How do you go about making a racing game for Kinect? Do you provide tight controls and sacrifice some of the technical aspects, or try and keep hardcore drivers happy with the specs and lose some control in the process? Kinect Joy Ride doesn't seem to be able to make up its mind, constantly disappointing both as a video game and a family title. One thing it has got going for it is the visuals, with each track proving pleasing to the eyes and all of the cars sporting a neat cartoon style, but when this is one of the only highpoints of a racing instalment, you know something is very wrong. As if the idea of holding an invisible steering wheel wasn't weird enough, Joy Ride dispenses with tutorials, figuring that just about everyone can pick it up and learn on the spot (clue- they can't). Even if this shortcoming wasn't present, gamers hardcore and casual alike would still be frustrated with the over-sensitivity of the steering and frequent misinterpretations of the movements they're making, and it's in this misstep that Joy Ride just about loses all of its appeal. Once you've realised what you're doing isn't translating fully to the on-screen racer in any sense, I'd be surprised if you didn't put Joy Ride down; little to no extras are included bar the ability to colour your car the same as whatever you're wearing (though this is a great idea for future games using Kinect) so after a few irksome races around the various tracks, there's not a lot to bring you back, and it's for this reason that Kinect Joy Ride fails to interest as the first motion-control racing game for Xbox 360. On the plus side, hopefully 2011's Forza Motorsport 4 will benefit in learning from this wasted opportunity to make driving sports cars in the living room possible!
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Tuesday, 4 January 2011
Kinect Joy Ride Review (K: 4/10)
How do you go about making a racing game for Kinect? Do you provide tight controls and sacrifice some of the technical aspects, or try and keep hardcore drivers happy with the specs and lose some control in the process? Kinect Joy Ride doesn't seem to be able to make up its mind, constantly disappointing both as a video game and a family title. One thing it has got going for it is the visuals, with each track proving pleasing to the eyes and all of the cars sporting a neat cartoon style, but when this is one of the only highpoints of a racing instalment, you know something is very wrong. As if the idea of holding an invisible steering wheel wasn't weird enough, Joy Ride dispenses with tutorials, figuring that just about everyone can pick it up and learn on the spot (clue- they can't). Even if this shortcoming wasn't present, gamers hardcore and casual alike would still be frustrated with the over-sensitivity of the steering and frequent misinterpretations of the movements they're making, and it's in this misstep that Joy Ride just about loses all of its appeal. Once you've realised what you're doing isn't translating fully to the on-screen racer in any sense, I'd be surprised if you didn't put Joy Ride down; little to no extras are included bar the ability to colour your car the same as whatever you're wearing (though this is a great idea for future games using Kinect) so after a few irksome races around the various tracks, there's not a lot to bring you back, and it's for this reason that Kinect Joy Ride fails to interest as the first motion-control racing game for Xbox 360. On the plus side, hopefully 2011's Forza Motorsport 4 will benefit in learning from this wasted opportunity to make driving sports cars in the living room possible!
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