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Thursday, May 5, 2011

Best Xbox 360 Educational Game


The world of console gaming at home has just become more exciting with new titles that take advantage of Xbox 360 motion-sensing control technology. Microsoft's Kinect motion-controlled system for its Xbox 360 allows you to enjoy the latest Xbox games without wired controllers getting in the way.

How does Kinect work?

To work properly, Kinect sensor has to sit in front of you, and along the same plane of your TV. Using an array of cameras and microphones to detect and track the movement of up to two players, the Kinect will translate the motions into game control signals. You jump and your character onscreen jumps. Whichever way you look at it, the Kinect certainly adds a new dimension to your gaming experience.

If your children love Kinect and are excited about buying the latest Xbox 360 game, it is a good idea to check what the kids are playing with so you can exercise your judgment on what goes into your kid's Xbox console. Here are the top three educational games for the Xbox 360, with or without Kinect, that any child will enjoy, and are just as entertaining for adults in the family.

Kinectimals

Designed to enthrall the youngest Xbox players, Kinectimals, as the name suggest, uses the Kinect game peripheral to interact with 20 various animals in high definition video. These cuddly animals can be trained as they mimic your movements like jumping and spinning that brings the gaming experience into a whole new dimension for kids. If there's one game that can teach young children about loving animals, this has to be it. But that doesn't mean older pet lovers in the family are too old to enjoy it. Who doesn't enjoy tiger and lion cubs that react warmly to your petting?

LEGO Harry Potter

When you have two of the most popular names in kid's play and the movie world, you just can't fail. Targeting young kids, the LEGO Harry Potter game is a marriage of our favorite Danish building bricks with the Hogwarts characters of J.K. Rowling. In this game, Harry goes through his first four years in the Hogwarts school of magic. Fans of the books can easily recognize the characters in the series even if they appear as stiff LEGO characters. Parents or older siblings will need to help younger kids navigate through the game and solve its tricky puzzles, making it a terrific game for the entire family.

Toy Story 3

Now who can't fall in love with the lovable Woody and Buzz Lightyear franchise, especially with the highly acclaimed 3rd installment? This is not just for kids, but for kids at heart as well. While not all games based on movies are good, this is one gem of an exception, even if it's not one of the Xbox games that require a Kinect sensor. Apart from sticking close to the movie's storyline, you get to play through various puzzle activities with your choice of character. Aside from this, there is also a "Toy Box" mode that lets you explore creative worlds of each toy character found in the movie like race cars in a farm circuit and army toys parachuting onto targets.