Fru
Games That Will Make You Miss the Kinect
While commemorating the Kinect, we could not leave this gem behind. Fru is the last title for Microsoft’s cam-and-mic device that goes beyond simply requiring it and feels like a fresh touch on the 2D platformer genre in general. In Fru, your silhouette becomes a part of the level design, helping a tiny charming heroine push through small, yet still challenging levels. Having your body shape projected onto the surroundings, you felt more like a part of a game itself, which is an aspect undeservedly neglected by game designers. Players would uncover hidden platforms, lead a little girl through the scenery like she’s a ghost and assume a lot of ridiculous postures. It masters the coherent style and encourages creative use of the environment with the clear meaningfulness of a player’s input. Lastly, the fact that, as a Kinect game, it escaped the fate of being a technical disaster makes one really appreciate Fru for merely existing.
