The Gunstringer Review

The Gunstringer is Kinect’s best game. The best of the best! It has to mean a lot since it’s been one year since Kinect came out. I haven’t been engrossed in such a motion controller game for a long time now. It’s a cleverly crafted game worked around the strengths of the Kinect and there are a very few moments in the game where you go, “why doesn’t this thing work properly!” I’m sure plenty of you have faced this situation when playing a Kinect game, but showcasing the capability of the sensor is pretty tough, and Twisted Pixel are the studios that get it right. The game controls like a charm.

You play as The Gunstringer, and the central theme of the game is revenge. Yeah, nonsensical plot but what did you expect? So you take revenge on people and mow down tons of them on your way. It’s an on-rails game, so you really don’t have to do anything. The game controls the character for you, but you can move sideways using your left hand and it is pretty responsive. The movement is usually for dodging obstacles like rocks or hiding behind cover and peeking out to kill your foes. It rarely becomes annoying, or you don’t really encounter any discomfort when playing the game.

The narration in this game is splendid and keeps the game really exciting, and sort of reminds me of the XBLA game called Bastion. The quality of voice over is simply phenomenal. These are the things that make you immersed in the game, and Twisted Pixel knows that. There is a reason Microsoft bought them, as their work with this Kinect game is simply second to none. It’s an extremely entertaining game where you are the puppet and the developers are the puppet masters. It’s so cleverly done and seamlessly integrated that you will just keep on playing it.

You shoot with your right hand and all you have to do is move your shoulder up and the auto lock on does its trick. The game sends you to various western locations which are decently created and for an arcade game it looks pretty good. There will be a large circle which you have to hover over your foes to make them light up, which means they are targeted. You can kill 5-6 enemies with each shot along with various environmental hazards like TNT and so on. There are some platforming sequences in the game where you have to use your left hand to jump. It is extremely responsive again, and I really have to say, they nailed the controls in this game. If anyone asks you Kinect isn’t that good or unresponsive, show them this game.

There are a lot of enemies on display here, including ghosts. You can blast away all of them. The game has a lot of unlockables that will keep you busy, which includes behind the scenes footage. The retail copy also comes with a copy of Fruit Ninja HD, which if you have played on the iOS, is a terrific game and works well on the Kinect. The game also supports co-op and can be a blast playing with a friends. The Kinect accommodates them all pretty easily. Should I say that this is the best game that is on Kinect? Definitely is. Not only is the game fun but if you own a Kinect this should be in your collection, simply because it works really well.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox 360.