14 DAY TRIAL // The team at Microsoft in charge of the Xbox One home console announces that the package for the device which includes the Kinect motion tracking system is set to be offered for a lower than normal price between February 8 and February 21 at a number of retailers in the United States of America.
The offer will allow players to pick up the complete edition of the device for 449 dollars (359 Euro) as long as they shop at Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, Target, Toys R Us, Walmart and Microsoft Stores.
It's unclear whether Microsoft has plans to introduce a similar offer for the European market in the coming weeks.
The announcement on the blog of Larry Hryb, aka Major Nelson, the main communication officer for the Xbox One, also highlights the number of high-profile video games that have been recently launched for the device, including exclusives like Halo: The Master Chief Collection, Sunset Overdrive, Dance Central Spotlight and Forza Horizon 2.
The Kinect motion tracking system is used by some of these titles, but the impact it has on actual gameplay is limited at the moment and it seems that in the future an even smaller number of titles will include significant features based around it.
When the Xbox One was first announced, the upgraded sensor was designed to be one of the main features of the device, with Microsoft envisioning a future where it would be used to manipulate the interface and allow for deeper user interactions.
When the console failed to deliver the expected sales, the company decided to drop the Kinect from the core retail package in order to reduce its price, which had a positive long-term effect.
The core Xbox One also remains cheaper in the United States
Microsoft is also offering the non-Kinect version of the Xbox One in the United States for the price of 349 dollars (269 Euro) and the company says that the price drop is only offered for a limited time, although no end date for the promotion has been set.
The move was pioneered in time for the Christmas period and has managed to drive up sales.
At the moment, the Xbox One is still behind the rival PlayStation 4 from Sony in overall sales, but it has gained a lot of momentum during the past few months.