When Joy Ride was announced as a release title for the Kinect motion controller there was a seething swarm of hatred for Microsoft, as it was originally intended as a free to play digital download. Now that the dust has settled, Joy Ride has actually proved to be quite a nifty little title.
The major concern when it comes to any motion controlled game is always does it work? The simple answer is yes. Accelerating and braking are taken care of by the computer, but from there it’s up to the player to hold their hands out and steer as if driving a real car. It’s a remarkably simple yet effective control system that allows the player to power-slide by leaning their body into the turns, like we’ve all done at some point or another in our lives, and twist and lean to perform stunts in mid-air. It’s a simple concept that anyone can pick up, but it’s too simplified to provide anything but a quick blast.
