Escape room games have become increasingly popular as locations that challenge players to get out of a room before time expires have been popping up across the country.
Ford Motor Co F has taken that concept and created an interactive game that allows its EV customers to take on escape room challenges in their vehicles.
What To Know: Ford's spy-themed concept game challenges owners of its Mustang Mach-E to deliver packages on secret missions.
The game is installed on an iOS device that interfaces with the vehicle using Apple Inc's AAPL CarPlay combined with Ford's own hardware and software.
Gameplay can be accessed through the vehicle's center touchscreen, where players are guided on a mission that uses vehicle elements for an enhanced experience.
Audio prompts for tasks are provided via the vehicle’s speaker system. The Mach-E's electric seats, hands-free tailgate, air conditioning system and headlights are amongst the elements that are either activated by the game or used by the player as a trigger when prompted.
"This is a bit of fun that has a serious side, as it shows just what could be possible with the technology we have in cars today," said Carsten Starke, technical expert interior materials and customer experience, Ford research and advanced engineering, Ford of Europe.
"Having the ability to create interaction between vehicle and driver could open up new ways to explore other possibilities in the future, like an interactive owner’s manual or even driver coaching," Starke added.
See Also: Why Jim Cramer Is Telling Investors To 'Buy It Right Here' When It Comes To Ford Stock
Why It Matters: The escape-room game was developed to showcase how gaming could help people get more familiar with the functionalities of their vehicles.
"It could even offer a glimpse into the future of applications that might entertain or educate drivers and passengers during downtime at charging stations, or perhaps even while riding in future autonomous vehicles," Ford said.
Ford has increased its focus on connected vehicle technology over the last year including the rollout of Blue Oval Intelligence, the company's next-generation, cloud-based platform for integrating electrical, power distribution, computing and software systems in connected Ford and Lincoln vehicles.
Ford has more than 1 million connected vehicles capable of receiving over-the-air system updates on the road and expects to exceed Tesla Inc's TSLA volume by July.
The company also said it expects to scale to 33 million connected vehicles by 2028.
F Price Action: Ford has traded as low as $10.36 and as high as $25.87 over a 52-week period.
The stock was down 0.16% at $19.51 Friday morning.
Photo: courtesy of Ford.
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