Kinect Sports Coverage Highlights

As Kinect Sports goes sprinting into Australia and NZ, just over a week since its European debut and two weeks since the initial US launch, we thought you might be interested in a round-up of some of the reviews and feedback so far. Well, you might.

Our best review in the gaming press came from good old OXM UK (9/10), who called it "the launch title that makes the most of Kinect's abilities" and finished on a nice aggregator-friendly declaration: "If you want your Christmas to be characterised by tears of laughter, this is an essential purchase."

Meanwhile, some of our other solid 8/10 reviews said the following nice things:

Edge: "This game is a fun, generous package that demonstrates effortlessly the potential of the tech that powers it, and is all too easily imagined sitting comfortably inside the disc trays of family-focused Xbox 360 owners long after Christmas has passed."

Game Informer: "Kinect Sports isn't the first game to bite Wii Sports' style, but it's one of the few to best it in execution."

Giant Bomb: "...if you do have some companions to play with, Kinect Sports can be precisely the kind of riotous party experience you would want from this type of game."

Joystiq: "In my (significant) time with it, I found an actual game that manages to deftly side-step being just a collection of tech demos through its polish, presentation and wide variety of genuinely fun activities."

IGN: "Once I realized that minor changes in technique and style for kicks in soccer, or paddle technique in table tennis yield big results, Kinect Sports really clicked."

IGN's sister site AskMen also gave us 93. Just saying.

Twitter and Facebook have been great for direct player feedback, with a consistent flow of messages thanks to Kinect being rolled out globally in stages during November. Here are a few of our favourite tweets (disregarding the ones from people cussing about their aching joints):

catojm Kinect Sports. Even now the lament of countless downstairs neighbors rings in my ears.

jacklear @RareLtd Kinect Sports: purchased. Friends: invited. Living room: cleared. Beer: chilled. Me: excited.

georgecarballo ok we just got Kinect Sports for the XBOX 360....has to be coolest thing since Mario Bros. 3

rungeordierun What a workout! An hour of playing a friend online at Kinect Sports. I'm absolutely lathered. Never laughed so much. Superb!

cowfishdreams Who knew I was THIS good at javelin? My P.E teacher certainly didn't. #KinectSports

N1GHTFALL Party play on Kinect Sports is the future. All 5 members of my family running round the living room like idiots. Brilliant

By all accounts Jonathan Ross and Emma Bunton are having fun too. Win.

Over on Facebook, the app appears to be going down well – if you haven't tried it yet, by all means click here to find out more and get in on some of the competitive league action. The more the merrier.

A big thanks from us to everyone who's picked up Kinect Sports so far. Hope you're all enjoying it and continue to do so!