Quell is a revolutionary fitness system that combines gaming and high-intensity workouts, offering an immersive and motivating experience like no other. It’s the game-changer the Wii Fit always dreamed of becoming, and it has quickly become my favorite way to exercise.
Key Takeaways
- Quell is a gamified fitness system that translates your physical movements into a digital adventure, making workouts more engaging and enjoyable.
- The full-body HIT sessions are intense but keep you motivated by contextualizing your actions, like throwing punches to defeat enemies.
- While not perfect, Quell offers a compact and portable solution for those struggling to stick to a regular exercise routine, with the potential to become the ultimate gamified fitness device.
Listen, we all know the drill – we should be working out more, but it’s easier said than done. Our trail of broken New Year’s resolutions is a testament to how tough it is to stick to a fitness routine. For me, it’s not just the post-workout muscle aches that get me; it’s the monotony of hitting the gym or even just walking those 10,000 steps every day. Sure, I can pop in some tunes or a podcast, but eventually, I lose interest and motivation.
That’s where Quell comes in. It’s hardly the first gamified fitness experience I’ve tried – remember the now-forgotten classic Wii Fit? And who could forget the Ring Fit controller for the Nintendo Switch gathering dust in the corner? But Quell takes things to a whole new level.
What is Quell, and Why Do I Love It?
Quell isn’t a VR accessory; it’s a dedicated system with trackers – a chest pod you wear around your midriff and controllers you hold in each hand. These trackers send data to a USB dongle plugged into your PC, running Quell’s software. As you run, squat, jump, and punch, the hardware translates your actions into a digital experience, kinda like an Xbox Kinect but better.
The first Quell game is Shardfall, a high-fantasy adventure where you fight back against corruption trying to infect the land. But don’t worry, more games are on the way soon, including a multiplayer option and potentially a sci-fi setting (fingers crossed!).
Shardfall: A Blast to Play
Even as my only option right now, Shardfall has been an absolute blast to play. The enemy variety keeps my boxing matches from feeling repetitive, and I love the world-leveling and equipment system that makes my character feel more powerful as I progress, while still keeping the workouts challenging.
One of Shardfall’s standout features is its branching paths, allowing me to choose short-term buffs for each run, like the healing-focused Moonchild or the damage-boosting Flamebringer. And when I reach the end of a session, I can either take on the boss or carry on if 20 minutes just isn’t enough (though it always is!).
A Full-Body HIT Workout Without the Motion Sickness
Because Quell isn’t a VR game, Shardfall can become a full-body HIT workout more easily without making me want to hurl from motion sickness. I can sprint through the levels, exploring a wider world while ensuring my lower body puts in the same level of work as my upper body – something I’ve found tricky to achieve in VR.
Adding to the difficulty are the resistance bands that come with your setup. I’m using level one (they go up to level three), and let me tell you, fights feel like real battles with even the level one band equipped. After a 20- to 25-minute session, I’m utterly exhausted.
Not Perfect, But Still Impressive
That’s not to say Quell is perfect quite yet – after all, it has only just launched. My biggest gripe is that the sensors don’t always seem to track my effort properly, particularly the chest pod. It would always know when I jumped, but sometimes it wouldn’t log my squats or recognize that I was jogging at the pace Shardfall wanted me to.
A personalized calibration process could solve these tracking errors, ensuring all my hard work is rewarded. And while the $269 / £249 cost (plus a subscription fee) might be a tough sell for a single game, it’s a reasonable price for fitness equipment, especially considering its portability.
Should You Buy It?
I’ve fallen head over heels for Quell over the past couple of weeks, and I genuinely believe it could be the workout solution you’ve been searching for if you’ve struggled to commit to going to the gym.
VR fitness is still a solid option, and I’ll continue using my Quest 3 regularly. But Quell’s lack of motion sickness allows for more active lower body exercise, and the resistance bands make the workout feel way more intense, giving it a leg up (pun intended) for those looking for a serious physical challenge.
Keeping an Eye on the Future
If you’re not quite convinced by Quell yet, I’d recommend at least keeping an eye on it. As more games are released, I think it will only get stronger and become the gamified fitness device that the Wii Fit or Xbox Kinect always felt like they should have been.
With its ability to make workouts engaging and enjoyable, Quell could be the game-changer we’ve all been waiting for – a fitness system that genuinely motivates us to stick to our goals and have fun while doing it.
Conclusion
In a world where fitness resolutions are made to be broken, Quell stands out as a beacon of hope. It’s a revolutionary system that seamlessly blends gaming and intense exercise, making workouts feel like an adventure rather than a chore. While it may have a few kinks to iron out, Quell’s potential is undeniable, and I, for one, can’t wait to see where this journey takes us. So, lace up your (virtual) sneakers and get ready to level up your fitness game with Quell!