EXCLUSIVE: Child of Eden Review (7.5/10)

Child of Eden is the first genuine reason to own Kinect- but I don't think you should buy it just yet. Does that sound like a contrasting statement? Let me explain: the motion controls on offer here for Microsoft's ever-astounding camera peripheral finally give a true feeling of 1:1 accuracy, allowing total control over the reticule that fires on viruses in a beautiful matrix world of colour and tranquility, so the compatability with Kinect is a real bonus and one that should in future entice many naysayers to buy the peripheral. However, there is a very limited amount of content here for a full price (£40, no less!) game, and when the likes of Marvel VS Capcom 3, Portal 2 and LA Noire give us so many reasons to return after completing the initial storyline that just doesn't seem good enough. To put it bluntly, you should have finished this within a couple of hours, whereas the three titles I just mentioned will provide at least ten hours of content each for starters, and that's not taking into account their substantial replay value. Yes, you can play through the main campaign either with a controller or Kinect, so perhaps for some of you the time spent will double, but even then I'd be surprised if the one-path storyline was really something you wanted to come back to, especially as towards its climax it becomes frustratingly easy to muck up and be sent back to the beginning of one of the twelve-fifteen minute levels, a choice on the part of developer Q Entertainment which will no doubt drive some players away from completing it. There's no multiplayer to speak of either, so Q Entertainment is placing a lot of faith in players wanting to retry their favourite levels again and again to progress up the leaderboards, and in all honesty I think that for most this just simply won't be the case. Don't get me wrong, Child of Eden is a visual and audio spectacle that deserves to be seen and played by all, but I would say that it's best to hold off on this one until it reaches half price or the bargain bin, because there's so much out now and coming soon that will offer a lot more value for cash than this does!