New Concept Gaming Ltd. has answered the prayers of gamers who for years have wished they could combine playing of Wii and PlayStation 2 games with the fun of running in place.
The Jog, or jOG in hipster screwed-up capitalization marketing speak, is a device that connects between your system's controller and the console, requiring that you run in place in order to move your character. It sounds like pure bliss, doesn't it? Well it should, dammit.
“Obesity is reaching epidemic proportions in the Western world, and many sedentary activities are being blamed, not least playing video games,” explains Brendan Ludden, Managing Director, New Concept Gaming. “jOG is a great way to banish those criticisms, and help gaming be both fun and healthy. We want to make video games good for you!”
Right now the jOG controller is only available in the UK, as exposing Americans to the product would most likely result in sarcastic blog articles, and we wouldn't want that.
NEW CONCEPT GAMING'S INNOVATIVE VIDEO GAME CONTROLLER jOG ON SALE NOW
To move in the game – you have to jOG!
Liverpool, 26 November 2008: New Concept Gaming Ltd, a company dedicated to the development and sale of ground breaking products bridging the video game and health and fitness industries, today announced that its first product, jOG™ is now on sale. Compatible with existing games consoles and games, jOG is an accessory that enables gamers to enjoy their favourite titles with a fun, immersive control mechanic at the same time benefitting from aerobic exercise – quite simply, if you want to run in the game you have to run on the spot to go.
In the basic mode of operation, the user plays their game in the normal way but with one significant difference. jOG detects when the player takes a step and only allows movement in the game while the player is jogging on the spot. Direction and all the other functions are still controlled by the standard gamepad. Using this simple approach, the team at New Concept Gaming has created a very powerful visual feedback loop bringing players deeper into the game experience and compelling them to take light exercise for the duration of game play without affecting the balance of gameplay.
jOG can be used to enhance most existing video games that feature character movement on screen –adventure games, shooters, children’s games, RPGs, sports games. Significantly, in its basic mode jOG requires no changes to any game console or software to use. Players just plug in and go.
“Obesity is reaching epidemic proportions in the Western world, and many sedentary activities are being blamed, not least playing video games,” explains Brendan Ludden, Managing Director, New Concept Gaming. “jOG is a great way to banish those criticisms, and help gaming be both fun and healthy. We want to make video games good for you!”
jOG for the PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system from Sony is available now from www.ncg-jog.com. A special Limited Edition jOG lite compatible with the Wii™ will also be available in December.