[1] The main hardware for the original Gametrak is the base unit, a weighted device positioned on the floor in front of the display.
The Gametrak uses a patented[2] mechanical system for tracking position of physical elements in three-dimensional space in real time.
The Gametrak includes special fingerless gloves, each with a fastener along the outside edge for attaching a tether cable, allowing the system to track both of a user's hands.
[4] Haptic functionality was planned to be incorporated into future revisions of the original Gametrak,[5] in which supplementary retraction forces on the tension cables would be dynamically increased or decreased to simulate various effects.
After testing the concept, the developers worked on an implementation to make the device affordable, accurate, and reliable enough for a mass market.
In August 2004, a few months before launch, the Gametrak was showcased at the 2004 Games Convention, where it won a "Best of GC" award for "Most Innovative Product".
[16] On April 11, 2006, Gametrak was released for both PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the United States, bundled with enhanced versions of Real World Golf.
[17] On August 25, 2006, In2Games released Real World Golf 2007 in Europe for PlayStation 2 and PC,[18] by which time over 300,000 Gametrak units had been sold.
[28] In2Games positioned the control system as a competitive cross-platform alternative to the Wii Remote,[29] targeting it for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 platforms.
[34] On August 17, 2007, In2Games announced RealPlay, a range of family-friendly video games for the PlayStation 2 with wireless motion-sensing controller units similar to those originally shown for then-named Gametrak Fusion, but without the ultrasonic tracking technology.