Microsoft confirms Kinect release line-up

Seventeen games launching with accessory in US, nineteen in Europe

News by Dan Pearson Contributor

Published on Oct. 18, 2010

Larry Hryb has announced the full line up of seventeen US Kinect launch titles on his Major Nelson blog, with an announcement on European games due later today.

The full list features nine sports, dance and fitness titles, a number of minigame compilations and a few traditional games, including Sonic Free Riders and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Fitness games due on release day are Your Shape: Fitness Evolved, The Biggest Loser Ultimate Workout, EA Sports Active 2 and Zumba Fitness. Sports games include Kinect Sports, MotionSports and Deca Sports, and the two dancing titles are Dance Central and DanceMasters.

Also available at launch will be first-party releases Kinect Adventures, Kinectimals and Kinect Joy Ride, joined by Game Party: In Motion, Adrenalin Misfits and Fighters Uncaged.

Hryb was also keen to highlight the fact that some retailers have been reporting that pre-order allocations of Kinect have sold out already.

"I am getting reports of many retailers being sold out of their Kinect pre-order allotment, so if you have not placed your order yet you may want to take care of that," Hryb told Major Nelson readers.

Elsewhere, the New York Post is reporting that the marketing budget assigned to Kinect is $500 million, equal to that of the original Xbox.

"Kinect is the largest, most integrated marketing initiative in Xbox history, bigger than its launch," Xbox global marketing communications manager Robert Matthews told the NYP. "We are going to be spending millions to launch this globally."

The article also indicates that Microsoft has founded advertising partnerships with Burger King, Pepsi and Kelloggs and that Kinect will be staging a takeover on YouTube's homepage for the launch.

UPDATE

The European launch line-up has now been confirmed, with two extra games accompanying Kinect's release on 26 November: Get Fit With Mel B and Dance Paradise. Full list below.