Guerrilla announced on Tuesday that they will release patches for Horizon Zero Dawn on PC at a slower rate as they work on the game's sequel. In a post on Guerrilla's website, Guerrilla announced that Patch 1.10 is now live for Horizon Zero Dawn Complete Edition on PC, which "introduces crash fixes and performance improvements." Guerrilla also said that more updates will come to the PC version, but more focus is going towards Horizon Forbidden West. "As our team continues development on our upcoming title Horizon Forbidden West, we are shifting to less frequent updates for Horizon Zero Dawn Complete Edition for PC after this patch," the statement says. "Please note that we will continue to monitor our community spaces as always!" [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/08/05/horizon-zero-dawn-21-minutes-of-pc-gameplay-at-max-settings-1080p-60fps"] Horizon Zero Dawn launched on PC in August 2020, three years after its original release on PS4 in 2017. The PC port received praise for visual improvements, but performance issues were common. IGN's analysis of a pre-release version of the Horizon PC port commented on how some of the graphics options are "actively detrimental to performance or perceived smoothness in non-obvious ways." Guerrilla has since released multiple patches for the PC port. On Steam, the Recent Reviews from the last 30 days are "Very Positive" with over 2,000 submissions. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=horizon-forbidden-west-playstation-5-screenshots&captions=true"] Horizon Forbidden West was announced in 2020 during Sony's PS5 reveal event. With a trailer and a handful of news drops, here is everything we know so far about Horizon Forbidden West, including details on new enemies as well as Guerrilla's plan to release the game in 2021. Horizon Forbidden West is one of the biggest games coming in 2021 and is expected to launch on both PS5 and PS4, similar to Spider-Man: Miles Morales. There are unfortunately no official announcements regarding a PC release for Horizon Forbidden West at this time. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Petey Oneto is a freelance writer for IGN.

Guerrilla announced on Tuesday that they will release patches for Horizon Zero Dawn on PC at a slower rate as they work on the game's sequel. In a post on Guerrilla's website, Guerrilla announced that Patch 1.10 is now live for Horizon Zero Dawn Complete Edition on PC, which "introduces crash fixes and performance improvements." Guerrilla also said that more updates will come to the PC version, but more focus is going towards Horizon Forbidden West. "As our team continues development on our upcoming title Horizon Forbidden West, we are shifting to less frequent updates for Horizon Zero Dawn Complete Edition for PC after this patch," the statement says. "Please note that we will continue to monitor our community spaces as always!" [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/08/05/horizon-zero-dawn-21-minutes-of-pc-gameplay-at-max-settings-1080p-60fps"] Horizon Zero Dawn launched on PC in August 2020, three years after its original release on PS4 in 2017. The PC port received praise for visual improvements, but performance issues were common. IGN's analysis of a pre-release version of the Horizon PC port commented on how some of the graphics options are "actively detrimental to performance or perceived smoothness in non-obvious ways." Guerrilla has since released multiple patches for the PC port. On Steam, the Recent Reviews from the last 30 days are "Very Positive" with over 2,000 submissions. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=horizon-forbidden-west-playstation-5-screenshots&captions=true"] Horizon Forbidden West was announced in 2020 during Sony's PS5 reveal event. With a trailer and a handful of news drops, here is everything we know so far about Horizon Forbidden West, including details on new enemies as well as Guerrilla's plan to release the game in 2021. Horizon Forbidden West is one of the biggest games coming in 2021 and is expected to launch on both PS5 and PS4, similar to Spider-Man: Miles Morales. There are unfortunately no official announcements regarding a PC release for Horizon Forbidden West at this time. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Petey Oneto is a freelance writer for IGN.

Netflix has added 8.5 million new paid memberships, bringing the streamers' total paid memberships past the 200 million marks in Q4. Netflix has seen a boom in subscribers as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to keep people at home. In its latest quarterly earnings report, Netflix announced that it has surpassed the 200 million paid memberships threshold. “For the full year, we added a record 37 [million] paid memberships, achieved $25 billion in annual revenue… and grew operating profit 76% to $4.6 billion.” At 200 million, Netflix has the largest subscriber base out of any streaming service, though competition in the streaming space is heating up. In December, Disney reported that it had 86 million subscribers for its Disney+ streaming service, alone. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=12-exciting-netflix-movies-coming-in-2021&captions=true"] Meanwhile, HBO Max is looking to make a big play this year by bringing highly-anticipated movies formerly scheduled for theater-only releases to HBO Max streaming on the same day. This includes titles like Godzilla vs. Kong, Dune, and The Suicide Squad. But at over double the subscriber count of its nearest competitor, Netflix is sitting pretty atop the streaming throne. The company recently announced that it will premiere a new original movie every week for the full 2021 calendar year. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=army-of-the-dead-first-look&captions=true"] Looking forward to Netflix’s 2021, there will be new offerings like Zack Snyder’s zombie heist film Army of the Dead starring Dave Bautista; Thunder Force starring Melissa McCarthy and Octavia Spencer; and Red Notice starring Dwayne Johnson, Gal Gadot, and Ryan Reynolds. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

Netflix has added 8.5 million new paid memberships, bringing the streamers' total paid memberships past the 200 million marks in Q4. Netflix has seen a boom in subscribers as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to keep people at home. In its latest quarterly earnings report, Netflix announced that it has surpassed the 200 million paid memberships threshold. “For the full year, we added a record 37 [million] paid memberships, achieved $25 billion in annual revenue… and grew operating profit 76% to $4.6 billion.” At 200 million, Netflix has the largest subscriber base out of any streaming service, though competition in the streaming space is heating up. In December, Disney reported that it had 86 million subscribers for its Disney+ streaming service, alone. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=12-exciting-netflix-movies-coming-in-2021&captions=true"] Meanwhile, HBO Max is looking to make a big play this year by bringing highly-anticipated movies formerly scheduled for theater-only releases to HBO Max streaming on the same day. This includes titles like Godzilla vs. Kong, Dune, and The Suicide Squad. But at over double the subscriber count of its nearest competitor, Netflix is sitting pretty atop the streaming throne. The company recently announced that it will premiere a new original movie every week for the full 2021 calendar year. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=army-of-the-dead-first-look&captions=true"] Looking forward to Netflix’s 2021, there will be new offerings like Zack Snyder’s zombie heist film Army of the Dead starring Dave Bautista; Thunder Force starring Melissa McCarthy and Octavia Spencer; and Red Notice starring Dwayne Johnson, Gal Gadot, and Ryan Reynolds. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

It may be the shortest month of the year, but Netflix is still dropping plenty of new films and TV shows to its lineup for February 2021. To get things started, Netflix is releasing Malcolm & Marie on February 5, starring Tenet's John David Washington and Spider-Man: Far From Home's Zendaya. The film is a romantic drama where "filmmaker (Washington) and his girlfriend (Zendaya) return home following a celebratory movie premiere as he awaits what’s sure to be imminent critical and financial success. The evening suddenly takes a turn as revelations about their relationships begin to surface, testing the strength of their love," according to the synopsis. The streamer is also dropping a bonkers new sci-film, called Space Sweepers on February 5, which follows the crew of the spaceship Victory, who discover a potentially dangerous (and highly valuable) humanlike robot wanted by the authorities. And on the TV front, Netflix is debuting Firefly Lane on February 3, starring Katherine Heigl and Sarah Chalke. The series is based on the best-selling book of the same name, which tells the story of two friends and their complicated bond. Check out the slideshow gallery below for the highlights of Netflix's February offerings, followed by the full list (U.S. Netflix only): [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=netflix-spotlight-february-2021&captions=true"] [poilib element="accentDivider"]

February 1

• The Bank Job (2008)
• Beverly Hills Ninja (1997)
• Eat Pray Love (2010)
• Inception (2010)
• Love Daily: Season 1
• My Best Friend's Wedding (1997)
• My Dead Ex: Season 1
• National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
• The Patriot (2000)
• Rocks (2019)
• Shutter Island (2010)
• The Unsetting: Season 1
• Zac and Mia: Seasons 1-2
• Zathura (2005)

February 2

• Kid Cosmic -- NETFLIX FAMILY
• Mighty Express: Season 2 -- NETFLIX FAMILY
• Tiffany Haddish Presents: They Ready: Season 2 -- NETFLIX COMEDY SERIES

February 3

• All My Friends Are Dead -- NETFLIX FILM
• Black Beach -- NETFLIX FILM
• Firefly Lane -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL

February 5

• Invisible City -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• The Last Paradiso -- NETFLIX FILM
• Little Big Women -- NETFLIX FILM
• Malcolm & Marie -- NETFLIX FILM
• Space Sweepers -- NETFLIX FILM
• Strip Down, Rise Up -- NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY
• The Yin-Yang Master: Dream Of Eternity -- NETFLIX FILM

February 6

• The Sinner: Jamie

February 8

• iCarly: Seasons 1-2
• War Dogs (2016)

February 10

• Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel -- NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY
• The Misadventures of Hedi and Cokeman -- NETFLIX FILM
• The World We Make (2019)

February 11

• Capitani -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Layla Majnun -- NETFLIX FILM
• Middle of Nowhere (2012)
• Red Dot -- NETFLIX FILM
• Squared Love -- NETFLIX FILM

February 12

• Buried by the Bernards -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Nadiya Bakes -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Hate by Dani Rovira -- NETFLIX COMEDY SPECIAL
• To All The Boys: Always And Forever -- NETFLIX FILM
• Xico's Journey -- NETFLIX FAMILY

February 13

• Monsoon (2019)

February 15

• The Crew -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL

February 16

• Animals on the Loose: A You vs. Wild Movie -- NETFLIX FAMILY
• Good Girls: Season 3

February 17

• Behind Her Eyes -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Hello, Me! -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• MeatEater: Season 9 Part 2 -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL

February 18

• Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan -- NETFLIX ANIME

February 19

• I Care A Lot -- NETFLIX FILM
• Tribes of Europa -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL

February 20

• Classmates Minus -- NETFLIX FILM

February 21

• The Conjuring (2013)
• The Conjuring 2 (2016)

February 23

• Brian Regan: On The Rocks -- NETFLIX COMEDY SPECIAL
• Pelé -- NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY

February 24

• Canine Intervention -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Ginny & Georgia -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Two Sentence Horror Stories: Season 2

February 25

• Geez & Ann -- NETFLIX FILM
• High-Rise Invasion -- NETFLIX ANIME

February 26

• Bigfoot Family -- NETFLIX FAMILY
• Captain Fantastic (2016)
• Caught by a Wave -- NETFLIX FILM
• Crazy About Her -- NETFLIX FILM
• No Escape (2015)
• Our Idiot Brother (2011)

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/13/anime-coming-to-netflix-in-2021"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] David Griffin still watches DuckTales in his pajamas with a cereal bowl in hand. He's also the TV Editor for IGN. Say hi on Twitter.

It may be the shortest month of the year, but Netflix is still dropping plenty of new films and TV shows to its lineup for February 2021. To get things started, Netflix is releasing Malcolm & Marie on February 5, starring Tenet's John David Washington and Spider-Man: Far From Home's Zendaya. The film is a romantic drama where "filmmaker (Washington) and his girlfriend (Zendaya) return home following a celebratory movie premiere as he awaits what’s sure to be imminent critical and financial success. The evening suddenly takes a turn as revelations about their relationships begin to surface, testing the strength of their love," according to the synopsis. The streamer is also dropping a bonkers new sci-film, called Space Sweepers on February 5, which follows the crew of the spaceship Victory, who discover a potentially dangerous (and highly valuable) humanlike robot wanted by the authorities. And on the TV front, Netflix is debuting Firefly Lane on February 3, starring Katherine Heigl and Sarah Chalke. The series is based on the best-selling book of the same name, which tells the story of two friends and their complicated bond. Check out the slideshow gallery below for the highlights of Netflix's February offerings, followed by the full list (U.S. Netflix only): [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=netflix-spotlight-february-2021&captions=true"] [poilib element="accentDivider"]

February 1

• The Bank Job (2008)
• Beverly Hills Ninja (1997)
• Eat Pray Love (2010)
• Inception (2010)
• Love Daily: Season 1
• My Best Friend's Wedding (1997)
• My Dead Ex: Season 1
• National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
• The Patriot (2000)
• Rocks (2019)
• Shutter Island (2010)
• The Unsetting: Season 1
• Zac and Mia: Seasons 1-2
• Zathura (2005)

February 2

• Kid Cosmic -- NETFLIX FAMILY
• Mighty Express: Season 2 -- NETFLIX FAMILY
• Tiffany Haddish Presents: They Ready: Season 2 -- NETFLIX COMEDY SERIES

February 3

• All My Friends Are Dead -- NETFLIX FILM
• Black Beach -- NETFLIX FILM
• Firefly Lane -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL

February 5

• Invisible City -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• The Last Paradiso -- NETFLIX FILM
• Little Big Women -- NETFLIX FILM
• Malcolm & Marie -- NETFLIX FILM
• Space Sweepers -- NETFLIX FILM
• Strip Down, Rise Up -- NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY
• The Yin-Yang Master: Dream Of Eternity -- NETFLIX FILM

February 6

• The Sinner: Jamie

February 8

• iCarly: Seasons 1-2
• War Dogs (2016)

February 10

• Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel -- NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY
• The Misadventures of Hedi and Cokeman -- NETFLIX FILM
• The World We Make (2019)

February 11

• Capitani -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Layla Majnun -- NETFLIX FILM
• Middle of Nowhere (2012)
• Red Dot -- NETFLIX FILM
• Squared Love -- NETFLIX FILM

February 12

• Buried by the Bernards -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Nadiya Bakes -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Hate by Dani Rovira -- NETFLIX COMEDY SPECIAL
• To All The Boys: Always And Forever -- NETFLIX FILM
• Xico's Journey -- NETFLIX FAMILY

February 13

• Monsoon (2019)

February 15

• The Crew -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL

February 16

• Animals on the Loose: A You vs. Wild Movie -- NETFLIX FAMILY
• Good Girls: Season 3

February 17

• Behind Her Eyes -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Hello, Me! -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• MeatEater: Season 9 Part 2 -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL

February 18

• Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan -- NETFLIX ANIME

February 19

• I Care A Lot -- NETFLIX FILM
• Tribes of Europa -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL

February 20

• Classmates Minus -- NETFLIX FILM

February 21

• The Conjuring (2013)
• The Conjuring 2 (2016)

February 23

• Brian Regan: On The Rocks -- NETFLIX COMEDY SPECIAL
• Pelé -- NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY

February 24

• Canine Intervention -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Ginny & Georgia -- NETFLIX ORIGINAL
• Two Sentence Horror Stories: Season 2

February 25

• Geez & Ann -- NETFLIX FILM
• High-Rise Invasion -- NETFLIX ANIME

February 26

• Bigfoot Family -- NETFLIX FAMILY
• Captain Fantastic (2016)
• Caught by a Wave -- NETFLIX FILM
• Crazy About Her -- NETFLIX FILM
• No Escape (2015)
• Our Idiot Brother (2011)

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/13/anime-coming-to-netflix-in-2021"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] David Griffin still watches DuckTales in his pajamas with a cereal bowl in hand. He's also the TV Editor for IGN. Say hi on Twitter.

Liam Neeson says Seth McFarlane has approached him to star in a reboot of The Naked Gun, which would mark the first time the two have worked together since 2014's A Million Ways to Die in the West. This news comes by way of an interview between Neeson and People, in which Neeson discussed how he plans to retire from action movies soon, opening up the door for other types of movie genres like comedy. His venture out of action could begin with a reboot of The Naked Gun series. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-best-action-movies-on-netflix-right-now&captions=true"] "I've been approached by Seth McFarlane and Paramount Studios to maybe resurrect the Naked Gun films," Neeson told People. "It'll either finish my career or bring it in another direction. I honestly don't know." The Naked Gun is a movie series consisting of three movies, From the Files of Police Squad! (1988), The Smell of Fear (1991), and The Final Insult (1994), based on a television series called Police Squad! that lasted just six episodes before it was cancelled. The original films were comedy crime movies that starred Leslie Nielsen as Detective Frank Drebin who stops assassinations, kidnappings, and more. It's unclear if this reboot would feature Neeson in the role of Detective Frank Drebin or if he would play an entirely new character. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/08/29/top-10-action-movies-of-all-time-part-2-cinefix"] Neeson has quite the career behind him stretching as far back as the 1970s. His filmography covers many genres but after starring in 2008's Taken, where he played a very skilled agent tasked with rescuing his own daughter from kidnappers, Neeson found himself the star of many action movies like The A-Team, The Commuter, Non-Stop, and of course, Taken 2 and Taken 3. He told Entertainment Tonight in a different interview that he's nearing the end of his run as an action actor. "I'm 68 and a half," he told Entertainment Tonight. "Sixty-nine this year. There's a couple more I'm going to do this year — hopefully, COVID allowing us — there's a couple in the pipeline and then I think that will probably be it." One of those final action movies for the actor is The Marksman, which hits theaters on January 21. You can read IGN's thoughts on the movie in our review of The Marksman. Read this story where Neeson said he hasn't been approached to reprise his role as Qui-Gon Jinn in any live-action Star Wars projects after that and then read about how he blames criticism for hurting the career of Jar Jar Binks actor Ahmed Best. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes. 

Liam Neeson says Seth McFarlane has approached him to star in a reboot of The Naked Gun, which would mark the first time the two have worked together since 2014's A Million Ways to Die in the West. This news comes by way of an interview between Neeson and People, in which Neeson discussed how he plans to retire from action movies soon, opening up the door for other types of movie genres like comedy. His venture out of action could begin with a reboot of The Naked Gun series. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-best-action-movies-on-netflix-right-now&captions=true"] "I've been approached by Seth McFarlane and Paramount Studios to maybe resurrect the Naked Gun films," Neeson told People. "It'll either finish my career or bring it in another direction. I honestly don't know." The Naked Gun is a movie series consisting of three movies, From the Files of Police Squad! (1988), The Smell of Fear (1991), and The Final Insult (1994), based on a television series called Police Squad! that lasted just six episodes before it was cancelled. The original films were comedy crime movies that starred Leslie Nielsen as Detective Frank Drebin who stops assassinations, kidnappings, and more. It's unclear if this reboot would feature Neeson in the role of Detective Frank Drebin or if he would play an entirely new character. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/08/29/top-10-action-movies-of-all-time-part-2-cinefix"] Neeson has quite the career behind him stretching as far back as the 1970s. His filmography covers many genres but after starring in 2008's Taken, where he played a very skilled agent tasked with rescuing his own daughter from kidnappers, Neeson found himself the star of many action movies like The A-Team, The Commuter, Non-Stop, and of course, Taken 2 and Taken 3. He told Entertainment Tonight in a different interview that he's nearing the end of his run as an action actor. "I'm 68 and a half," he told Entertainment Tonight. "Sixty-nine this year. There's a couple more I'm going to do this year — hopefully, COVID allowing us — there's a couple in the pipeline and then I think that will probably be it." One of those final action movies for the actor is The Marksman, which hits theaters on January 21. You can read IGN's thoughts on the movie in our review of The Marksman. Read this story where Neeson said he hasn't been approached to reprise his role as Qui-Gon Jinn in any live-action Star Wars projects after that and then read about how he blames criticism for hurting the career of Jar Jar Binks actor Ahmed Best. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes. 

Hacker Mike Choi, who you might know as the engineer and co-designer of the Nintendo Flip Grip, revealed his latest unofficial Nintendo peripheral last week, complete with its own Nintendo Direct-style reveal. It’s called the Labo Fit Adventure Kart. The Labo Fit Adventure Kart is a multi-part invention that combines the Ring Fit Adventure Ring-Con, Nintendo Labo-inspired cutouts, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and an exercise bike, into a single workout game hybrid. The basic mechanic of the Labo Fit Adventure Kart is that the pedaling on the exercise bike will accelerate your kart in-game, while items and directional controls are handled by squeezing and turning the Ring-Con. The engine that pulls all these elements together is a home-brewed robot that Choi calls TAPBO, which is responsible for making the whole thing playable. Check out a brief video overview below. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/19/hacker-creates-nintendo-labo-ring-fit-exercise-bike-game"] IGN spoke with Choi on the origins and design process of the Labo Fit Adventure Kart which Choi says was an idea he came up with while playing Tetris 99 a year ago. “I’m not a very fitness-oriented person,” Choi tells IGN. “I don’t exercise regularly and I ate an entire Costco-size box of Oreos this past week. So I decided to set a challenge for myself: to pedal on an exercise bike during the entire duration of a Tetris 99 game.” Choi says a game of Tetris 99, for him at least, felt like a good length for a cardio workout. But the idea came to him to take the concept even further. “What if I connected the exercise bike to the game somehow?” Choi wondered. Enter the Labo Fit Adventure Kart and TAPBO robot. The TAPBO robot, which Choi explains in-depth in his full Nintendo Direct-style video here, is how the entire Labo Fit Adventure Kart concept works. Essentially, the robot is connected to motion sensors in the exercise bike. When the pedals reach a certain speed threshold, the TAPBO will mechanically press the “A” button on the Joy-Con and accelerate your character in Mario Kart 8. Meanwhile, pushing in on the Ring-Con will cause TAPBO to press the trigger button on the Joy-Con for items. “I knew from the get-go that there would be at least two components: a module to press buttons on the Joy-Con and a bike that could detect your pedaling,” Choi says when asked about his early design ideas. “Early in development I realized it would be a ton of fun to steer and shoot items with the Ring-Con, so I decided to implement that as well.” What makes TAPBO unique is that it is a feat of mechanical engineering, not a software hack, though we asked Choi why he opted to create a mini robot instead of some kind of home-brewed software to make his idea come to life. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=labo-fit-adventure-kart-design-gallery&captions=true"] “It’s no secret that Nintendo isn’t the biggest fan of people messing with their software, and the Bike-Con solution circumvents needing to emulate or modify any Joy-Con software or hardware,” Choi says. “It’s definitely possible to create a setup that doesn’t require a robot to press buttons; creators like Super Louis 64 have done exactly this to create Ring Fit mashups with [The Legend of Zelda] Breath of the Wild and even Mario Kart,” Choi adds. But Choi’s passions lie with robots and he says the device serves as an homage to Nintendo’s own robot, R.O.B. Choi even 3D printed a custom TAPBO amiibo. As for the future, Choi has some more fitness-focused ideas for TAPBO like creating a version that can hug the Switch console itself and force it to turn off if you stop pedaling on an exercise bike; or a rowing machine game to work with Super Mario Party. But the TAPBO can also be used for non-fitness games and Choi says people have suggested re-tooling the robot for the upcoming Pokemon Snap game on Switch. “The possibilities are really endless, and I hope Nintendo continues experimenting with how to use Ring Fit and Labo accessories in more games." [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.

Hacker Mike Choi, who you might know as the engineer and co-designer of the Nintendo Flip Grip, revealed his latest unofficial Nintendo peripheral last week, complete with its own Nintendo Direct-style reveal. It’s called the Labo Fit Adventure Kart. The Labo Fit Adventure Kart is a multi-part invention that combines the Ring Fit Adventure Ring-Con, Nintendo Labo-inspired cutouts, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and an exercise bike, into a single workout game hybrid. The basic mechanic of the Labo Fit Adventure Kart is that the pedaling on the exercise bike will accelerate your kart in-game, while items and directional controls are handled by squeezing and turning the Ring-Con. The engine that pulls all these elements together is a home-brewed robot that Choi calls TAPBO, which is responsible for making the whole thing playable. Check out a brief video overview below. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/01/19/hacker-creates-nintendo-labo-ring-fit-exercise-bike-game"] IGN spoke with Choi on the origins and design process of the Labo Fit Adventure Kart which Choi says was an idea he came up with while playing Tetris 99 a year ago. “I’m not a very fitness-oriented person,” Choi tells IGN. “I don’t exercise regularly and I ate an entire Costco-size box of Oreos this past week. So I decided to set a challenge for myself: to pedal on an exercise bike during the entire duration of a Tetris 99 game.” Choi says a game of Tetris 99, for him at least, felt like a good length for a cardio workout. But the idea came to him to take the concept even further. “What if I connected the exercise bike to the game somehow?” Choi wondered. Enter the Labo Fit Adventure Kart and TAPBO robot. The TAPBO robot, which Choi explains in-depth in his full Nintendo Direct-style video here, is how the entire Labo Fit Adventure Kart concept works. Essentially, the robot is connected to motion sensors in the exercise bike. When the pedals reach a certain speed threshold, the TAPBO will mechanically press the “A” button on the Joy-Con and accelerate your character in Mario Kart 8. Meanwhile, pushing in on the Ring-Con will cause TAPBO to press the trigger button on the Joy-Con for items. “I knew from the get-go that there would be at least two components: a module to press buttons on the Joy-Con and a bike that could detect your pedaling,” Choi says when asked about his early design ideas. “Early in development I realized it would be a ton of fun to steer and shoot items with the Ring-Con, so I decided to implement that as well.” What makes TAPBO unique is that it is a feat of mechanical engineering, not a software hack, though we asked Choi why he opted to create a mini robot instead of some kind of home-brewed software to make his idea come to life. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=labo-fit-adventure-kart-design-gallery&captions=true"] “It’s no secret that Nintendo isn’t the biggest fan of people messing with their software, and the Bike-Con solution circumvents needing to emulate or modify any Joy-Con software or hardware,” Choi says. “It’s definitely possible to create a setup that doesn’t require a robot to press buttons; creators like Super Louis 64 have done exactly this to create Ring Fit mashups with [The Legend of Zelda] Breath of the Wild and even Mario Kart,” Choi adds. But Choi’s passions lie with robots and he says the device serves as an homage to Nintendo’s own robot, R.O.B. Choi even 3D printed a custom TAPBO amiibo. As for the future, Choi has some more fitness-focused ideas for TAPBO like creating a version that can hug the Switch console itself and force it to turn off if you stop pedaling on an exercise bike; or a rowing machine game to work with Super Mario Party. But the TAPBO can also be used for non-fitness games and Choi says people have suggested re-tooling the robot for the upcoming Pokemon Snap game on Switch. “The possibilities are really endless, and I hope Nintendo continues experimenting with how to use Ring Fit and Labo accessories in more games." [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt T.M. Kim is a reporter for IGN.