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Ultimate gaming furniture playtest - Part 1
If you’re reading this article right now odds are you are a gamer. Gamers are many ages, both young and old, and also come in many shapes and sizes. The types of games they like can vary from First Person Shooters all the way to the other end of the spectrum with Japanese developed Role Playing Games … yet not matter how different gamers are we all have one very thing in common …
We all need something comfy to sit on while playing our beloved games.
Like most of you out there I own a couch, and while it is certainly serviceable as gaming seating, I had found that lately my back was hurting as I leaned into the screen. I thought that if I’m having this problem I’m sure there are other folks out there having this problem too. It was with this thought I contacted several different “alternative” furniture companies in search of the perfect seating to enjoy hours of Xbox360 bliss.
Both “Fatboy” and “Lovesac” answered my clarion challenge, and so we will be looking at both chairs in two separate articles, to see if either company has come up with something that will fit an Xbox360 gamer’s hectic lifestyle of 12-hour game-a-thon sessions.
PART 1 – Fatboy
Today’s article we are going to look at the “Fatboy”. Fatboy is a Netherlands based company that now distributes “21st century” beanbags all over the world.
Those of you in your late 20’s or early 30’s you may be old enough to remember beanbag furniture from when you were a kid. They were generally roundish shaped and made poorly. My grandparents had one of these and at the end of its life it was leaking hundreds of beanbag pellets all over the floor.
Suffice to say it I wasn’t sure what to expect from Fatboy.
When the two boxes from Fatboy first arrived I was wondering what I had gotten myself into. Stacked on top of each other they reached somewhat majestically up to the ceiling and I found myself laughing like a maniac as I tore into the larger of the two boxes.
Inside I found a massive bright orange beanbag unlike any beanbag seen before. The thing was huge, taking up a huge chunk of real estate in my downtown Toronto apartment. The beanbag shell itself was made of some sort of space age nylon material that looked and felt extremely sturdy.
Michel Atibol, a Canadian Fatboy representative, had explained to me before the Fatboy arrived, that the beanbags are filled with virgin polystyrene beads, which would ensure maximum comfort while playing my games. He did caution me though that I would have to “make the bag work for you” to get full enjoyment from the product. To be honest at first I didn’t know what he meant. It wasn’t until I started playing around with the bag that things began to “click”. The Fatboy was square shaped when laid out flat on the floor like a crash mat, but could be pushed up, and conformed to many different shapes.
At first I sat in the chair expecting it to just “feel” comfortable. After experimenting a little I started to realize the key to the Fatboy was to force the bag into whatever shape I felt comfortable in – the words “make the bag work for you” echoed in my head like the voice of Obi wan Kenobi in Star Wars. Once I realized what needed to be done I made the ultimate gaming chair and literally spent hours of game playing free of back pain, and free of the aches I’d come to associate with long game sessions on my couch. Fatboy was kind enough to send me an Ottoman for my feet, which made an excellent addition to the Beanbag itself.
Fatboy comes in a variety of colours so you should be able to find one that fits the décor of your space. The beanbag itself however, is very large … you’ll note in the pictures I’ve taken the beanbag is resting in the spot where my couch used to be. I could see Fatboy’s making the perfect addition to a basement gaming zone … they seem custom built for use in front of an entertainment centre. When looking at the Fatboy solely on how useful it will be when used while playing an Xbox360, I would have to say that it’s one of the most comfortable chairs I’ve ever used to play video games with. I spent over 6 hours straight playing the Call of Duty 4 Multiplayer Beta without a single ache or pain. The Fatboy offers full back support while cradling every little nook and cranny of your body. You can smoosh it into a perfect gaming chair, or lay it out as a crash mat big enough for two. If you’re watching HD DVD’s on the 360 Add On, the Fatboy can also be made into a sorta bed lounger which is perfect for an extended movie session.
I can say with full confidence that Fatboy is one of the best beanbags you will ever sit in, if not one of the best chairs you will ever sit in period. In terms of quality, it’s obvious that the Fatboy’s are made of premium material. My wife and I spilled some cola on the bag while I was playing the Call of Duty 4 MP beta, and it wiped away really easily with water and a cloth. For those of you with kids, or messy housemates, the ease of which this thing can be cleaned, is something that should not be ignored.
Some other things to be aware of … beanbags have a distinctive feel mainly because of the polystyrene beads they are filled with. Polystyrene beads decompress over time meaning you will need to “top up” your beanbag every nine months to a year, depending on how often you use it. The beanbag features a zipper seal combined with an extra layer of protection in the form of a Velcro opening … beans won’t be spilling out of this bag, that’s for sure!
In terms of price I’ll admit I do think that Fatboy’s are expensive. At £149, and $229 US, they are definitely a purchase one would need to think about … however I do think that Fatboy represents one of the best Beanbags available on the market today. Speaking for myself, I spend hundreds of dollars a year on gaming and movies; I personally feel that a price tag can also be put on the amount of comfort I get from the furniture I use to enjoy those games and movies. I guess what I’m trying to say is, yes it’s expensive for a beanbag … but what a beanbag! You pay for what you get and in Fatboy’s case, you are getting the best.
One other nice thing about Fatboy is that being a Netherlands based company their beanbags are distributed in many different countries. This in particular is nice for those of you in Canada and the UK, who often pay a premium to ship neat products from the States.
You can order your own:
here in the US
here in the UK
here in Canada
Posted By: Scott Strickland
Date: 2007-08-27
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