Xbox One: My Impressions

Disclaimer: Please note the title. These are my impressions and opinions. If you agree with my past reviews then trust me when I say that Xbox One is a great new console. They took everything that was great with Xbox 360 and made it better.

(Yes that is a trash bag, My coworkers made me do it to so we did not get robbed)

Kinect:

I know there are many people that complain about the Kinect being bundled with the console. Listen, the Kinect is a great, innovative device that you can use in a plethora of ways. The voice commands are finally refined from the previous Kinect. I no longer have to scream at the Kinect to get it to do anything. The ability to switch from hand controls to voice controls is seemless. I had no problems with switching back and forth from the TV and this makes Kinect the best TV remote on the planet. Also the Kinect reads you when you walk into the room and signs you in accordingly. It has read me standing up or sitting down with no problems.

(Some basic commands for the Kinect) 

Blu Ray:

Xbox finally has a blu ray player. You can now watch Blu Rays! I know everyone is happy. Xbox put their bet on HD movies which sadly did not pan out. So Sony no longer can hold that over Xbox’s head. It was getting annoying when people say well I bought my Playstation because it had a blu ray. *blank stare* Now people can no longer use that as an excuse; the lame excuse that it was.

(SmartGlass Avatar Dashboard)

SmartGlass:

At first I must admit I did roll my eyes at the SmartGlass concept but it has grown on me. I realized that I only had the SmartGlass app for Xbox 360 on my phone instead of the one for Xbox One so do not make the same mistake. Once I had the correct app I was surprised to see the ease that I was able to interact with my Xbox. So you essentially have three ways to interact with the console, controller, Kinect, and Smartglass.

Specs:

Yeah, so I am not going to get into all the technical specs. You can look those up if you want to know all the details. It runs great, it is quiet, and it looks great. That is all that really matters in the end right?

 
Live/Friends:

Remember your password people! You get to keep your name and interact across consoles! You now have the ability to have followers and the only way to establish a friendship is to have a two way follow. Keep that in mind.

(My mind was blown with the game being on the left. I have made the mistake of trying to put the game away on the right a few times already) 

Games:

I purchased Forza Motorspot 5 to see how the controls are and the visual effects. I also purchased Zumba Fitness: World Party in order to really put the Kinect through its paces.

(Real People!)

Zumba Fitness: World Party – First Impression

The game is the newest installment in the Zumba library. This time around there are real people doing the dances. It was creepy at first to have this real person staring at me but it was nice to see the real body movements for the moves. The Kinect worked well with recognizing my body and dinged me when I was not giving it my all. The calorie burn count worked correctly the first time around. This is essential when you enjoy working out like I do and need to keep your calorie count. The new aspect of this game is that you have to do a World Tour to unlock the songs and receive post cards. Each area of the world has a few songs that you have to perform in order to unlock that area. I scrolled through the song selection available and it was well diverse. I also noticed that there are more songs in English. Overall an enjoyable game that I recommend for an easy work out at home.

(I often find myself losing my side mirror a lot)

Forza Motorsport 5 – First Impression

This is my first Forza game. I have always been a Need for Speed kind of girl so it was interesting to play this game. I must admit that I like tricking out one car and boosting it to the extreme and yes there is a pink accent on my car. #dontjudgeme I personally enjoy the third person point of view when playing a racing game but I find that in this game, I am at my best using a 2ndperson/cockpit point of view. I find that I am better in control of the car and the handles are smoother. I am not sure if this is true for everyone. I was a little put off that I had to complete a whole tour before I could go back to my garage and use all the credits I earned. I am still trying to figure the game out and how to work everything but so far I am enjoying it. The visuals are great and I do find myself sucked into the car and feeling like I am there and that is the true test of a racing game. S/N – I drive like I do in real life, with minimal breaking. I prefer to just let go of the gas when necessary and go from there and I find that this is the most effective way of playing. It is a good overall game I just wish there were more “fun” parts to it. I am sure as I get more chances to play with friends I will enjoy it more.

Overall:

It is a great system that is more than just a gaming console but also a one stop entertainment unit. The ability to access your movie and music apps as well as your actual cable is a great feature. The ease of use with the SmartGlass is amazing and they made what was already ready good about the Kinect even better. If you have the money buy it, keep in mind that to date it is not backwards compatible but I have heard whisperings that there may be software update to allow this so we shall see. If you do not have the money or buying it for a child that does not contribute to the household I would recommend passing at this time. Be financially responsible; the 499.99 price tag is steep.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments.