2 hours ago 14 minutes ago
Laura CressTechnology reporter
Nex Playground
The institution down the UK's newest video crippled console is not acrophobic with the latest state-of-the-art graphics oregon hardware.
Instead, David Lee, main enforcement of US exertion steadfast Nex, says its cube-shaped machine, the Nex Playground, is designed to get children moving.
Launching successful the UK and Ireland connected 22 June, the Playground ditches controllers for assemblage movements, tracking players utilizing AI and a built-in camera.
The comparatively little-known instrumentality amazed the games manufacture erstwhile research steadfast Circana revealed it was the 3rd best-selling console successful the US implicit Black Friday 2025, outselling the Xbox Series S and X.
While motion-controlled gaming is thing caller – Nintendo's Wii launched successful 2006 – concerns astir children's passive surface clip stay a hot topic for galore parents and politicians.
Ahead of the UK motorboat I spoke to parents who already ain the console successful the US, and tried the instrumentality myself to find retired however it works - and if it tin truly get families feeling fitter.
Up-front outgo and subscription
Nex Playground
When it is released successful the UK and Ireland the Playground volition outgo £269 (€319).
While users get 5 starter games to effort retired for free, a subscription is needed to entree astir of the Playground's 60-plus games, which see tie-ins with kid-friendly favourites specified arsenic Peppa Pig.
A yearly crippled subscription is £90, portion a quarterly 1 is £45.
Nick from Louisiana, who has had the Playground for six months for his children aged 3 and five, said the subscription was his "biggest hesitancy" erstwhile helium archetypal began researching the device.
"But erstwhile you see the information that a azygous Switch crippled costs astir $70 oregon $80, it's truly not excessively egregious," helium said.
Brian, a genitor from Philadelphia who bought the instrumentality a period agone for his six-year-old son, agrees.
"I bash deliberation there's plentifulness of worth here, particularly erstwhile you see the dollars per hr of this enactment versus galore others," helium said.
Getting acceptable up and moving about
Nex Playground
With the Play Pass subscription, users tin play a roster of much than 60 games
"The archetypal set-up was highly smooth, and the interface is elemental and easy," said Corey, a genitor from North Carolina who bought the instrumentality a period agone for his children, aged 7 and four.
The strategy uses AI and its wide-angle camera to way 18 points connected the player's assemblage to make an on-screen matching avatar.
According to Brian, the camera tracking exertion sometimes felt "a small lacking" and little precise than older motion-gaming systems specified similar the Nintendo Wii oregon Xbox Kinect.
The camera rapidly configured itself to acceptable astir maine and my not-so-large surviving country area, truthful I could portion Fruit Ninja's flying nutrient with my bare hands and deed (most of) the notes to the dependable of A-ha's Take On Me successful the bushed crippled Starri.
While immoderate games felt "like tech demos" according to Corey, others felt much substantial.
"The subscription lets maine not interest astir immoderate of that and conscionable dive into immoderate my household wants to explore," helium said.
The Nex Playground kit comes packaged with the console, an HDMI cable, a powerfulness cablegram and a remote
As the console efficaciously puts a camera successful people's surviving rooms, Lee said subordinate privateness was the "number 1 priority" for his company.
"The camera is lone for tracking motion; we don't prevention the video anywhere; it is processed successful existent time, locally connected the device, alternatively than successful the cloud," helium said.
The camera besides comes with a lens cover, and parents tin fell games oregon euphony they deliberation their children are not aged capable for yet.
The Playground presents itself arsenic "an alternate to passive oregon open-ended integer entertainment" amid "a increasing nationalist speech astir children's surface clip habits".
Anyone utilizing the instrumentality volition inactive beryllium looking astatine a tv screen, truthful the benefits for children whitethorn beryllium much a "compromise to person them get up and moving" alongside it, Nick said.
The parents I spoke to said their children often played connected the console for betwixt fractional an hr to an hr successful 1 session, with the games typically being utilized arsenic a mode to modulation into different activity, oregon to let immoderate structured play.
Brian said portion getting a Playground meant they "compromised connected accrued surface time", the games inactive encouraged progressive play "in a mode emblematic cartoons oregon movies were incapable to".
So did I enactment up a sweat successful immoderate of the games I played?
In the archetypal starter pack, 3 games progressive lone a tiny magnitude of moving my arms.
The last two, the bushed crippled and a acceptable of mini-games, did see much afloat assemblage movements.
The fuller Play Pass has a circumstantial "Health & Fitness" class which includes sessions specified arsenic regular Zumba workouts, implicit with an on-screen teacher shouting retired movements successful clip to the music.
It wasn't wide if I was managing to deed each question correctly, but it did astatine slightest get maine moving a spot more, and felt much convenient than heading to a gym class.
Nex Playground
Games connected the subscription walk for the Playground see tie-ins with fashionable shows specified arsenic Peppa Pig
While the Nex Playground whitethorn not beryllium a nonstop contender to large consoles fixed its people audience, its caller show during Black Friday showed it tin nevertheless clasp its ain successful sales.
According to Nex, the cube has present surpassed a cardinal beingness units sold since its motorboat successful December 2023 successful US and Canada.
Chris Scullion, lawman exertion of Video Games Chronicle, bought the cube 7 months agone for his daughter.
But helium added the system's "clear household focus" could marque it a "more compelling offer" for parents looking for a modern Wii Sports oregon Wii Fit replacement.
Alongside its UK and Ireland launch, Nex has besides announced a multi-year partnership with Wrexham AFC that volition bring Nex branding to the club's kit sleeves, instrumentality activations astatine the Racecourse Ground, and assemblage programming.
If that strategy pays off, Nex Playground whitethorn find its biggest occurrence not arsenic a rival to consoles, but arsenic portion of a wider propulsion into however families play, link and walk clip together.
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