Mr Toprak testing Cart-Load-o-Fun in a train. (Picture provided by: Australian Design Centre)
RMIT University student Chad Toprak has created a commuting game called Cart-Load-o-Fun to make travelling in public transport a fun experience.
Cart-Load-o-Fun was created in the Exertion Games lab at RMIT, which is focused on the merging of “play” and the active human body.
The game needs two players who work together moving a dot around a screen to pick up gems avoiding rival players.
The dot is controlled by squeezing pads on the overhead handholds on a tram, with movement of the vehicle part of the game.
While the tram moves, players have to control their movement with the handholds, making a regular commute into a fun activity.
Cart-Load-o-Fun is a versatile game suitable for public transport vehicles like buses, trains, or trams.
The planning of the game started in early 2012, and its development started in July of that year as one of Mr Toprak’s PhD projects.
Mr Toprak said the project aims to get game designers and the general public to rethink where, how, and with who games are played with.
“We used to have spaces like video game arcades where we interacted with strangers, we played games, and we had fun,” said Mr Toprak.
“We don’t get that often anymore. I thought it would be interesting if we could interact with strangers, and play games in a different space, in a different way, with different people.
“I was mainly inspired by my own experiences with public transport; there have been times when you’re shoulder to shoulder with people standing, and people next to you aren’t really doing much.”
The game has been trialled several times with Yarra Trams, and was presented in Chania, Greece this year at the Foundation of Digital Games conference.
Mr Toprak said Cart-Load-o-Fun received very positive reviews from people who played it on Melbourne trams.
He said some people seemed surprised there was a game taking place in a tram, and found it to be a fun activity.
“We had people who said they did not play games at all, and they played the game, and sounded really interesting,” Mr Toprak said.
“People who played the game said they were engaged and they enjoyed it, they reported that it helped them pass time when they were in the space.”
Mr Toprack said there was a common concern people would miss their stops with the distraction of the game, but it could be easily fixed.
“A bunch of people did note that they felt there was a risk of them missing their stops, so they had to pay attention to not only the game, but the stops they were approaching.”
