Fun and Efficiency of the Wii Balance Interface

Balance input in human-computer interfaces can be beneficial, enjoyable and entertaining. Users can navigate a virtual (game) world or an (empirical) dataset while having their hands free to issue other commands. A new low-cost balance interface, the Nintendo balance board, offers more widespread use of this form of input. We performed two experiments that explore the fun and efficiency of this interface for navigating simple virtual worlds. In our first study, we compared the Nintendo balance board to a hand-held Wiimote for navigating a 2D maze and found that users completed this task slower with the balance board. However, the balance board was considered more intuitive, easy to learn and `much fun'. In a follow-up study, we compared two navigation methods based on shifting the center of body mass on the balance board using a Fitts' law evaluation. We found that although both methods are outperformed by a standard mouse and a self-centering joystick, they are enjoyed more than these more traditional interfaces. However, the board interfaces performed similarly for easier navigation tasks; leaving the hands free for manipulation tasks while coarse navigation can be performed by the shifting body mass