Zwift Play brings game-friendly controls to your virtual rides
Clip-on controllers promise easier interaction, should get you exercising more
Zwift has long been a go-to for cyclists looking to join a peloton without leaving the house – and now the fitness service is about to get a whole lot more gamified. The new Zwift Play brings a pair of connected controllers for your handlebars, which should make it easier to explore virtual routes and add a bit of fun to those sweaty workout sessions.
The Zwift Play controllers strap on to your bike or smart trainer’s drop handlebars, and can be removed just as easily. They flank the space your smartphone or tablet usually sits, and tie in to the firm’s Zwift Companion app.
There’s a D-pad on the left for navigating menus, select turns or pull a U-turn while roaming Zwift’s virtual worlds, while four face buttons on the right provide shortcuts for deploying power ups, skipping workout blocks and making selections in menus. The familiar, Xbox-style layout should mean you don’t need to take your eyes off the road to find a specific button.
Paddles on each ‘pad also add steering and braking abilities: rock them inwards to brake, or pull out to steer. They work in both Zwift events and freeride mode using the Zwift Companion app, which should help serious cyclists clip their apexes with greater precision. There’s also a new Zwift Play Game Experience set to launch alongside the controllers, for more relaxed rides that put fun first.
First up will be Repack Rush, a revised version of the existing Repack Ridge course. You’ll need to collect boost pads and dodge braking pads to set the best times. Zwift has other game experiences in the pipeline, which should be available to try once the Zwift Play controllers hit retail.
Zwift Play is heading to the USA, UK and Europe in the coming months, and will be available directly from zwift.com. A beta test phase will let keen Zwifters snap one up for $99/£99/€99, while full retail prices are expected to be $149/£149/€149.
It might have started out as a service for dedicated cyclists, but Zwift has picked up traction among those looking to get fit from home. The firm reckons riders that use its companion app to interact during their workouts get on their bike two or three times more each month than those that use the basic Zwift app, and Zwift Play aims to boost that number even higher.
Tom Morgan-Freelander
Deputy Editor 
