Is this the stupidest peripheral ever?

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Piss screen demands both bladder control and gaming skills

Sometimes mere words fail to do this beautiful world full justice. So it is with Piss Screen, a urine-operated, urinal-housed controller recently installed in a Frankfurt bar, and designed to react to a hosing down by toilet-visiting gamers. The mind boggles.

But is this the stupidest videogame peripheral the world has ever seen? Sadly, the answer is quite probably "No!" As this list of ridiculous, mental and sometimes troubling plug-in-ables can prove...

The Piss Screen
Created in response to what looks like a marketing brief - encourage people to take taxis after a few drinks, rather than risk driving themselves - this peripheral is really thinking outside the box. Aiming to reach the target audience "in a fresh andeffective way," the Piss Screen enables urinal users to enjoy a Need for Speed style racing game by splashing their waters against pressure sensitive control pads. Although exactly how "fresh" it would be at 2am on a Sunday morning is barely worth considering.

They say: "The player can control the car whilst relieving himself"; "Requires relatively quick reflexes"; "The game ultimately culminates in a shocking crash-sequence, leaving the viewer with little doubt as to the repercussions of driving while drunk."

What they don't say: "Demands considerable bladder size and stream control"; "Don't forget to use both hands!"; "The time and effort put into designing the piss-operated device leaves the viewer with little doubt as to the repercussions of allowing marketing teams to embrace blue sky thinking."

Ben_Richardson

Ben Richardson is a former Staff Writer for Official PlayStation 2 magazine and a former Content Editor of GamesRadar+. In the years since Ben left GR, he has worked as a columnist, communications officer, charity coach, and podcast host – but we still look back to his news stories from time to time, they are a window into a different era of video games.