The Games Institute acknowledges that we are living and working on the traditional territory of the Attawandaron (also known as Neutral), Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee peoples. The University of Waterloo is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land promised to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River.
Dr. Lennart Nacke, Associate Professor of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and Director of the HCI Games Group, was awarded $350,000 from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) in the Active and Assisted Living Program as a Canadian partner to fund EXERGETIC, a research program aiming to develop innovative digital solutions that utilize exercise games (Exergames) to improve physical and cognitive functions. EXERGETIC researchers will create exergame training experiences in an ecologically valid and safe setting for geriatric populations, called the ExerCube.
As part of EXERGETIC, Dr. Nacke and postdoctoral fellow Dr. Katja Rogers will work with Sphery AG to build an ExerCube at the Stratford School. The ExerCube is an immersive fitness game environment that combines innovative software and hardware design with state-of-the-art training concepts. When working out in the ExerCube, players are surrounded by three walls that serve as projection screens and haptic interfaces for energetic bodily interactions.