For some people, sport is an obligation, not a pleasure. You have to decide: do something for physical fitness or devote yourself to your favorite hobby? In the best case, you have the skill to combine both. Mike Choi, from near San Francisco, did just that. For six months he worked to turn a video game into a workout.
To do this, the hardware engineer integrated his fitness bike into the racing game “Mario Kart”, which has been popular for decades. At first glance, this may sound like a concept that only works with a lot of imagination. But in fact, the video game can be controlled with an exercise bike and the «Ring Fit» fitness tool, more on that later. The 27-year-old American worked on this gaming workout for a full six months.
What is «Mario Kart» – and what does it have to do with sports?
Mario Kart is one of the most famous and popular video games in the world. The first edition was released in 1992 for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). Since then, numerous other games have appeared for the current consoles. The game is about racing with well-known game characters, such as Super Mario or Princess Peach. Either against opponents controlled by the console or against your own friends. It is estimated that around 100 million Mario Kart games have been sold worldwide since 1992. Choi conceived his invention for the Nintendo Switch game Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
This video game may not sound sporty at first. But Japanese gaming giant Nintendo, which publishes Mario Kart, has developed numerous other games that require physical activity. For the console Wii there is z. B. Games where you can dance, play tennis or do full-body workouts. Your own movements are recorded by controllers or boards with sensors and integrated into the game, where you can collect points by making correct movements, for example. Mike Choi used part of this interactive technique to turn his exercise bike into a controller.
Also interesting: Nobody has ever sat longer on a bicycle ergometer
This is how the home trainer became part of a video game
Speaking to the Washington Post, Choi says he’s not particularly into sports, but finds fitness games fascinating. However, since most of them are not very engaging and he has never been with him for more than a few weeks, he has built something of his own: «The central question is how can you train without having the feeling that you are training?» In a 24-minute YouTube video, Choi shows how his invention works in the form of a parodic advertisement. «Everything you see in the video is real,» promises Choi. “It works exactly as I explain it. I use it all the time.”
This is what Choi’s homemade training equipment looks like. The cardboard on the bike has no function, it pays homage to a Nintendo do-it-yourself kit made out of cardboard.Photo: Video Screenshot/Mike Choi
«It» is the «Labo Fit Adventure Kart Kit», as the 27-year-old calls his game extension. Choi drives his racing car with the pedals of the home trainer in «Mario Kart». So if he slacks off with his pedaling, he’ll also lose speed in-game. Steering works via «Ring Fit», a ring that Nintendo developed for its fitness games. Other in-game functions can be activated by squeezing or shaking the ring that Choi has equipped with sensors. Incidentally, since the ring is a piece of sports equipment, it takes some muscle power to squeeze it for longer than a few seconds. The ring looks like a steering wheel, says Choi. “It was a pretty easy fix to get the steering right. Activating the in-game features by pressing the ring was really hard. But I found it to be the key to a full body workout.”
For the ring, Choi has developed a kind of mini-robot called «TAPBO». The holds the game controller on the ring and converts the control signals from the connected devices into button inputs. An example: If you have reached a certain speed while pedaling, the «TAPBO» activates the button that you have to hold down in normal play to accelerate. By the way, he didn’t change anything about the software because Nintendo doesn’t allow it.
Also interesting: The right equipment for every home gym size
Is this type of training worth it?
Definitely for Mike Choi. According to the inventor, his game expansion was definitely worth the six months of construction. So he found a new way to interact with the game and work on his fitness. «If there’s anything that can motivate me to train, it’s definitely that.» The praise is also piling up in the comments under his YouTube video. Although it is said to be very difficult to win a «Mario Kart» race with the home trainer, it is certainly all the more fun not just to literally step on the gas, but to drive the racing car by pedaling it yourself.
For those who find it difficult to exercise, combining training with fun activities should help. Anyone who does not have the technical skills to integrate their home trainer into a video game can, for example, listen to an audio book, watch a series or telephone friends who also do sports while training on the fitness bike. In addition, training apps such as «Zwift» or «Rouvy» in connection with a smart fitness bike offer similar video game character through virtual races or community rides.
Either way: stay active and have fun!