It seems that each new concept or console that emerges should have at least one if not more titles that appeal to little ones. When PlayStation Move hit the market, we saw children thrill themselves with the PlayStation Eye-Pet while others indulged in more serious type of games such as Killzone 3, Sports Champion and others. The title involved a cute critter that could be bathed, played and fed through simple gestures made by the players wielding the Move controller. Similarly, with the introduction of the Kinect for Xbox 360, we see the entry of Kinectimals that invokes the very same warm fuzzy feelings that will surely make you say ‘that’s so cute’. We prepared ourselves to go weak in the knees as we indulged in a review.
Aimed at kids who have always dreamt of owning an exotic pet, the Kinect game offers players more than just a cuddly experience like one may encounter in maybe a petting zoo of sorts minus the fur and nibbling. You are transported to a remote jungle which is filled with mystery, adventure, friendly little forest creatures and most importantly, cute cubs that belong to the ferocious cat family. After an engaging sequence that made us all warm and fuzzy inside, we had to opt from any one of the four little cubs. It was a hard choice but we finally picked the lion cub against the Bengal tiger, cheetah and black panther cubs. We however didn’t have to leave them with a heavy heart as through the course of the game, we got to re-encounter these adorable beings.
We could christen our little critter by simply shouting out its name. Once done with all the mushy stuff, we proceeded to our temporary dwelling while staying at the island. Players are given a house which was once occupied by a captain who left the area a long time ago and hasn’t returned since. The cubs and inhabitants haven’t met a human for quite some time and hence we were welcomed with open paws. The captain’s house enabled us to display all our treasure and medals gathered along the explorer’s escapades throughout the game. The interiors can also be arranged accordingly to suit each individual’s needs. The desired decorative items and furniture as well as food and toys for your pet can be brought at the lemur’s cart.
To make gameplay more interesting than just petting, bathing and socializing with animal babies, developers Frontier Developments have infused a dismembered map of the island that must be unlocked to access the different parts. It comprises of ancient ruins in the jungle, city frozen in ice, and sunken pirate ship among other places. The Tale of Felis Aurum which is a giant cat made entirely out of solid gold is what the game entices you to finally lay eyes on. We now come back to the little furry critter that is found purring at your leg, itching for some attention. The first place on the map is the Woodland Glade. The hidden areas of the glade as well as more environments with concealed parts can be unlocked and accessed through the points earned by the player.
At the Woodland Glade, you can teach the little furry cub various tricks as well as play and feed it, all with just simple gestures. Although we say they are simple, some of the onscreen actions demanded by the game can sometime find you taking on various embarrassing positions. Take for example simple commands like teaching your pet to sit, jump or stand. For the first action, you can either say the command aloud or squat and touch your knees with both hands. To gesture your pet into a ‘lie down’ position, you yourself must go down on your knees and touch the floor. Our personal favorite was the one where we taught our pet to Play Dead. We had to lie down flat on the floor with our feet forward and watch our onscreen bundle of joy doing the same as if following your lead.
Teaching the cub to beg and play peek-a-boo caught us with our hands on our chest and over our eyes respectively. Besides just training our ferociously cute cub, we could also make it ride remote control cars and play fetch by throwing balls. The provided Toy box included various play items while the Food option had loads of treats for the animal baby. Care items comprised of brushes and water bowl which further allowed us to bond with our cub. The screen displayed all the necessary information such as discovery bar that indicated hidden areas, the earned discovery points, and remaining hidden areas.
Final Word: The adorable Kinectimals for Xbox 360 is looked upon as a Kinect title that would definitely sit well with little children. The title is packed with adventures, a whole new world to discover, a pirate map and loads to explore all around the wonderful island of Lemuria. The tour guide Bumble showed us around the place and introduced us to the inhabitants. He also led us through the game indicating the actions that had to be performed as per the occasion. The Kinectimals boasts of different fantastic places but could have done with a better storyline, more animal choices and less of Bumble who can get a little annoying at times.
Graphics: 8.5/10.
Gameplay: 7.9/10.
Sounds: 7.5/10.
Environments: 8.7/10.
Replay Value: 8/10.
Overall (not an average): 8.5/10.