Google demos five minigames for Glass using voice and motion control

Currently Google Glass lets you send messages, make calls, and do other standard things that smartphones can do, but it’s still lacking in games. In an effort to get game developers on the Glass bandwagon, Google has demoed five minigames for Glass that are super simple, but which also show the gaming potential of the headset.

By saying “Ok Glass, play a game,” users can access the minigames from the main voice menu. Each game takes advantage of a specific Glass technology: Tennis uses the gyroscope and accelerometer to detect head tilts and hit the ball; Balance also uses the accelerometer to keep a bunch of shapes from toppling over; Clay Shooter uses voice recognition to shoot clay pigeons out of the air; Match has you pairing objects using head movements; and Shape Splitter has you slicing objects with your hands in front of Glass’s camera. While all the games make use of Glass’s sensors to interact with virtual objects, those objects don’t seem to interact with anything in the real world — meaning these demos fall short of offering a full augmented reality experience.

According to Google’s Developer blog, the company created the games to be just as simple as they sound. They’re easy to turn on and play when you have a few minutes of free time, and are easy to get out of when you need to come back to the real world. However, anyone yelling “Pull!” to shoot a pigeon down from the sky in a Glass game will look even weirder than a person simply wearing Glass. That being said, these games are a fun experiment and a small snippet of what could come in the future if Google succeeds in getting game developers to create new ways to play with the headset.