There are a variety of games that are designed to be controlled by movements of the player's arms, legs or other parts of their body. Some of these games require very controlled movement. Others, however, can be enjoyed even by people who find controlled movement difficult. These are a few examples of devices that can be used to control games using body movement:
Action Stick
The “Action Stick” has 8 sensors positioned on a floor-mounted, upright telescope stand. These sensors pick up the movement of hands, arms, legs, feet etc. and then translate the movement into some form of action on the screen. Depending on the game, the action stick could be used by people who can only use their hands and arms.
For more information on the Action Stick, click here.
WebCam
An increasing number of Windows-based games are becoming available that rely on body movement and can be played by moving in front of a WebCam, which is usually placed centrally on top of the monitor. An internet search for 'WebCam Games' returns hundreds of options - many of which are free to try.
Eye Toy
Playstation's EyeToy is a camera based device which has a range of specially designed games that are controlled by moving parts of the body. It is not a PC based device; instead it works with a TV and a Playstation, but it has a range of great body-movement controlled games. For more information on the EyeToy, click here.
Dance Mat
A dance mat is exactly what it says it is. There are a range of games for the PC and PlayStation that encourage you to interact with the program by dancing, often to sequences that should be memorised, on the mat.
G-Pad Pro Gyroscopic GamePad
This game controller uses motion sensing technology to allow accurate and life-like control over the gaming environment. The controller is rotated on four planes in 3 dimensional space to gain four modes of control. It can be used in conjunction with other access devices and works with most PC/PS2 games. For more information on the Gyroscopic GamePad click here.
