Exercise-based interaction techniques for a virtual reality car racing game

Using Microsoft Kinect as a whole body motion tracking system and 3D user interface, we developed two exercise-based 3D interaction techniques for a car racing game - a genre of game traditionally unrelated to physical exercise. Interaction (i.e., control of car acceleration) is enabled through the use of two real exercises 1) a half crouching exercise, and 2) a crouching and rising exercise. In two within subjects user studies, with 27 participants in half crouching and another 30 participants in crouching and rising respectively, we compared exercises in-game to the same exercises without the game, focusing on the physiological and motivational impact of mapping exercises as interfaces to games.