IS KENECT FOR XBOX 360 ALL IT'S CRACKED UP TO BE?

There is something eerily futuristic about the Kinect.
Microsoft's new motion controller addition to the Xbox 360 is ambitious and risky and you'll realize both those things as soon as you unpack it. You'll realize that you're about to embark on a unique gaming journey as soon as you calmly talk to your TV to change the menus, as soon as you gesture, "Minority Report" style, to sift through movies.

The Kinect is the latest evolution in a craze that the Nintendo Wii started four years ago, but somehow, it still feels like it's from 2020, not 2010.

Why? Because Kinect aims to make your beloved controller a thing of the past. The idea here is that you can control everything with your body and voice. It's a magnificent dream, and the $149.99 hardware seems up to the task, even if the software is somewhat of a rollercoaster ride at this point.

It's hard not to compare the Kinect to the recently released PlayStation Move and the grandfather of motion controllers, the Nintendo Wii. The first thing you'll notice about the Kinect is that it's larger than its cousins. The Wii relied on a skinny bar aligned with your TV to sense its motion controller fairly accurately, and the Move used the tiny PS Eye camera to track the movements of its controller.

The Kinect is about 10 inches long. If you have a new 360, it plugs easily into the back; if you have an old one, you'll need to plug it into a USB port and then also plug it into an outside power source.

The Kinect needs the extra power for a host of mechanical features. In addition to a pair of cameras, Kinect has a built-in microphone array that picks up sound, as well as a tiny motor. The motor automatically changes the angle of the camera based on the requirements of the game being played. This alleviates one of the shortcomings of the PS Move, which routinely needs to be shifted and moved and repositioned depending on the game.

The one downfall with the Kinect is that it requires a large amount of space. I had to rearrange my entire living room to create the 8-10 feet of space that I needed to get proper recognition from the camera. The box says you need 6-8 feet of space, but trust me, you'll need more. Additionally, forget the idea of having a coffee table in the way, unless you play to move it on a regular basis.

Aside from space issues, setup is simple. You plug it in and your 360 steps you through the process with surprising ease. You'll spend about 15 minutes prepping the Kinect for use, and another 10 or so minutes learning the main gestures and commands, things that work in the Xbox's new dashboard menus. Microsoft designed its yearly update with the Kinect in mind, so it added plenty of Kinect functionality to its main functions.

These new commands are simple to learn and rather intuitive. To prevent the inputting of random voice commands, you must say a code word, "Xbox," in order to deliver a voice order. This works quite well, even if you will find yourself saying "Xbox" far more frequently than you might want to.

The standard hand gestures are similarly easy to pick up, and these feel futuristic. You'll get tingles the first time you wave at the Kinect and it recognizes your face. And I don't think I ever stopped finding ridiculous enjoyment from pausing a movie with my hand, fast forwarding by waving, and gesturing down to play from a particular spot.

Microsoft succeeds from this standpoint; the Kinect works well as a tool for navigating your Xbox dashboard. But the integration is strangely incomplete. You can voice command your Kinect to get to your video library, but you can't voice command your Kinect to play a certain video from that library. Oddities like that abound, preventing you from growing totally immersed.

Then again, it's not as if you plan to shell out $150 for the Kinect's menu navigation; most people will buy it for gaming. The Kinect launches with a diverse collection of games and solid third-party support, but there's nothing here that you haven't seen before. There's an well-done dance game called "Dance Central," an answer to Sony's "Eyepet" in "Kinectimals" and the obligatory sports compilation in "Kinect Sports."

Each game utilizes the Kinect functionality differently. "Kinect Sports" seemed to detect user movements with some margin for error; if it were too accurate, it wouldn't be much fun to throw a javelin.

"Your Shape: Fitness Evolved," an exercise title, was far more exacting, closely analyzing each and every body position, as does another such game, "The Biggest Loser." The two fitness games are easily superior to anything offered on the Wii or the PS Move; Kinect may eventually rule the fitness gaming market.

Not all games function perfectly; there's occasionally some lag. This was noticeable by a split second in a few "Kinect Sports" events, and even more noticeable in "Kinectimals."

Such weaknesses are par for the launch title course, and they aren't unexpected given the Kinect's large scope. The Kinect shows a great amount of potential – perhaps even more than its predecessors. It's simple to learn and understand, and it has few barriers to entry. It even offers an added bonus: It's possible for Kinect functionality to actually be integrated with controller functionality in future games.

Still, at this moment, the Kinect isn't a must-own. I'd recommend a wait and see approach, unless you're planning to buy the Kinect in the $299.99 Xbox bundle. The prospects are good; if developers do seek to integrate it into regular games (think "Halo" and "Mass Effect"), we could easily see the next level of gaming immersion.

But for now, the Kinect is a luxury. You don't need it yet, but one day soon, it may be required for any serious gamer.