Automakers Heavily Investing in Gamification

Auto Tech Outlook | Tuesday, January 24, 2023

Companies chase every avenue to attract customers in this competitive market.

FREMONT, CA: Every new vehicle release brings in a new rival for companies, and the market seems to be producing new cars on a daily basis. In this cutthroat environment, businesses are pursuing every opportunity to draw clients. 

Designers are concentrating on the total in-car experience in addition to a vehicle's aesthetic appeal and the pleasure of being in the driver's seat. Particularly with EVs and their time-consuming charging, this is the case. Automobile manufacturers strive to keep us entertained because driving can be monotonous.

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The Swiss startup N-Dream, which created the AirConsole gaming platform, is one business that has entered this market. After observing people playing games on their phones despite a giant screen in front of them while charging their electric vehicles, N-Dream CEO Anthony Cliquot was inspired to develop an in-car gaming experience.

The startup recently disclosed cooperation with BMW (ETR: BMW) to bring AirConsole and thousands of games to the dashboard screens of the latter's vehicles. They use smartphones as a controller, and the games are instantaneously downloaded over the air.

The investment in in-car entertainment is not limited to BMW. With its initial rollout of gaming possibilities and sing-along karaoke in 2019, Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) stood out from the crowd. They can play using their own controller, touching the screen or using the steering wheel. To help them properly scream out those power ballads, Tesla even started selling microphones earlier this year in China.

When the Tesla was first released, the front passenger seat could be used for gaming. However, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) inquiry raised concerns about driver distraction and a potential violation of The Vehicle Safety Act, prompting the OEM to remove the feature in December 2021.

This law forbids automakers from marketing automobiles with flaws that pose unreasonably high hazards to safety, including features that obstruct safe driving. It offers an opportunity for other vendors to learn.

Despite these legal concerns, this type of in-car entertainment is just gaining popularity, and gaming will be at the forefront.

Autonomous vehicles are coming

In the near future, everyone will focus on automation, although exactly when that will happen is unknown. Instead, robots and algorithms will take care of things for us. Because companies know they’ll spend hours in self-driving cars looking for things to do, automakers are already preparing for this.

Mercedes-Benz (ETR: MBG)  is currently developing and testing this thesis in Germany. On 13,191 kilometres of highway that the German Federal Motor Transport Authority certified for conditionally automated driving in December, the business received system approval for Level 3 conditional autonomous driving under UN-R157 (KBA). This enables the business to launch its self-driving technology while enhancing in-car entertainment.

This ultimate luxury experience enables clients to regain valuable time while driving through work or relaxation. For instance, customers can send messages and emails using the head unit, contact coworkers via in-car office tools, browse the internet, or unwind and watch a movie. Better yet, engage in a game. While some individuals will wish to use the time they spend getting to work, the majority will view this as leisure time. They'll have their commute back, and this is a gaming hotspot.

The driverless car may be used for work and recreation with just a little software addition from corporations like Mercedes-Benz. By doing this, the car becomes more than just a means of transportation, blending the actual world with the virtual one.

In 1989, sociologist Ray Oldenberg invented the idea of the third place. It serves as a gathering place or home away from home. It offers a crucial space apart from home and work. And they can already see that automakers are investing in in-car entertainment to make automobiles a third destination. This third position is on the verge of breaking through.

Few people, as indicated, prefer cars solely to serve as mobile offices. Others can already use their phones or iPad to send emails or participate in Zoom meetings, but gaming has the potential to exploit the processing power and big screens in cars in entirely new ways. Change is already in the air. Elon Musk has been updating Twitter users on Tesla's efforts to integrate Steam into its automobiles.

Instead of the inconvenience of Tesla transferring individual games, Steam integration would make 30,000 games potentially available to Tesla users who could stream games directly to their automobiles. It would also give access to an amazing library of books. Crossplay and taking up a game on the PC exactly where left it would also be possible.

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