A professor at the University of California Irvine and self-styled "artist in residence," Garnet Hertz divined the idea of combining a Sega OutRun arcade machine with a golf cart. The result is some strange, augmented reality device that's part-video game and part-car.
For Professor Hertz, wiring the aging Sega OutRun cabinet into a golf cart was the easy part. What's innovative are the two webcams attached to the vehicle which instantly translate oncoming traffic in real-life into virtual models. The driver can concentrate entirely on the video screen, as opposed to the road, and simultaneously win points!
As we continue to find value in the "game-ification" of real-world tasks, could we see hybrid arcade-vehicles in the near future? It's perfectly plausible and, thanks to Garnet Hertz, we have proof of concept!
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