Peloton in now entering the video games business. On Monday, the fitness apparatus company announced a new way to get its users to exercise regularly. It will launch a video game called Lanebreak. The Verge reported the news first. The game is exclusively meant for owners of Peloton bikes and subscribers.
The game requires riders to change their cadence and resistance as they pedal to reach various goals while controlling an onscreen rolling wheel. Riders can also choose various options such as:
- difficulty level
- the music they would like to hear
- the duration of the track
The game is still in a developing stage and is expected to make its debut in early 2022. Later this year, the company plans to release a beta version for members. According to The Verge riders have to pedal to keep the wheel moving.
The game offers three types of challenges:
- Pickups – The rider has to stay in the lane which the game asks to stay in and gets points accordingly.
- Streams – Points are rewarded based on cadence.
- Breakers – Points are rewarded based on energy output.
Peloton already offers exercise classes by famous instructors such as Cody Rigsby and Alex Touissant. The music-based instructions are live streamed and are popular with many Peloton users. Adding a video game is a new approach by the company to diversify and to make it interesting for bikers to exercise. A Peloton spokesperson also confirmed to CNBC that the company is in the process of launching a new video game. It said that the game was a “music based experience…to get the highest score possible.”
Peloton saw explosive growth due to the pandemic as lockdowns made sure that people could not visit gyms. Sales increased so much so that there was a backlog in deliveries. However, the company also saw steep declines in its share price as fatal death of children and accidents also increased, in the same period. With a market cap of $35 billion, Peloton is looking to expand overseas and is tapping the biking market in Australia. It is also venturing into producing wearables including a digital heart rate armband.
Although there was an over 2 percent drop in the S&P 500 Index, Peloton saw an almost 6 percent increase in share value Monday afternoon.
