InterAction Laboratories (IA-Labs), a leader in the development of active gaming technology, today announced plans to introduce a strength-based controller for the Nintendo Wii game console. The new controller will be called the Exer-station Wii.
Similar to the standard Wii controller, Exer-station Wii will involve the player's entire body instead of just their hands/thumbs. Exer-station Wii is unique in that will engage players with resistance-based (vs motion-based) control and will work on the Wii console with any of the hundreds of game titles that were originally developed for the Nintendo GameCube. The resulting experience is far more immersive, precise, and fun than traditional control methods, all while burning calories, building muscle, and promoting good health.
Exer-station Wii is being built around IA-Labs' critically acclaimed, CES Innovation-of-the-Year winning and patented ISOCOR technology. The harder the user pushes, pulls and leans the controller, the faster their character moves in the game. Significant features of the technology are that it:
Requires no additional software to be written to provide dynamic force effects — it works with existing off-the-shelf games
Has low latency — reaction times are instant
Outputs a wide dynamic range — control is precise
Has no moving parts — it is inherently reliable
Creates the sensation of DIRECT PHYSICAL CONNECTION with the game.
"The development of Exer-station Wii is part of InterAction Lab's long-term strategy is to make the ‘digital world' a physically active place," explains Greg Merril, CEO of IA-Labs. "Lack of physical effort makes video games less fun and has even been linked to the obesity epidemic."
"Developing a Wii compatible version of the Exer-station was a natural decision. The entire focus of the new Nintendo system is ‘physically active gaming', and it's a great system, but because the standard Nintendo controller only responds to gestures, the player gets no physical sense of inertia, weight, or effort. With Exer-station Wii players will be immersed in the game through variable resistance from 1 lbs to over 150 lbs — the sensation is DIRECT PHYSICAL CONNECTION to your character in the game"
InterAction Labs will simultaneously release an Exer-station model (called the Exer-station 360) designed specifically for use with the Microsoft Xbox 360. The Exer-station Wii and Exer-station 360 models will be available for purchase in October directly from www.ia-labs.com.