Eyetoy: Kinetic PS2 Review

Eyetoy: Kinetic PS2 Review - Page 1 from TweakTown's online gaming review, article and guide content pages.

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The Eyetoy has changed the way people should look at games. Sony has had a real winner on its hands with the system so far but it has never really exploited the camera to its full potential, until now. With gaming being blamed for the younger generation not being overly healthy, Sony has come up with a program we think is quite frankly brilliant. It's the program for those who don't want to or don't have time to go to the gym and just want a quick workout. It may not achieve the same results but at least you're not paying an exorbitant cost to do it, and Kinetic will give you results, as long as you combine it with a healthy diet.



If the first paragraph didn't give it away, Kinetic is all about getting gamers and users of the PS2 active and fit. Sony went all out with this one and enlisted Nike motion works, the division of the mega corporation that provides analysis for professional athletes and feedback on how to come up with the next running shoe etc. It really shows as well from the start as Kinetic has a sleek stylish presentation, but is presented in a format which even the most casual exercise fan can understand.



When you first start Kinetic you are given two options, personal trainer or build your own routine. They are fairly self explanatory but differ in many ways. Build your own routine may suit those who don't want to be put on a fitness regime for three months and just want to exercise with the program now and then, but to get the real results the fitness trainer is where you should be. When you first select this option, it asks if you want a female or male personal trainer. That's right throughout the regime of three months, this trainer will keep an eye on your progress, provide feedback and encouragement which obviously helps in the motivation stakes.



Before you begin however the game will ask your weight age and height to determine whether you are fit or not by these three factors. It then comes up with a regime which is most likely not going to cause injury. That's right, injury. Push to hard in Kinetic and you will pull a muscle. After the program is done, you have to exercise with it for every two or three days to be successful. It takes around twenty minutes to do a full routine, and you can spread this over two days if need be. At the end of each week the trainer gives you a score, and over time you should improve if you have been following the program.



Why is this game so good? Because it makes exercise fun. When I was going through the routines, I was fully getting into it, dancing and taking it quite seriously. It's strenuous, fat burning exercise but it doesn't feel like it. To help with this Sony has also licensed a number of dance tracks which is sure going to get you moving. The game will also give you a read out of the amount of calories you burnt as well as let you test your pulse to see if you can get to a high, more intense level next time. The game is fairly conservative in determining your fitness, so most of the time you will be able to move to a higher level fairly quickly.



The actual game bit of the title is done very well. As mentioned before the personal trainer continuously gives you updates on how you're going such as "try again", "good", "follow me" (a shadow of him/her appears on the screen showing how to get the most out of the game) and others. What makes the game feel serious though is how the trainers go about their job, they take it very seriously and sometimes you can feel like you're in a gym. Especially when you're doing the toning exercise, which we will warn you know, makes you endure a world of pain. However after each exercise, your body should feel refreshed, and after a few days of Kinetic you will begin to notice a difference in how you feel, especially if you have not been exercising.



Eyetoy Kinetic is one of the best uses for the Eyetoy yet and one of the most enjoyable exercise games you're likely to find. The fact it also has a personal trainer and comes up with a regime for you if you want it just makes it all that much better and we'd be surprised if anyone who took it seriously did not lose some weight of the period regime. We give this a big thumbs up, and to be honest we didn't think we would. Sony has surprised us all.

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Simon joined the TweakTown acquired 3DAvenue in 2003 as the senior console writer, and quickly worked his way into more managerial roles on top of his writing responsibilities, such as managing most PR contacts and organising new content for the website. Although Simon is more acquainted with the console market, he also likes the odd crossover, and will occasionally check out the latest PC gaming has to offer. Simon, our senior gaming editor, will continue his responsibilities from the former 3DAvenue via regular reviews.

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