HeadPop

Inspiration

Head Pop was inspired by the idea that many people who sit for long hours, work intensely, or feel tired after a full day often do not have enough energy to do a separate workout. I wanted to explore a lighter and more playful way to help people move their necks and bodies.

Games like Ring Fit Adventure showed me that motion-based games can give exercise a stronger sense of purpose. Head Pop follows that idea, but focuses on small, accessible movements that can fit into everyday life.

What it does

Head Pop is a motion-controlled bubble shooter. Instead of using a keyboard or mouse, players control the aiming pointer by turning their head left and right, and launch balls by opening their mouth.

The goal is to make simple neck movement feel like part of the game, not like a chore. By combining visual recognition with familiar bubble-shooter gameplay, Head Pop encourages users to move gently while relaxing and having fun.

How we built it

We built Head Pop as a web-based interactive game using camera-based visual recognition. The game detects facial and head movements, maps them to in-game controls, and turns the player's body movement into direct gameplay input.

The core experience combines real-time face/head tracking, gesture detection, and bubble-shooter game logic in the browser.

Challenges we ran into

One major challenge was making the controls feel natural. Head movement needs to be responsive enough for gameplay, but also stable enough so the pointer does not shake too much.

Another challenge was designing the interaction so that it feels fun and comfortable. Since the game involves neck movement, the experience needs to encourage gentle motion rather than intense or repetitive strain.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud that Head Pop turns a very simple health-related movement into a playable game mechanic. The player does not need special equipment; they can interact with the game through natural facial and head movement.

We are also proud of connecting health, motion control, and casual gameplay in a way that feels accessible and meaningful.

What we learned

We learned that motion-based interaction is not only a technical challenge, but also a design challenge. The game needs to balance recognition accuracy, comfort, responsiveness, and fun.

We also learned that small body movements can become more engaging when they are connected to clear feedback, goals, and playful game mechanics.

What's next for Head Pop

Head Pop is only the first step. In the future, we want to explore more health-focused motion games that target different parts of the body and different sedentary-life problems.

Our long-term goal is to build a series of casual motion-controlled games that help people relax, move, and take care of their bodies while playing.

Built With

• html5
• mediapipe-face-mesh
• phaser-3
• react-18
• tailwind-css
• typescript
• vite
• zustand