Adelaide developer Lava Software plans to launch Xerdeck on Kickstarter on 29 September 2026. The controller turns movement on a treadmill or indoor bike into travel through supported game worlds.
A treadmill session feels different when your walking speed moves a character along a mountain trail or an old city street. That is the idea behind Xerdeck, an Adelaide-developed hardware accessory from Lava Software Pty Ltd. The company plans to launch it on Kickstarter on 29 September 2026.
In a Lava Software media release published by GamesPress, the company presents Xerdeck as a way to build a walking habit through game-world exploration. It is not pitched as a conventional competitive fitness product.
A controller built for walking
Xerdeck connects to a treadmill or indoor bike through Bluetooth. It turns walking or pedalling speed into in-game movement.
The hardware uses a joystick for looking around and a small number of remappable buttons for simple actions such as jumping. That is a different approach from the fast inputs and complex button combinations found in many fitness games.
The design makes Xerdeck closer to a walking aid for game worlds than a traditional exercise challenge. Lava Software is targeting people over 50 and those returning to exercise after a long break. It is also aimed at gamers who want a reason to keep moving without turning every session into a competition.
Founder and CEO Michael Wildoer has described the intended audience as older adults and first-time exercisers. They may be more interested in building a routine than chasing performance numbers.
The controller starts at AU$139 for Kickstarter super early birds. An optional wireless Single-Handed Controller is meant to let a family member, carer or personal trainer steer for someone with limited hand dexterity. The source does not provide independent accessibility testing or a full list of supported control configurations.
Games provide the incentive
The strongest part of the pitch is the software many players already know. Xerdeck is demonstrated with open-world games including Horizon Zero Dawn, Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Grand Theft Auto V, Red Dead Redemption 2, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II and Hogwarts Legacy.
Lava Software also plans a separate landscape library for PC and later other platforms. It is expected to include landscapes, historical locations and tourist destinations. The company plans regular updates after the Kickstarter campaign.
This is not a new game with its own campaign or progression system. Xerdeck is an input accessory that changes how compatible games are navigated.
That means the experience will depend on the treadmill or bike, the Bluetooth connection, game compatibility and the user's willingness to keep moving. Lava Software's YouTube channel shows demonstrations using PlayStation 4, PC and PCVR games. Those videos do not show how every listed title performs with every supported device.
For readers tracking how hardware projects move from a pitch to public funding, NGB has also covered an earlier Kickstarter story involving a game project. Xerdeck is selling access to an accessory and a planned landscape service. It is not promising a standalone game release.
What the evidence supports
Lava Software points to exercise and gaming research when explaining the product's appeal. A 2025 study in PLOS ONE led by Western University neuroscientist Adrian Owen reported that regular video-game players scored better on tests of memory, reasoning and processing speed than people who did not play games.
The reported average difference was equivalent to 13.7 years of cognitive performance. The finding is an association, though. It does not prove that gaming caused the result.
The case for exercise is more direct, but it is still modest. Walking is linked to improved mood and does not require sprinting or high resistance to be useful as movement.
Xerdeck's stated approach is to remove some of the friction. Users can exercise indoors during hot weather or poor-air-quality days while watching a game world change instead of staring at a treadmill display.
Lava Software founder and chief executive Michael Wildoer has described the aim as making a daily walk something users look forward to. He has also presented it as a way to support shared exploration with friends.
That is the company's position, not independent evidence that Xerdeck improves adherence, fitness or wellbeing. No user trial results are supplied.
Kickstarter details and limits
Xerdeck is planned for PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Meta Quest 3 VR, Android TV and Apple TV. The landscape library is scheduled for release after the campaign. Its final content, update schedule and technical reach remain unconfirmed.
A Founders Lifetime Subscription is listed as a selectable post-campaign survey option for AU$269. Lava Software says it plans to include that subscription free for all pledgers if the campaign reaches its AU$1m stretch goal.
The company says the accessory can be mounted on a treadmill handrail or exercise-bike handlebars. That gives the project a clear practical use. The supplied information does not confirm a complete equipment compatibility list, minimum hardware requirements, latency measurements or support for every game and platform named in the announcement.
That distinction matters. A promotional demonstration can show that one setup works. It cannot establish stable performance across different treadmills, bikes, consoles, PCs and virtual-reality configurations.
Xerdeck's Kickstarter launch will offer the next concrete test of its pricing, funding plans and delivery commitments. The current evidence supports a promising accessory designed with accessibility in mind, not a proven exercise solution.
Independent corroboration is limited in the available material. The GamesPress release carrying Lava Software's claims is the clearest authoritative source currently available for the stated platform list, pricing and stretch-goal details.
Xerdeck's strongest idea is also its most practical. It gives an existing treadmill or bike a more engaging purpose without demanding speed, athleticism or mastery of another complicated fitness system.
The AU$139 entry price may keep the hardware within reach for some owners. The optional helper controller addresses a real access barrier.
Until compatibility and long-term user results are independently established, the fair verdict is that Xerdeck is an inventive gaming peripheral with a credible audience and several practical questions still unanswered.
Its central technical idea is simple. Movement data becomes an input signal, so exercise pace controls travel through the game instead of merely accompanying a video on a screen.
