The Kinect has been an interesting peripheral to watch. Once dismissed as a Hail Mary by Microsoft to close the gap between itself and Nintendo, it has evolved into an impressive piece of hardware that brings a substantial number of additions to many games (Mass Effect 3 being the most recent). One could only imagine that an IP like Star Wars would bring nothing but joy and awesome when fused with motion control capabilities. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case.
Kinect Star Wars, originally planned for release at the end of 2011, has finally made its way onto home consoles, and the result is disappointing. Half on-rails shooter, half… whatever, the title acts as a frustrating reminder that not all motion controls are created equal. There are glimmers of excellence when using Force Powers – I felt like quite the Jedi Master when thrusting my hands forward to execute a Force Push. But the majority of the content feels uninspired and clunky, with many of my motions going unrecognized by the Kinect.
I have to hand it to the developers: they had a great idea in mind, and plenty of content to work with. That being said, it’s hard to overlook the fundamentally flawed design when playing a game that is supposed to seamlessly integrate the player into the world of the timeless space opera. Kinect Star Wars is certainly worth playing at least once, but paying full retail price for a clunky game may be too much for some consumers.