There are no controllers and no game packages. All you have to do is connect a palm-sized cube to your TV and stand in front of it. This is the story of 'Nex Playground,' a gaming console that outsold Xbox during last year's Black Friday in the US.

Developer Nex is preparing to expand this device into Korea. At Gamescom 2026 in Cologne, Germany, we met with Nex representatives to learn about the device and experience it firsthand.

How it works is simple. A wide-angle camera on the console tracks the player's full-body movement. Nex explains that motion-recognition processing is handled entirely on the device itself, using an on-device architecture that does not send video to external servers.

There are no separate controllers or wearable gear. Full-body tracking works with a minimum space of 1 meter, and up to four people can play simultaneously. The required space varies depending on the size of the TV: the larger the screen, the further back you need to stand, while smaller screens allow you to stand closer.

The business model combines hardware sales and a subscription. In the US, the console is priced at $299, with an annual subscription fee of $89 for access to the full game library. Currently, 65 games are available, with 15 to 20 titles added each year. There are no ads or in-app purchases. A single subscription covers everything from party games and action-adventures to sports like baseball, tennis, soccer, and hockey, casual titles like bowling, music and dance, and fitness.

The device price has risen twice from $199 at its initial launch in December 2023. During the price hike in April this year, Nex cited rising costs for key components such as memory (DDR) and storage (eMMC), while keeping the subscription fee unchanged.

Its distribution model differs from the mobile ecosystem. Nex manages all games featured on the system directly and has new titles downloaded automatically when released. Because users do not buy games individually from a store, the concept of a platform fee does not exist. Nex stated that it provides external developers with development kits and technical support.

Nex defines the device not as a console, but as an 'active play system.' However, its market position is right beside consoles. At US Target, Walmart, and Best Buy stores, it is placed right next to Nintendo and PlayStation display shelves. A company representative said their goal is "turning the living room into a playground," expressing confidence that they can grow this market to match the sales scale achieved by Nintendo.

Its starting point was not a gaming console. Founded in 2017 in San Jose, US, Nex was created by founder and CEO David Lee after leaving his job as a senior engineering manager at Apple. Its first product was 'HomeCourt,' an app that tracked basketball shots using a smartphone camera. The company shifted direction when users stuck indoors during COVID-19 began enjoying training games within the app. After confirming the potential of motion games there, Nex ultimately ended up building its own hardware.

Nex stated that it sold 750,000 units last year, with inventory running out by the end of the year. Market research firm Circana also reported that the console ranked third in US hardware sales volume in November last year, outpacing Xbox Series X|S.

What the device targets is accessibility. Players do not need to memorize button combinations, as games indicate on screen which body part to use. Citing an example of seniors who cannot lift a bowling ball still being able to play a bowling game, the company noted that photos of grandmothers playing together with their granddaughters continue to come in from users.

Most games support local multiplayer. While it currently operates without an online connection, a remote connection feature ('Connected Play') that allows long-distance families to play together is currently in development. For this feature, Nex emphasized the principle of "no strangers, only friends and family."

External IP expansion is also underway. New motion gameplay utilizing Bandai Namco's 'PAC-MAN' and a Sonic game in collaboration with Sega are in preparation, and partnerships have also been established with Paramount, Hasbro, Sesame Workshop, and NBCUniversal.

The most notable partner in South Korea will be HYBE. On June 22, Nex announced that it had partnered with HYBE to introduce the first co-branded version of its rhythm game 'Starri' within the year. The game involves playing BTS's music using full-body motion.

The significance of Nex's expansion into South Korea stems from the history of this market. Living-room gaming that uses cameras to track full-body movement is a segment that the Nintendo Wii and Microsoft Kinect once opened up and later closed. While the Wii broadened the user base, software sales were concentrated on only a few titles, and Kinect could not sustain itself against hardware costs and a lack of content, ultimately being discontinued in 2017.

Nex's decision to structure its revenue around an annual subscription rather than just device sales was a choice aimed at addressing that failure, as subscriptions can only be maintained if new games are continuously produced. How Nex adjusts the pricing structure—combining a $299 console price with an $89 annual subscription—for the domestic market is expected to be a key factor in its launch in South Korea.