Nintendo Announces Wii Biofeedback Sensor
By Andrew Brandt | Tuesday, June 2, 2009 at 12:12 pm
At the Nokia Theater in downtown LA this morning, Nintendo’s E3 press briefing for its new lineup included the expected cast of characters for its Wii and DS platforms. Among the announced products were more than one new Mario game, a new Metroid game, and a new feature for the DS which allows you to edit photos and upload them directly to Facebook. But the most interesting — and least discussed — new announcement was about a hardware accessory for the Wii which provides the platform with the ability to literally take the pulse of the player, while playing.
As shown in these incredibly blurry photos taken at the event, the device that Nintendo execs are calling the Wii Vitality Sensor, looks like a small plastic sleeve into which you slip an index finger. A cable connects the Vitality Sensor to the Wiimote controller.
The tease for the Vitality Sensor explained that it would give Wii developers the ability to design games that use this type of input—games which can read the player’s physical state in a way that no current-generation console can. In theory, said Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, such an accessory could be used in, for example, a game designed to help the player relax and control his or her heart rate.
While this kind of biofeedback in games isn’t exactly new–especially so for Nintendo, which released a short-lived biofeedback sensor with a game for its Nintendo 64 platform years ago — the timing of the announcement is interesting, when you consider that the other two members of the console maker’s club are expected to announce point-at-the-screen game controllers like the Wii currently uses.
I don’t think Nintendo intends to recreate The Journey to Wild Divine for the Wii, but it isn’t hard to see how, combined with the Wii Fit controller, a heart rate monitor would make a pretty useful fitness gaming accessory. A number of developers have been working on games that use biofeedback to train players to relax. A version of something similar for the Wii — which has already brought huge numbers of casual gamers into the console market — would open up the market for so-called relaxation games to a much broader audience.
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June 2nd, 2009 at 11:09 pm[…] [Link] […]
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June 3rd, 2009 at 4:16 am[…] [Link] Share and Enjoy: […]
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Nintendo’s Wii Vitality Sensor: Vaporware? | Technologizer Says:
August 4th, 2009 at 5:34 pm[…] The gadget, which supposedly measures pulse and other vitals from a player’s finger, was briefly introduced at E3 to a curious, if not bewildered press. Two months later, Nintendo brainchild Shigeru Miyamoto still […]
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Nintendo’s Wii Vitality Sensor: Vaporware? | Gameyeeeah-Wholesale Video Game Accessories Says:
August 4th, 2009 at 7:20 pm[…] Sensor. The gadget, which supposedly measures pulse and other vitals from a player’s finger, was briefly introduced at E3 to a curious, if not bewildered press. Two months later, Nintendo brainchild Shigeru Miyamoto still […]
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Nintendo’s Wii Vitality Sensor: Vaporware? | Submit Press Release Says:
August 4th, 2009 at 10:20 pm[…] Sensor. The gadget, which supposedly measures pulse and other vitals from a player’s finger, was briefly introduced at E3 to a curious, if not bewildered press. Two months later, Nintendo brainchild Shigeru Miyamoto still […]
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September 26th, 2009 at 4:57 pm[…] Ni fef ntendo Announces Wii Biofeedback Sensor | Technologizer […]
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Nintendo Plunders the Classics, Pleases the Crowd Says:
June 15th, 2010 at 3:22 pm[…] final thought: Nintendo said nothing about the Wii Vitality Sensor, which they introduced at least year’s E3 press conference. Vaporware after all? Be […]
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Nintendo Plunders the Classics, Pleases the Crowd « Claire191's Blog Says:
June 16th, 2010 at 8:00 pm[…] final thought: Nintendo said nothing about the Wii Vitality Sensor, which they introduced at least year’s E3 press conference. Vaporware after […]
June 9th, 2009 at 4:11 am
What about a suvival horror game that reads your pulse in order to find the best times to scare the hell out of you?
Can this accessory have a more “hardcore” use than for those casual games of relaxation and fitness? In my opinion this could be used so that games on wii not only make you feel like you’re inside the game, but also so that you’re game feels unique to you, interpretating your biofeedback and better suiting the way the game plays out according to your state of mind.
Speak your mind! ;D
March 25th, 2010 at 3:32 pm
I think that this technology should be incorporated into normal games to add another dimension of control and personalization, to pull you into the game more and make you more personally involved in it.
April 28th, 2010 at 11:08 am
Sounds evil: a game that can tell the best time to scare the hell out of you;-) I prefer this gadget to be used to teach people how to relax, i can imagine it to be very useful in that respect. Even at work, to increase the quality of breaks and the health of employees.