CES: Bandai Unveils New Way To Play NES Games
At the winter CES, third-party licensee Bandai showed off a brand new way to play NES games – with your feet! It introduced its Family Fun Fitness Control Mat, which players place on the floor. There are eight different buttons embedded in the pad that can be activated when stepped on.
The first game shown off for this new accessory was Athletic World, which will come bundled with the mat when it comes out this summer. This game will test your physical abilities as it has you hopping, skipping, and jumping to the action on the TV. There are five different events: Hurdles, Hop A Log, Animal Trail, Rafting, and Dark Tunnel. Each will feature several difficulty settings and can be customized based on age and gender. Konami’s Track & Field may exercise your thumb, but Athletic World could provide a full cardiovascular workout!
The game wasn’t playable on the show floor, but it was demoed by a booth representative. The game looks good graphically and should be a great way to get the kids off the couch and exercising a little more. The bundle is expected to run around $80, but Bandai is promising more Game Paks will follow that will utilize the mat to make the investment worth your while.
Bandai is also releasing a brand new accessory for your NES controller. It’s called the Super Controller and it snaps on top of your existing NES pad to give it some oomph. According to Bandai:
Just place the Super Controller over the Nintendo Controller, use either the joystick or disk, and you’re ready to go. The Super Controller unit facilitates multidirectional movement and response time is quicker!
Bandai’s full brochure is below!
Craig has been covering the video game industry since 1995. His work has been published across a wide spectrum of media sites. He’s currently the Editor-In-Chief of Nintendo Times and contributes to Gaming Age.
