'll now have two different virtual cartoon selves to choose from when wanting to do a little digital driving.





Kinectimals vs. Nintendogs
OK, so this one isn't an Xbox/Wii comparsion -- it's an Xbox/DS one. The closest equivalent to Kinect's animal-interating virtual pet design has never made the leap to the home console over on Nintendo's side of the industry, probably because it's done just fine selling multiple millions on the company's handheld hardware.

The comparison is a no-brainer, though. Both games give you the responsibility for caring for a digital animal, let you "pet" and play with the creature, let you verbally command the creature and more. Kinectimals is basically Nintencats.





Dance Central vs. Just Dance
A truly poor critical reception and low review scores across the board haven't deterred American Wii owners from just dancing -- Ubisoft's motion-controlled dance game, Just Dance, has preposterously soared to sell millions since its debut late last year. People just want to dance, I guess. And the game gives them an excuse, even if it's not actually that good of a game.

MTV Games' Kinect-compatible Dance Central is the same concept, but looks like it will likely be a much more complete game design. Shades of the Guitar Hero and Rock Band vibe combine with a thorough step tutorial and make this one look really solid -- the Wii has covered this territory first, but Nintendo's machine will probably learn some lessons from the latecomer in this category.





Kinect Star Wars vs. Star Wars: The Clone Wars -- Lightsaber Duels
Finally, we'll wrap up with Star Wars. The promise of truly wielding a lightsaber, really stepping into the boots of a Jedi warrior, is one Wii owners have been hoping to see realized for half a decade now -- the Wii Remote just seemed like the natural device to bring that experience to life. Here on the brink of E3 2010, though, we're still waiting for the game that gets it right -- the efforts we've gotten so far have been lackluster, and no MotionPlus-compatible design has yet come to light.

So Kinect's unnamed Star Wars game could swoop in for a steal here, depending on how the timing works out and how well wielding a virtual saber with no physical object held in your hands handles -- it's still looking pretty early, though, and the 2011 release date means that LucasArts may yet deliver the definitive motion-control Force-wielding experience to the Wii before Kinect owners can get their midichlorians charged up.





Your Take?
So, what do you think? Is the Kinect lineup different enough from what's already available on Wii, or is it just shameless copying across the board? And, even if it is shameless, do you care? Does hands-free make more sense than Remote-control for some or all of these concepts?

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/109/1097640p1.html

I will likely not be getting this Xbox 360 peripheral for the same reasons I dont own a Wii now. However, the graphics are 10x better than the Wii's.

Would probably have to give it a full year just to see what it can do.

The Star Wars does look intrguing... The Wii one got terrible reviews.

It looks extremely interesting and at $155.00, it is not a bad price to expand the ability of the X-Box360

The WII is for girls.

Originally Posted by Shazam!

I will likely not be getting this Xbox 360 peripheral for the same reasons I dont own a Wii now. However, the graphics are 10x better than the Wii's.

Would probably have to give it a full year just to see what it can do.

The Star Wars does look intrguing... The Wii one got terrible reviews.

I agree. The kind of games I like (RPGs and RTS) don't translate well to standing up and flailing around. These titles seem very "pick up and play" for a few minutes then move onto something else.

I am a classically trained player with roots in the arcade and on home systems like the Intellivision and Atari, so I will always want some kind of controller in my hand where I can just sit on my ass. I borrow my friends Nintendo Wii every few months to play games like new super mario bros and metroid and I always end up plugging in a gamecube controller when possible. The only game the Wiimote is good for that I love is Mario Kart.

As far as the Star Wars game, the CLOSEST they ever came to replicating lightsaber combat was in the Star Wars Arcade game by Sega that came out in the mid 90's (where you fight Darth Vader and Boba Fett in first person). I've read from LucasArts the biggest hurdle with lightsaber games translating well is the depth of field being lost in 1st person mode (since the weapon is basically a 360 degree weapon and you are moving in simulated 3d space) and they only effective way to pull it off is to move to 3rd person which it looks like they have done in the picture. But then you are just controlling a guy controlling a lightsaber. Might as well play Force Unleashed.

I wish they would have kept up the Virtual Reality games. Could you imagine how cool it would look by now? I remember playing VR laser tag games at the mall at a special kiosk near the arcade and the experience of moving around in a game was intense even in 1995 with block graphics. Imagine a Star Wars, Tron, or God of War game in that setting!

Originally Posted by Shazam!

I will likely not be getting this Xbox 360 peripheral for the same reasons I dont own a Wii now. However, the graphics are 10x better than the Wii's.

Would probably have to give it a full year just to see what it can do.

The Star Wars does look intrguing... The Wii one got terrible reviews.

Yeah... I'm curious about this more from a pure technogeek standpoint than actual gaming.

It will be interesting to see what they come out with overall... but mostly I'm enjoying the pushing of the limits of what the machines are capable of.

Eventually, there may be some interesting optional minigames worked into normal games, etc.

I don't know... but I'm looking forward to it.

I'm in no rush to get one for myself though. Might have been quicker if it came out when I was living cross country from my girl... the ability to watch a movie together and videochat would be fun. That sort of thing.

I am still waiting for an in-depth feature article for the Playstation Move, Sony's motion control. I will post it as I get it.

I have to say I really don't like this motion control shit. It's becoming overkill with now ALL consoles having to have it?

It used to be just the games that separated the consoles.

I think it will further dilute video games even more.

How many single player, epic games are there nowadays? Very few. Many shooters (including premier franchises like IW's CoD, not as bad with Treyarch's ones, see CoD-WaW) have watered down campaigns that can be beat in a few hours. Halo is the only one to offer both, and we'll see if that continues with Reach.

Everything is about online multiplayer. Sure it's addicting but afterawhile it gets boring and repetitive. I like being pushed to blowing people away through tales of great conflict and the like, other than just blowing everyone away.

There should be more games like Mass Effect, Alan Wake, Heavy Rain, and FPSs that offer the complete package ala Halo. Im not saying Halo to sound like a 360 fanboy because I have both 360 and PS3. Halo's campaigns are extremely deep and while nearly every FPS since 2002 has taken something from Halo, that's something that they haven't.

With all the emphasis on a quick buck and motion controls, all we may soon see is an overabundance of shovelware ala the Wii. Wii has some great games but for every great title there are 4 games that are garbage. There is 10 times as much mediocre sloppy trash on that system than the PS3 and 360 combined.

Wii may have revolutionized gaming with motion controls. Inadvertently, they may have destroyed it.

I totally agree Shazam. I hate how the industry is trying to make it so even the elderly or newborns can pick up and play a game. Gaming used to be personal. I miss the days when you sat NEXT to a friend and had to talk shit to his face instead of from the safety of your moms basement, or at an arcade where someone might challenge you to a real fight after you kicked their ass in Street Fighter. I miss grinding levels on Final Fantasy and Dragon Warrior. I miss throwing controllers without breaking them (or throwing controllers because I actually HAVE to for a motion game).

I'll always love Nintendo for the countless hours I put into Mario, Metroid, and Zelda but I put the blame squarely on them for the death of the industry as I knew it.

Check out this article, I think it sums up nicely what we are both getting at. Its called "The Day the Gaming Industry Died at E3":

http://www.cracked.com/article_18608...m-e3-2010.html

That article's a bit of an exaggeration.

There's still going to be a bunch of good games that come out... and if they can extend the lives of their product and have a better chance at making an overall profit... good for all of us.

No, it doesn't appeal greatly to the three of us.... (though I'm curious and would like to play with it... I am also scared of it's overall impact)... it may also bring something for other people they wouldn't have already reached.

Gaming communities always seem very disappointed when something isn't marketed directly at THEM (as individuals or groups). They always fail to realize that the hardcore gamers are the ones you need to market to the least. They're most likely to pick something up regardless. Marketing is about bringing new people in that weren't already in the market.

Of course Microsoft is pushing all the other capabilities of the XBox. Let developers push new games. They're pushing their machine and what it's capable of, as opposed to Sony, which will have many of the same games.

I remember when Microsoft came out and said 'We were lying when we said we were making the Xbox just to get into the gaming industry. We see much more potential in the Xbox 360 as a home-everything machine. That's why we got into it.'

I certainly hope they are successful. I don't know how many generations they will go through of net loss before they give up. I like console gaming.

Originally Posted by MasterShake

Check out this article, I think it sums up nicely what we are both getting at. Its called "The Day the Gaming Industry Died at E3":

http://www.cracked.com/article_18608...m-e3-2010.html

You know you've struck gold when you find an article about the video game industry that mentions masturbation twice. :schwing:

Originally Posted by LordTrychon

That article's a bit of an exaggeration.

There's still going to be a bunch of good games that come out... and if they can extend the lives of their product and have a better chance at making an overall profit... good for all of us.

No, it doesn't appeal greatly to the three of us.... (though I'm curious and would like to play with it... I am also scared of it's overall impact)... it may also bring something for other people they wouldn't have already reached.

Gaming communities always seem very disappointed when something isn't marketed directly at THEM (as individuals or groups). They always fail to realize that the hardcore gamers are the ones you need to market to the least. They're most likely to pick something up regardless. Marketing is about bringing new people in that weren't already in the market.

Of course Microsoft is pushing all the other capabilities of the XBox. Let developers push new games. They're pushing their machine and what it's capable of, as opposed to Sony, which will have many of the same games.

I remember when Microsoft came out and said 'We were lying when we said we were making the Xbox just to get into the gaming industry. We see much more potential in the Xbox 360 as a home-everything machine. That's why we got into it.'

I certainly hope they are successful. I don't know how many generations they will go through of net loss before they give up. I like console gaming.

I'm starting to enjoy my time as a fringe gamer. I might get back into importing Japanese RPG's and obscure fighting games. The only thing I am really curious about is that Star Wars game!



I'm a little confused on the timeline of the game if its the final product. I see battledroid ships and tanks, stormtroopers, then Darth Vader.

And at first I thought that was a Clone Wars era Obi Wan, but he kind of looks like a generic jedi now.

Originally Posted by NightTrainLayne

You know you've struck gold when you find an article about the video game industry that mentions masturbation twice. :schwing:

You should check out the articles on Cracked.com when you get a chance. Everything from "5 Evil Things Babies are Capable Of" to "Movie Monsters that Wouldn't Work in the Real World". They are always funny and sometimes thought provoking. A lot is user generated, and when I get some time I'm gonna submit an article.

No, it doesn't appeal greatly to the three of us....

Every hardcore gamer I know, my age and those younger than me, is not embracing this motion control bullshit and has a 360 or a PS3.

There are reasons why these people dont own a Wii. If I wanted to play a ton of minigames and wave my arms around like a flailing lunatic, Id have a Wii.

It's better suited to kids and moms. Not the CoD/Halo/Sports players, and I dont mean Wii sports.

And that article is spot on.

Originally Posted by Shazam!

Every hardcore gamer I know, my age and those younger than me, is not embracing this motion control bullshit and has a 360 or a PS3.

There are reasons why these people dont own a Wii. If I wanted to play a ton of minigames and wave my arms around like a flailing lunatic, Id have a Wii.

It's better suited to kids and moms. Not the CoD/Halo/Sports players, and I dont mean Wii sports.

And that article is spot on.

That's my point...

They're not really marketing to those of us who already have an Xbox360 or a PS3.

They're not trying to attract you to their product, Shazaam!

It's not aimed at you at all! Marketing is NEVER aimed at the hardcore fans. They don't need to be marketed to. Not really.

Until this starts effecting the good games that are coming out... I'm not worried about this being the day that gaming died. Japan has been coming out with crappy games I have no desire to play for years... and yet TFU 2 is still coming out. Mass Effect 2 came out. I hear rumors about another Elder Scrolls game.

If the motion control means that good games will stop coming out... well then that's sad. If Mass Effect 3 is going to be a Mario Party 9 knockoff... then I'm worried.

I'm pretty sure that's not what it means though.

They're expanding gaming. They're not changing it.

The article talks about how sales of consoles are down. DUH! Gamers already have their systems! Amazing!

They're trying to find new people to sell systems to.

Not a big deal.

Originally Posted by MasterShake

I'm starting to enjoy my time as a fringe gamer. I might get back into importing Japanese RPG's and obscure fighting games. The only thing I am really curious about is that Star Wars game!



I'm a little confused on the timeline of the game if its the final product. I see battledroid ships and tanks, stormtroopers, then Darth Vader.

And at first I thought that was a Clone Wars era Obi Wan, but he kind of looks like a generic jedi now.

I'm curious about that game... but not TOO curious.

I'll need to know more first.