Craigleclair By Craig Le Clair

OK. So this is really a little bragging about my son Justin. But I hope to make a broader point as well. In the last few days Justin has become a bit of an internet star. His name is all over the Web having invented a popular game for the X-Box. Somehow — and I haven’t tried it yet, having no X-box -– you put the controller on your neck which gives you a massage and through adjustments (see console below), you can adjust the strength. It’s unclear to me how he is fitting this development amidst his study load at Vanderbilt – but I take solace in the fact that he is at least applying his EE education.

If everyone in the world had access to an Xbox, masseurs and masseuses worldwide would be out of job and out of pocket– all because of a community game released on Xbox Live called "Rumble Massage." The game enables users to use the rumble functions of the Xbox 360 controller as a massage tool, while utilizing the console as an interface with which to change the settings.

Super_massage

The thing which most caught my attention in this game is its ingenuity. By finding such a non-obvious use for the community games market, developer Justin Le Clair could have opened the floodgates for games such as these. Toothbox 360, anyone? At 200 MS points, a small investment on the marketplace could bring you BIG returns come February 14th.

This simple game was an immediate hit. It used parts and equipment already owned. It is the type of product we need in a sustainable and economically challenged time. Maybe we should look around the house and find new and innovative uses for things we have. I agree with Barack –- that we will never apologize for our way of life — but we are way to susceptible to that new thing we must have.

Justin had spent most of the summer building his first X-box game, "TorinoX." Somewhat typical — intergalactic battles, lots of shooting and exploding. It required very advanced coding and graphic manipulation –- but sell it did not. It may be we should all look for simple elegant solutions that just work.