Microsoft told the media today at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) that the Kinect motion sensing product will be available November 14th, and should be launching with at least 15 games out of the gate. The company however, did not mention how much Kinect will sell for as a stand-alone product, but analysts are putting the price tag around $50-200 depending on the package, and what’s included.
Microsoft also announced a new Xbox 360 console which is supposed to be more compact and which includes a 250Gb hard drive, 802.11n WiFi and Kinect ready support. The new game console will be priced at $299 and will be available Monday, June 21st.
The Jury is still out on whether Kinect (previously called Project Natal) will be able to compete with the likes of the Nintendo Wii and Sony Playstation Move products, but Microsoft is changing gears and targeting the very same consumer that the aforementioned products are aimed at; casual players and newcomers – not hardcore gamers.
The 15 games that Kinect will launch include some of the following below:
A Yoga/Tai Chi Game (official name to be announced)
A Soccer Game (official name to be announced)
Joyride
Kinect Sports
Kinectimals
Kinect Adventures
Dance Central