It’s a poorly kept secret that Tesla would like to have gamers be able to play their favorite games in their car. While a car as a video game platform is an odd idea to say the least, Tesla boss Elon Musk seems fully committed to the concept, and a job listing back in October suggested that the car company was stepping up its commitment to making Tesla cars run video games. The U.S. Government, on the other hand, doesn’t seem too excited by the idea.
Though it is a novel thing to play videogames using a car, Tesla’s models have been able to run simpler games for quite some time now. Since the release of the 2020.48.26 update, Solitaire, The Battle of Polytopia, and Sky Force Reloaded were available to play while the Tesla was in motion. These three games are not the only titles available to Tesla owners though, and Tesla are looking to expand the range of games available to play. With the Model S reportedly having PS5 level performance, there could be some serious gaming soon done in the car.
The U.S. Government however, are sharing their concerns with the idea of gaming in the car as Tesla’s enthusiasm for the concept continues to rise. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) have stated that they are discussing the feature with Tesla at the moment, and are currently most concerned about how videogames in the car would be a risk to driver safety. As one spokesperson said, “the Vehicle Safety Act prohibits manufacturers from selling vehicles with design defects posing unreasonable risks to safety.”
Tesla are reportedly aware of this issue, and if a driver does begin to play a round of Solitaire while their vehicle is in motion, a pop-up message warns that “playing while the car is in motion is only for passengers,” though there isn’t much monitoring on the driver after this initial message. It’s an honor system almost, where the driver is entrusted not to distract themselves while driving with games like Pokemon GO. Though, if that example is anything to go by, there will be plenty who distract themselves despite the risks.
Government officials, though late to the discussion, are justified by many in their concerns over the increasing interest Tesla has in gaming. Though it is interesting to see Cyberpunk 2077 run at 60FPS in a car, if more immersive games become playable while driving, then Tesla could sadly contribute towards more vehicle deaths caused by distraction. In 2018, there was already a case of a Tesla driver who died due to being distracted on their phone while the car was in autopilot. Whatever way this goes, it seems both Tesla and the Government are entering a widely unknown space of cars and gaming.
Source: Bloomberg
