Kinect Real Time Strategy Games

I really want to see if [easyazon-link asin=”B002BSA298″]Kinect[/easyazon-link] can engage people with real time strategy or RTS games on the Xbox 360.  Currently all RTS games are handicapped on a console system compared to a PC, the lack of keyboard and mouse means you have to compensate by grouping or limiting the options available to the player or by making menus they have to tap and scroll through to find what they want to do with their armies, structures…etc.

Kinect can change this, I picture myself in the future circling my hand around a unit of soldiers and pointing to where I want them to move to.  I picture using a sweep of the hands to zoom in or out on a large battle map, to be able to make gestures to indicate to stop my units, patrol or attack.

Provided the Kinect can be trained to recognize gestures with better accuracy than I have seen in previous games, or perhaps a newer Kinect model with better frame rate and camera as well as better recognition of finger motions could make such a play style possible.

Imagine the motion involved if you played an RTS game with your arms, hands and feet.  You would be sweating in no time under frantic combat scenarios and this may be a way to actually burn as much calories gaming as you could on a treadmill (though maybe arm and shoulder fatigue could be an issue).

Either way, the idea of being a giant overseeing a map reminds me of Clash of the Titans where Zeus looked at the pieces of mortals on the ground and would just smash them.  It gives you a god complex like you are the puppet master and your units are in  your control.  It is a cool concept and one that may be able to be put to good use if only Kinect or the games that are programmed for it had more accuracy.

What do you think?

-Justin Germino

[az_easel item=”B002BSA298,B003O6EE4U”]