Kinect Sports

Here's our official guide to Kinect Sports featuring members of the Rare team demonstrating the best techniques to use. Hope you enjoy them, good luck completing the game!

Better solution with guaranteed results. It's cheap, and you may not get it first try, but you will improve and with a few tries you should get it.

If you want to save some time, play normally to 20 hits. The important thing is to get consecutive returns so that you get time bonuses. Once things start to get reasonably tough, have an active 360 controller in your non-hitting hand with your thumb over the xbox button. As soon as you see a ball approaching, quickly hit the guide (xbox) button to force a pause game. The guide will cover the location of the ball but if you are watching carefully you will remember where the ball was headed and will allow yourself time to reposition to return the ball. Once ready, hit the guide button again to unpause and return immediately and then repause the game to prep for the next ball. This took me from 50 to 144 in my first game and 165 in my second using this way but after 150 I quit pausing. Remember, make sure to get consecutive strikes, but don't get rattled if you miss a few just come back and get the next ones, you have lots of time if you are quick to pause and position.

One thing of note: there is a slight delay in your score, so if it shows you as having 147, most likely three of your balls have already been hit but have yet to actually fall off the table which is when the score counts. So you typically have about 3 more points than you can see at any given moment using the pause/unpause method.

I got this the traditional way by just practicing and playing. It helps to get some practice by playing the actual game (up to Champion to get experience on returning faster shots) and switch hands for a game (and get another achievement) which will also help because you can get used to using your 'weak' hand which is essential in this mini game.

Initially it makes sense to simply concentrate on each ball but once you get over 70/80 it starts to get harder and the wider shots are important to return and it becomes more quick reactions. You get a time bonus for every five so if you miss one or two it is vital to concentrate and get a streak going again as this time can make or break your attempt. Make sure you get to 60+ if you can without missing any to get the best time bonuses from the start.

Frankly I got to 116 and just kept getting stuck at that with the time running out. By finally eliminating mistakes I went past it, then 130 and pretty soon I was 'windmilling' my arms and ended up with 185. In fact it was easier from 120 to 185 than from 80 to 120!