- BMW and AirConsole launch a competition to develop in-car games.
- Developers can submit concepts now until June 8.
- These casual games will primarily phones as controllers.
BMW Hosts Competition to Develop In-Car Video Games
BMW wants the help of developers to build in-car video games, and it's holding a competition to bring unique games to its systems
- byChase BierenkovenContributorChase Bierenkoven has been writing about cars in his head since he was a child. Now, he does it for real, covering automotive news and producing reviews for outlets like Edmunds, Forbes Wheels and CarBuzz. Chase's career as an automotive journalist began in 2020, and he has already written scores of road tests. Some favorites of Chase's include the Dodge Challenger 392, Mazda Miata, Kia EV6 and Bentley Bentayga. Outside his work with cars, Chase is often found justifying his latest broken German sports car to anyone that will listen or enjoying the outdoor spaces of his native Colorado.
- March 21st, 2023
BMW and casual video game developer AirConsole have launched a competition to develop video games "tailored to the in-car experience." These will be games that BMW owners can access directly via their car's infotainment, tailored specifically to BMW models. This also means that, at least for now, BMW models likely won't include more mainstream games (in contrast to the robust number of AAA titles available in Tesla Model S and Model X vehicles via the Steam platform). Both BMW and AirConsole are promoting the contest at this week's Game Developer Conference in San Francisco.
The contest is already underway, and submissions will be accepted until June 8, 2023. After that date, four concepts will be chosen as winners with each receiving 5,000 euros (which translates to about $5,390) toward the development of a prototype. Should the developer's prototype prove to be worthy, AirConsole will fully fund the game's development. It'll then be added to the in-vehicle AirConsole platform. The lucky winners will also get a trip to BMW HQ in Munich, Germany, to see the fruits of their labor at work in a demo.
For now, BMW doesn't make mention of when, where or how these games will be integrated into cars. Press materials show interior images of a 2023 BMW 7 Series with its infotainment system loaded with the AirConsole platform, but we imagine the games and compatibility will trickle down to less expensive models in BMW's lineup. Gamers will use their smartphones as the controller, but we expect that third-party controllers will be compatible as well.
BMW hasn't yet said under what circumstances the games will be playable. Tesla came under fire when it launched its service and allowed occupants to play games while the vehicle was moving. We don't imagine BMW will make the same mistake.
Edmunds says
The idea of in-car video games isn't a wholly new one, but BMW's take will certainly differ from others. Rather than Tesla's approach — which incorporates a dedicated GPU to play graphics-intensive games — BMW is aiming for a more casual crowd.
byChase BierenkovenChase Bierenkoven has been writing about cars in his head since he was a child. Now, he does it for real, covering automotive news and producing reviews for outlets like Edmunds, Forbes Wheels and CarBuzz. Chase's career as an automotive journalist began in 2020, and he has already written scores of road tests. Some favorites of Chase's include the Dodge Challenger 392, Mazda Miata, Kia EV6 and Bentley Bentayga. Outside his work with cars, Chase is often found justifying his latest broken German sports car to anyone that will listen or enjoying the outdoor spaces of his native Colorado.
