Remember when cell phones first came out? Everyone was so excited about the possibility of taking his or hers everywhere. “It’s just for emergencies,” they said. Then texting and touch-screen devices appeared. Now everyone has a cell phone, almost everyone has a smart phone, and a lot of people have iPads and other tablets.
So what’s next? It’d be great if your phone could take your final exam for you. Or automatically get a speeding ticket dismissed. Those days may be far away, but at least your phone now has the ability to help out in a few of life’s more demanding situations: there’s now an app that reads your mind and trains you to deal with difficult people.
MindGames has teamed up with NeuroSky to create Tug-of-Mind, a game for iPhones and iPads that challenges users to relax in the face of someone in their life who causes them stress. Users must first take a headshot photo of their ‘opponent’ (the person who causes them stress.) Then the user can record a personal message from their opponent.
The game works together with the Neurosky PLX Wave headset to read the alpha and gamma brainwaves and determine the user’s relaxation level. The headset must be worn while playing the game. There are three levels: Easy, Medium and Hard.
To win, the user must concentrate on staying calm and relaxed while staring at their opponent’s image.
Upset by meetings with IRS agents or specific family members? Well, if you’re an iPhone or iPad user, there’s now no excuse to lose your head during those stressful situations.
Of course, the trick will be to get that IRS agent or mother-in-law to pose for a photo and record a message. Try pointing the device at them and saying, “Relax, it’s just an iPhone app.”
Check out this for a quick demonstration.