BackgroundThe present study examined the effects of a balance-based exergaming intervention using the Kinect sensor on postural stability and balance in people with Parkinson’s disease (PD).MethodsWe conducted a subject-blinded, randomized controlled study. Twenty people with PD (Hoehn and Yahr stages I through III) were recruited and randomly assigned to either a balance-based exergaming group (N = 10) or a balance training group (N = 10) for an 8-week balance training period. Postural stability was assessed using the limits of stability (LOS) and one-leg stance (OLS) tests. Balance was assessed using the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and the timed up and go (TUG) test. Participants were assessed pre- and post-training.ResultsAfter training, participants in the balance-based exergaming group showed significant improvements in LOS performance, and in the eyes-closed condition of the OLS test. Both training programs led to improvements in BBS and TUG performance. Furthermore, balance-based exergaming training resulted in significantly better performance in directional control in the LOS test (78.9 ± 7.65 %) compared with conventional balance training (70.6 ± 9.37 %).ConclusionsBalance-based exergaming training resulted in a greater improvement in postural stability compared with conventional balance training. Our results support the therapeutic use of exergaming aided by the Kinect sensor in people with PD.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov.NCT02671396Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12984-016-0185-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.