When Minecraft was announced as coming to the Xbox 360 it was the first console that was going to get Minecraft, so there was a lot of excitement. Perhaps it also helped that Microsoft showed off the unique Kinect interface that was supposed to be part of the game. The idea of being able to actually use Kinect to dig with your hands was a very unique feature.
We have now learned that the Kinect support that was expected to be part of Minecraft will not be a part of the release that is coming on May 9th. In addition, Microsoft is now non-committal about whether Kinect support will be added to the title in the future. While they have not excluded the possibility that it might be in an update for the game, they are not saying that it will be, either.
Besides the lack of Kinect support, we are already hearing a lot of moans and groans from those who are beating the drums again about the high cost of Xbox Live Arcade titles. Many are already commenting that they thought Microsoft would be selling Minecraft for $15 (1,200 Microsoft Points), the news that it is going to cost $20 (1,600 Microsoft Points) has surprised a lot of would-be buyers.
Users are already griping that it is too expensive and that it would have to add a lot of additional value (that they cannot get out of the PC version) for them to buy it for the their Xbox 360s. The decision to drop Kinect support could hurt the title more than Microsoft might think.