uplight game console sets up a 3D interactive screen that you can touch and rotate

Uplight: A Game Console Redefining Play with Innovative 3D Design

The Uplight game console, designed by Japanese engineers Tatsuya Kato, Shion Ito, Toshikatsu Nakamura, and Toshiki Sato, introduces a novel approach to gaming by integrating three-dimensional objects into its design and gameplay. The console’s key feature is a 3D acrylic screen, which stands upright and lights up, creating a dynamic, visually immersive experience. The console includes a controller, a translucent three-dimensional object, and a wide-angle projector that casts the game environment onto the object’s surface.

rendered image | all images courtesy of Tatsuya Kato, Shion Ito, Toshikatsu Nakamura, Toshiki Sato

Leveraging 3D Affordance for an Immersive Gaming Experience

The design of Uplight is rooted in the concept of affordance, where the physical properties of objects naturally guide player interactions. This design philosophy led the team to develop a console that leverages the materiality of three-dimensional objects, allowing players to engage with game content based on the shape and form of these objects. The screen is interchangeable, enabling varied gameplay experiences—such as a cube that requires players to shift perspectives to fully understand the content displayed on its multiple faces.

Uplight introduces a new gaming experience by integrating 3D objects into its design | rendered image

This approach reverses the typical game console design process, where the console’s form is dictated by the games it will host. Instead, Uplight’s physical design was defined first, with game content subsequently developed to complement and utilize the specific shapes of the objects. The team aims to make the Uplight design open-source, fostering an innovative and collaborative community where developers and players can explore new ways of interacting with three-dimensional objects in gaming.

Uplight’s gameplay is enhanced by a wide-angle projector casting visuals onto the 3D object | rendered image

the console features a 3D acrylic screen that stands upright and lights up | rendered image

physical properties of objects guide player interactions in Uplight’s design

the 3D screen is interchangeable, offering varied gameplay based on object shape

the console includes a controller, translucent 3D object, and wide-angle projector

a cube-shaped screen requires players to shift perspectives for full content comprehension

project info:

name: Uplight

design team: Shion Ito | @creativeasiandude, Tatsuya Kato, Toshikatsu Nakamura, Toshiki Sato

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edited by: christina vergopoulou | designboom