Microsoft bets on gesture over touch

REDMOND, Washington — Microsoft has one-upped Sony and Nintendo by eliminating game controllers. Kinect, a $150 addon for the popular Xbox 360 console that hits stores this month, peers out into a room, locks onto people and follows their motions.

With its almost magical gesture and voicerecognition technology, Kinect stands as Microsoft's most ambitious, risky and innovative move in years. "For me it is a big, big deal," says Steven A. Ballmer, Microsoft's chief executive. "There's nothing like it on the market."

But some note that the first batch of Kinect games — involving water rafts, Ping-Pong paddles, yoga — are unlikely to excite gamers. "It's not being used to its full potential in gaming yet," says Joel Johnson, an editor at large at Gizmodo, the gadget site.