RidePods – the first iPhone game controlled with AirPods

RidePods — the first game for iPhone that can be controlled using AirPods. Developer Ali Tanis created a game for iPhone and iPad where Apple AirPods serve as a head-mounted motion controller. The RidePods game — Race with Head is quite simple: you control a motorcycle, speeding through oncoming traffic. Instead of traditional controls via the screen or tilting the phone, you steer the motorcycle by tilting your head side to side, using AirPods.

The game only supports Apple wireless headphones that feature Spatial Audio, including AirPods Pro, AirPods Max, and third and fourth generation AirPods. The Spatial Audio technology utilizes built-in accelerometers and gyroscopes to track head movements and adjust sound accordingly. Tanis reported that creating the game required modifying the functionality of Spatial Audio, although Apple provides developers access to headphone motion data for integration, such as in fitness tracking.

RidePods cannot be considered the best game for iOS or iPadOS. Occasionally, there are graphical glitches, such as the road disappearing, or it seems like you are riding on a perfectly straight road without turns. The experience feels more like a technical demonstration than a fully-fledged game, but the controls turned out to be very precise. I tested the game with second-generation AirPods Pro and AirPods Max — head control worked naturally and responsively, even when using one earbud. The motorcycle quickly responds to the slightest movements.

If you disable automatic head movement detection in the AirPods settings, the headphones or one earbud can be used as a manual controller, but this requires more skill and complicates the process. The app includes settings for controlling braking and acceleration by tilting your head forward or backward, but this does not significantly affect speed. You can also switch between first-person and third-person views without a driver.

For those who love to compete and share records, the app features a recording function that simultaneously captures gameplay and a selfie video of the player in one clip. Although RidePods — Race with Head is not a game I would return to often, I see the potential for using head movements through headphones for mobile gaming. The game is free, but I would gladly pay for a more convenient and contactless version, such as a solitaire game where cards can only be moved using head gestures.