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New Android game uses a smart vibrator as a controller

An iOS version is coming soon, too.

Allison Liemhetcharat

In October, roboticist and software engineer Allison Liemhetcharat announced that she had been working on a game that would use a smart vibrator as a controller. Specifically, the Lioness smart vibrator, which gathers bio-data like body temperature and pelvic pressure. Liemhetcharat said she was partly inspired by the Perifit kegel exerciser, which also uses games and a device to help people strengthen their pelvic floor. The game, an endless runner called You Are What You Eat, has been in beta since then. Today, Liemhetcharat has released the Android version, which you can now download from the Google Play Store.

Liemhetcharat told Engadget that You Are What You Eat is based on her family's favorite activity. "Our running joke is that we eat everything," she said. By itself, the game is an endless runner, with the objective of eating as many creatures as possible before dying. You begin as a blob, then grow and morph depending on what you ingest. That will also affect what you can continue to consume, as some creatures will subsequently become "inedible" based on what you've become. A WebGL version of the game is available.

But for those who own the Lioness smart vibrator, you can use it to control your slimeball. Squeeze the dildo's head (where the pressure sensors are) to jump, and do that twice to fly or jump twice. The device will also vibrate in response when you do those things or eat something.

Those on iOS won't be left out — Liemhetcharat told Engadget that a version for the iPhone is coming soon, too. So far, the game itself is simple, but the most intriguing aspect is its use of the bio-sensing vibrator as a controller. As a proof of concept, YAWYE is fairly straightforward, though we'll have to wait for medical professionals to weigh in before we can say with any certainty if it can be helpful in strengthening pelvic floor muscles.

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