Rabbids: Alive and Kicking Kinect Review (XBox 360 Review)

rating:1.5

It's funny how the Rabbids have become so popular in their own right. Borne out of the Rayman franchise, the little white bunnies struck a chord with audiences thanks to some clever marketing and an irresistible charm that has seen them given their own franchise aside from the Rayman world. And frankly, initially it wasnt all that difficult to see why: the Rabbids world is one defined mostly by mini-games and off-kilter, odd-ball humour making them invariably engaging and easy to jump in and out of, and Alive and Kicking, the first Kinect title to feature the Rabbids, is no departure from that MO. It's disposable fun for most ages. The problem is, it's a formula we've seen too many times already: the Rabbids' shtick is all well and good up to a point, but it's effectively like being in the prolonged company of a sociopathic moron who demands all of your attention but deserves none. It's an act that has gotten old very quickly, unfortunately, and the fact that we have had the mini-game set-up punctuated by hyper-active critters before serves only to exaggerate that annoyance. The mini-games aren't much cop: there are thirty included, and so few are engaging that the game could never hope to be a success overall. Despite this being the first forray into Kinect gaming, Alive & Kicking doesn't even try to be a demonstration of what the technology can do. It feels obligatory, and a step back to be doing some of the tasks asked by the game: there is little finesse, and the potential of the technology is nowhere near explored. And while simplicity often works for the better party games (a market which this is clearly aimed at), laziness in execution is not the same thing. Fatally for a mini-game collection, Alive & Kicking gets bogged down in the transitional stages - menu pages are too fiddly, and loading takes way too long, considering the length of some of the mini-games, and once you're in the rewards just don't measure up, even to the very limited effort needed to best the games. And even worse, the control system makes the Kinect look terribly unresponsive, which is plainly not true based on other experiences with the peripheral. It's safe to say the overall experience of the game is not entirely satisfactory - I couldn't see myself returning, even in the far more forgiving environment of party play, because there just isn't enough substance to satisfy. It may be that Alive & Kicking was releasedon the wrong platform - it would probably work as a Facebook game collection or a cheap iOS option - basically as a disposable product to be dipped into now and then for very short times. But as a console game, with the noticeable extended loading times, there is too little to justify all of the waiting around. Especially when there's a load of white idiots trying their very best to annoy you. Rabbids: Alive & Kicking is available to buy now on XBox 360. You'll need Kinect to enjoy the fun though.