Who says playing games on your phone can't get you moving?
Focus
User Experience, Visual Design, Web Design, Photography, Video, Team Management, Marketing, Exhibition
Awards
Award of Excellence 2019 · Mar 2019 Communication Arts Interactive Annual
Dream Team
Solomon Mercurio, Riley Yankowich, Amy Pham, Jack Kaiser, Megan Smith, Melissa Hochadel, Riki Mistry
Problem
We noticed that millennials lack motivation to work out and become physically fit.
Contributing factors could include the need for expensive exercise equipment and the fact that it takes constant effort over long periods of time to see the results of exercise.
Compared to technology nowadays like smartphones and social media which give instant gratification, exercise does not seem worth the time.
Millennials spend an average of 223 minutes on their phones a day.
They need a minimum of 22 minutes of physical activity a day, but only 50% of them hit this minimum requirement.
Can we take 20 minutes of their phone time and transform it into an active experience?
Solution
We found potential for a solution in endless runner games like Temple Run or Subway Surfers.
In these games, users control a character with touchscreen gestures to dodge obstacles on an endless path.
Introducing FLUX
We’ve taken endless runner gaming to the next level through full body movement.
Using mobile gaming motivates people in a non-intimidating way to stand up, and get their blood pumping on their own time, no equipment required.
FLUX redefines touchscreen gestures with full body interactions.
Running in place now powers the game
Tap to jump is now physically jumping
Swiping to change direction is now turning your body
Achieve
Achieve more physical activity and get results while doing it.
Track your progress
With each game session, users can see how long they’ve been moving and work their way up to their daily target time. For millennials, that’s 20 minutes a day.
Keep it up
Users can keep track of their active minutes and whether or not they achieve their daily goal with the activity tracker. Then, they can push themselves by raising their goal time.
Learn
Discover how physical activity improves your daily self with FLUX Facts.
Get digital rewards
We designed a reward system to motivate our users to stay on track to a healthier self. As users get achievements, they earn FLUX Facts cards.
See physical benefits
With these cards, users can learn how getting active can benefit their health, and easily spread the word by sharing them with family and friends.
Architecture
Use Case
Handset
Paired with our game is a custom protective handset inspired by workout equipment you would find in the gym.
This familiarizes users with handles that are reflected in other wellness gear and workout tools. FLUX works on its own, but the handset ergonomically makes playing the game easier as the user runs in place.
Demo
We developed and demonstrated a prototype in an exhibit at Imagine RIT, a university festival open to the Rochester community.
We had 600 players of all ages ranging from 4 to 83 test our project. We were also able to hand out 400 printed FLUX Facts to share the benefits of exercise and water to promote hydration.
Improvements
After testing our prototype, we considered a few changes.
Camera control
We found that people were confused about how to turn back in the right direction after they veered off path, so we might remove the camera turning option.
Customization
Different people have different forces when they run or jump. For example, an adult running could exert the same force as a child jumping. To detect their forces more accurately, we plan to create a calibration step in the onboarding process.
Website
Outside of the mobile application for FLUX, we have the FLUX website.
About page
Users read the story of FLUX, why it matters, how it will help them, how they can learn from FLUX, and where the application could be headed with future iterations.
Team page
Part of the challenge of photographing the team involved bringing elements from the 3D world into our photos. We wanted them to represent the energy that the application promoted while keeping the futuristic feel and look of the world.
Why does FLUX matter?
We’re on a mission to make working out more convenient and exciting with the help of technology.
In just one day we tracked 466 minutes with a live scoreboard of collaborated physical activity using just 2 test products. Imagine where we could take that in a year.
Process Deck
Project Site
Dream Team
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© 2023 Solomon F. Mercurio