French start-up XkPad has come up with a way to move mayhem off the video screen and take it into the living room.
The company's BodyPad--which could end up a big consumer electronics hit this holiday season--is a group of wearable sensors that essentially turn a person's arms and legs into a joystick for PlayStation 2 or Xbox fighting games.
Thrusting your right arm forward at shoulder height prompts your onscreen counterpart to whack his opponent in the head with a fist. Stepping forward and pushing "down" on one of the handheld directional controllers that comes with the package results in a knee kick.
Photo: XkPad
XkPad co-founders Frederic Claudel (above)and Frederic Nicolas put the BodyPad through its paces.
"If I do this, look, I kick him (the opponent) in the head," said 29-year old Frederic Claudel, CEO of XkPad, kicking his own foot over his head. "My character might do a somersault too, but I don't need to do that."
You can play games against a computer opponent or another person. The system is also compatible with the vast majority of fighting games.
Initial sales show promise. Consumers snapped up 20,000 BodyPads--which sell for a little under $80 at the moment--in France in the first six weeks of sales, at the end of 2004. Ten thousand units got snapped up in the first two weeks of sales when released more widely in Europe, before a shortage hit. The company hopes to sell 100,000 there this year.
"Our objective is to sell 50,000 in the U.S. in 2005 and 100,000 in 2006," Claudel said. "We think that it is conceivable to hit 200,000 in the U.S. a year, in a few years."
A second product, called MagicTap, will come out at the end of the year--in Europe, at first. While BodyPad is designed for use in fighting games only, MagicTap will be a full-body controller for other games. Think sports games like driving or skiing, Claudel indicated. XkPad sells products under its own name, but also licenses the technology to companies like European console accessory maker BigBen Interactive.
Granted, the phrase "French video game" does sound like a contradiction in terms. The first thought is of titles like "The Red Balloon II--Bruno's Revenge" or "Citroen Rampage." But France, though companies like local game developer Ubisoft, accounts for 20 percent of the video game business, according to
Clara Gaymard, president of the Invest in France Agency.
Besides, European technical sophistication infused with cheesy American sensibilities is often an unbeatable combination. After all, it worked for James Bond creator Ian Fleming and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The innate appeal of BodyPad is apparent to anyone who has been a 13-year-old boy. During that period of life--which can last anywhere
Biography Michael Kanellos is editor at large at CNET News.com, where he covers hardware, research and development, start-ups and the tech industry overseas. He has worked as an attorney, travel writer and sidewalk hawker for a time share resort, among other occupations.
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