Seriously, this shyt is like, for real.. ?
The latest in Wii technology: video game urinals. o_____o
Visitors at The Exhibit Bar in Balham can now play one of three games every time they use a urinal. (For guys only, obviously. Sexism? *rolls eyes*)
The video game has been trialled in a bar in Cambridge since mid-July and it has proved to be both popular and profitable.. (uhm. how?)
One of the game's co-founders, Gordon MacSween, was not sure how the public would react to the game initially. But as soon as he saw the game on trial at a bar in Cambridge he knew he was on to something good. (T_T)
The game was designed to create a valuable media opportunity from the 55 seconds the average male spends while he pees just staring at a blank wall. (Technology -- Takes advantage of you when you're peeing .__. Is nothing sacred?)
There is an advert played before and after the game promoting a drink you can buy at the bar. (Is this really wise? I mean, you're in a toilet here =.=)
At the end of the game, players are encouraged to post their scores via mobile to Twitter and to a live leader board so they can compete with their friends. (Is this something to be proud of? :O)
The units will be officially rolled out in certain venues across the UK in 2012.
*NOTE: The words in brackets are my own personal thoughts. Hope they're not offensive in any way.
Turns out that SEGA had already came up with this idea in January this year.
In the early ’90s, Sega held 65% of the US video game console market, had millions of fans, and was considered one of the premier creators of modern gaming entertainment. Today, they are helping you play with your pee. The Japan branch of the multinational company recently announced that they are testing their Toylets male urinal game at select locations around Tokyo. Toylets uses a pressure sensor located on the back of the urinal to measure the strength and location of your urine stream. A small LCD screen above the urinal allows you to play several simple video games including a simulator for erasing graffiti and a variation on a sumo wrestling match. At the end of a game, the screen displays advertisements. Normally when I see something like this I would reach for my enormous "WTF, JAPAN?!" flag, wave it around a few times and then return to my life without giving it much further thought. However, I can’t seem to get Toylets out of my mind, because I have a sneaking suspicion that it’s secretly brilliant and maybe even a sign of things to come. Whether you find the concept hilarious, disturbing, or disgusting, urinal video games are simply another way that interactive media could invade every part of our lives. It also shows that no space is safe from digital ads.
Don't like graffiti? Who does? Use your urine to wash it away, and compete in this time trial.
First, let’s have a big round of honesty here. How many guys out there have never made a game out of peeing? (Liars.) Sure, it’s childish, but maybe it’s part of the male psyche. Now, look at Toylets. Very weird, very childish, but…c’mon…if it just so happened to be in the bathroom you were using you would play it, right? The game could be enticing to that silly part of you that finds peeing fun, and it definitely is trying to appeal to its (presumably) male audience. According to Sega and Akhibara News reports that the four types of video games on the Toylets include:
“Mannekin Pis”: a simple measurement of the urine produced.
“Graffiti Eraser”: where you move your urine back and forth to remove paint
“The North Wind and Her”: a game where you play the wind, trying to blow a girl’s skirt up. The stronger you pee, the stronger the wind blows.
“Milk from Nose”: A variation on sumo wrestling, where you try to knock the other player out of the ring using the strength of your urine flow (shown as milk spraying from your nose). The record of your pee is saved and used as the opponent for the next player. So the game is sort of multiplayer. Toylets even lets you save information onto a USB drive!
“Graffiti Eraser”: where you move your urine back and forth to remove paint
“The North Wind and Her”: a game where you play the wind, trying to blow a girl’s skirt up. The stronger you pee, the stronger the wind blows.
“Milk from Nose”: A variation on sumo wrestling, where you try to knock the other player out of the ring using the strength of your urine flow (shown as milk spraying from your nose). The record of your pee is saved and used as the opponent for the next player. So the game is sort of multiplayer. Toylets even lets you save information onto a USB drive!
The Milk from Nose game lets you compete against past users for strongest flow. Pee, pee for victory!
Getting men to enjoy using a urinal is simply one side of the equation, however. Making money is the other. Digital signs are already in many bathrooms in major cities in the US. I remember seeing them in New York back as far back as 2007. Mostly these ads were ignored like all other things in the Men’s restroom. But what if that ad was part of a video game…you might pay more attention to it then. Making advertisements interactive is one of the ways in which the marketing medium is evolving, and you can see that phenomenon everywhere on the internet from Facebook to pop-up ads. The other big innovation, making ads personalized, is also creeping from the digital world into reality. Considering that Toylets allows you to save data to a USB, there are chances we’ll see the same sort of customization available there as well.
Oh, sure, you'd want to save your high score... WTF, JAPAN!
Shucks, I gotta get this outta my head... T_T
Yours with a cherry on top,
Qi Cheng
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