Microsoft has made gaming available for download for the company's first commercial example of surface computing. The Games Pack delivers no less than four titles to the software giant's tabletop computer. In the video embedded at the bottom of this article you will be able to see the four sample applications offered by the Redmond company in action. And fact is that Microsoft Surface takes the user experience of playing games such as checkers, chess, ribbons and tiles to the next level. Access to the downloads is limited at this point in time, but, in the end, the games themselves are useless without the unique interaction model of Microsoft Surface, even though the tabletop computer has essentially Windows Vista at the heart.

“We've recently made available a group of sample applications for our Microsoft Surface customers as a download on our Community site. These applications are targeted at hospitality and entertainment venues. See the video below for a demo of the apps, or learn more here if you're a registered customer,” Eric Havir, sr. manager, Digital Communications at Microsoft/Surface, revealed.

The four titles in the Microsoft Surface Games Pack represent a successful combination of the classical games, especially when it comes down to chess and checkers and their digital variants. Users are able to interact with the board, resize it and reposition it easily, and even lock it in place. At the same time, interaction is possible with the games' pieces. Once the artificial intelligence is turned off, users can perform a variety of actions, including sliding and throwing the pieces across the table. Of course, unlike in real life, they can also leverage a reset button designed to rectify all inappropriate changes.

The Microsoft Surface Games Pack is a clear illustration of where the Natural User Interface of Windows 7 has the potential to take games. Windows is traditionally the number 1 gaming platform around the world. With the introduction of the NUI, allowing players to literally have titles at their fingertips via touch, Windows 7 can kick the gaming experience up a notch. Provided that developers rise up to the challenge.