Guru Meditation app for iPhone and iPad
Developer: Ian Bogost
First release : 14 May 2009
App size: 320.76 Kb
"Achieve Mobile Enlightenment With Guru Meditation"
--G4 TV
"If you want to relax but just can’t seem to break away from your iPhone, Guru Meditation could be just the app you need."
--Weekly App Store Pick, the Apple Blog
"The lines between handheld, retro and next-gen gaming have never been so blurred, and hats must go off to Ian for accomplishing such an unusual and ambitious project as Guru Meditation."
--iPhone Otaku
Guru Meditation is a relaxation game. Unlike most videogames, it is played through a lack of interaction rather than an abundance of it.
The game is an iPhone port of my Atari 2600 game of the same name, itself an homage to the folkloric game played by Amiga OS developers on a Joyboard peripheral, circa 1982.
(A numbered limited edition of 10 for Atari is also available, with Atari console, Joyboard and yoga mat -- see website below.)
To start, tap the bouncing iPhone icon on the title screen. The game requires that you hold your iPhone or iPod Touch as still as possible. A screen will help you orient your device: place your thumbs on the bottom corners of the display, hold the device parallel to the floor, and insure that the noise level around you is kept to a minimum (microphone input on iPhone only).
Once the input requirements are met, a yogi will appear. The yogi slowly rises if you remain properly situated. After a few moments, he will float gently and the timer will start. Remain calm and focused.
Time passes subtly during the game. Clouds move. The time of day changes, roughly every hour, from day to dusk to night to dawn. You can select a different starting time of day by waiting to choose a starting point on the title screen.
If you move or a sound disrupts you, the yogi will fall and the game will end. Touch the screen to see your recorded time for this session, as well as your average meditation time across all sessions. You might consider setting a meditation target for yourself each day, and using the average score display as a way to track your goals.