Xperience Gaming

Kinect games so far mostly have been a bit hit and miss, many have left you feeling that their full potential has not been achieved. Take Kinect Star Wars for example the idea of becoming a jedi and using your Kinect to wield a lightsabre and duel sounded like some of dreams coming closer to reality however once we got our hands we found the execution of this idea had be performed rather badly leaving expectations not met. Wreckateer on the other seems to be one the first Kinect games to break this trend taking a good concept for a game and executing it rather well.

Wreckateer sees you as part of a “demolition crew” moving from castle to castle with only one objective. To remove all goblins occupying these castles through means of destruction. This is achieved through the use of catapults firing various ballistics at each castle (yes it does sound like angry birds) leveling them to the ground. All this is controlled through you using Kinect and by making simple hand gestures and movements. This is what makes Wreckateer so enjoyable the movements required to play the game are basic, minimal and repeatedly used for various features. This is when Kinect is at it’s best when things are kept simple no complex movements or phrases need to be remembered just simple hand gestures which allow you to really enjoy the game without the frustration of perfecting your movements just to trigger something in-game (Steel Battalion I’m looking at you) and keeps the gameplay flowing.

The gameplay itself is rather enjoyable but at times can feel a little repetitive, the game tries to keep things fresh and interesting with the addition of new ballistic types, such as bombs that can be guided with your hands, but the games simplicity stops it going off the rails too much and in the end you are just firing bombs at castles level after level. This doesn’t mean the game isn’t fun to play with the addition of leaderboards and the new Famestar feature ,which allows you to unlock avatar awards by completing in-game challenges, there is enough to keep you entertained and coming back for more. This however is not the kind of game that you will be rushing home from your class/office etc. to fire up and start playing but instead will most likely be something you play to pass the time now and again for a bit of fun and to challenge your friends at.

Overall if you have a Kinect already then Wreckateer is definitely worth your time and MS points as in my opinion is one of only a few Kinect games that works to it’s full potential making it a joy to play however if you don’t own a Kinect then Wreckateer alone is not a good enough reason to rush out and purchase one as the gameplay does become limited after a while and you will soon finding yourself going back to your old more conventional games with this only being started up for a bit of fun now and again.

8/10

Did you know we are giving away a copy of wreckateer this wednesday when it releases? Well all you have to do is retweet this http://bit.ly/LIhHuj and follow us @xperiencegaming . Winner will be chose Wednesday 25th July at 12:00 PM BST