Nerf Tek Strike! Stormshield & App from Eyespy Toys Uses Bluetooth Tech to score hits, track power ups, and more. First shown at New York Toy Fair!
Say Hello to... Nerf Tek Strike. A shield/LCD readout attachment for your tactical rail on Nerf blasters to track hits/scoring, and apparently upgrade weapons/darts. I saw this during Day 1 of New York Toy Fair, and I was really intrigued. There was a prototype available, but these folks are on a good track to figuring out a new way to play. More details after the break.
What sorcery is this? RFID signals, bluetooth connectivity (the demo I saw was running off an iPod's bluetooth) smart darts (darts specific for this game style, a pack of 10 for $9.99 for instance). (edit) However, a smart device is NOT NECESSARY to play. You can also see hits/lives on the LCD readout of the device that faces you.
Have an EXCLUSIVE gallery -
It's still in the early stages of functioning, but from what I could see they have some great plans. It incorporates the natural habit of a player to pick up their opponent's ammo (using the smart darts) and then firing them back. If the darts hit the shield, you score a point. If the opponent tries to be cute and hold their blaster downward, they time out and lose a life (at least that was one measure that is in the works.) To calibrate the darts to your signal, swipe them over your screen to affix them so they hit and score on your opponents.
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| Does not need a device in the cradle to operate. A device is necessary to act as a "base" or home for the game, but it would not have to be placed in the cradle. The model I saw had its base unit kept in a cabinet nearby. |
This system is still very new, but it's a very intriguing idea. While it would require purchasing new specific darts, I think there's a definite place for this type of game, especially if it leads to being able to track hits without using velcro. In an FPS, you run forward and around with your barrel pointed forward, right? Maybe the same principle could be conceptualized here. I myself have a lot of nerf darts already, but being able to track hits and have power ups (like increased damage, and... some other settings I can't mention but they're thinking of) may just be worth the cost of a few extra darts, and maybe even if my friends and I split a few
packs.
I'll definitely be keeping an eye on the developments of this system, but it is a licensed Nerf (meaning, with their blessing) product, they're working with Nerf on how it works, and there is some serious thought going into the mechanics. I do have a video of successfully tracking hits using the screen, but I have get home first to edit it (my main computer is at home.)
My blog post and the pictures don't really do this system justice and it's really very early to say anything definite, but I'm excited for the promise of what it might mean for playing Nerf Tag and the cool people I met talking about it trying to bring this to fruition. Yes, you need to get new darts. But, it could be for a very good reason :)
What do you think? Is the idea of a Nerf-developed app/tag tracking device interesting for you, whether you play stock, modded, or HvZ?
Labels: app, eyespy toys, game, nerf, new york, play, reveal, stormshield, strike, tag, tek, toy fair
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