This reduction of gameplay would be more tolerable if not for the turtle-slow pacing of the various events. Darts is limited to 501, and tennis and skiing are functional but hardly surprising in their depth. Golf seems to naturally be the most fully realized, while baseball takes only marginal steps to improve on Wii Sports'. This streamlined description applies to the other games to some degree. There are no defensive plays or gameplay, just an animated drive summary. Then, following a touchdown, field goal or punt, you jump to a simulation screen where the AI - absent any of your influence - tries to score. You get four downs to pass the ball 100 yards for a score - no first downs, no rushing and only a few plays to choose from. Again, looking at football, the sport has been severely reduced to simply passing and kicking. First the game is extremely streamlined, and for sports fans, this isn’t usually a good thing. While most of the multiplayer events are turn-based, the controls and formats of the sports are intuitive enough to make Season 2 a good party game.Īnd then, what doesn't work: Despite the positives, there are some things holding Kinect Sports Season 2 back. I never felt the need to pick up a controller to speed things up or wonder why a limb was suddenly contorting wildly away from my body.įinally, Kinect football is a fun experience, especially with other people. Given enough space and the correct lighting, the Kinect almost became an afterthought. Secondly, I experienced fewer Kinect-related issues in this game than most others I’ve played. Even the vocal commands, from menus to calling for an audible, help solidify the idea that you are actually participating in a sport. This feeling of immersion extends to the other events, especially golf, where shielding your eyes lets you get a good look at your current hole. These things can be transferred in some degree to other other five sports (darts, baseball, tennis, skiing and golf) found in Kinect Sports Season 2.įirst, what works: There is something undeniably cool about crouching “under center,” saying “hike” and feeling the defensive pressure as you scan the field for open receivers. However, it also was extremely limited in scope and too slow paced. Generally, the football event was immersive, fun and functionally sound. More than the other events, I was most excited for football since it hasn’t been well represented in the growing “motion-sports” sub-genre. If there is one sport in Kinect Sports Season 2 that embodies all that is right - and wrong - with the game, it’s football. Kinect Sports Season 2 works as an expensive and limited mini-game collection not so much as a sports game.