LOS ANGELES: Microsoft Corp christening its new motion-sensing game system “Kinect,” has offered a sneak peek of upcoming titles it hopes will help draw a new generation of casual players into the 40 million-strong Xbox game console fold.
In a performance conceptualized by Cirque du Soleil, the company staged enactments of how games would be played. Those included a track and field tournament, a driving simulation in which passengers rock their bodies to toss the car into cartwheels, and a Star Wars game with enhanced control of a Jedi knight – which drew cheers.
Microsoft did not announce game publishers for Kinect — previously dubbed Project Natal — nor divulge any other details. LucasArts releases Star Wars titles.
The world’s leading gaming hardware makers, hoping to reignite the slumping $60 billion industry by expanding it beyond hardcore games to more casual players, will unveil at the E3 Exposition in Los Angeles this week a range of futuristic gadgets.
Microsoft is expected to flesh out details of its Kinect system at the annual games convention, which along with Nintendo’s 3D-without-glasses platform is expected to generate the most buzz.
Sony Corp will show off its competing Move motion-sensor.