Xbox Addict

Monthly XBLA Kinect Games on the Way

There hasn’t been much in the way of support for Kinect on Xbox Live Arcade. The Gunstringer was originally planned to be a Microsoft-published XBLA game that would have fit the bill, but it has since been converted into a full retail game. XBLA seems like a perfect place for Kinect games -- you can try something new and unique using motion controls and charge a relatively small amount for the product. And yet, beyond the upcoming Fruit Ninja Kinect, there hasn’t been much there. Microsoft has plans to change that.
 "Obviously we have Xbox Live Arcade exclusives running through the Summer of Arcade program, but yes, you can expect far more exclusives coming to the platform in future," Xbox Live’s Robin Burrowes told CVG. "I can’t give you those names today -- we’ll announce them in due course -- but you have the trust factor of the legacy of titles we’ve launched in the past.
 
Burrowes, the Xbox Live product marketing manage for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, was speaking generally there, though Microsoft is explicitly targeting regular Kinect releases on XBLA, too.
 
"Talking more specifically, expect to see more from us [at] Microsoft studios as we leverage the power of Kinect; expect to see a number of Kinect Arcade titles coming," he said. "We’re targeting a frequency of about one a month from the Xbox Live Arcade portfolio that will have Kinect integration. That will really be powerful and differentiate the platform."
 
Other games will fit more in the "traditional, core" category, though the Kinect support in particular will be welcome news for owners of the peripheral who have found little use for it beyond Dance Central and Child of Eden. We do know Microsoft has plans for Kinect support in a number of its upcoming games -- Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Forza Motorsport 4, Fable: The Journey -- but they’re all retail titles. A regular stream of downloadable games beyond the "experiences" we’re getting through Kinect Fun Labs will be important if Microsoft is interested in continuing to drive demand for Kinect.
 
And we know it’s very much interested in getting Kinect in every 360’s owners hands. After all, only then we can experience those Kinect-powered advertisements we’re all dying for.