Is this the stupidest peripheral ever?

Sometimes mere words fail to do this beautiful world full justice. So it is with Piss Screen, a urine-operated, urinal-housed controller recently installed in a Frankfurt bar, and designed to react to a hosing down by toilet-visiting gamers. The mind boggles.

But is this the stupidest videogame peripheral the world has ever seen? Sadly, the answer is quite probably "No!" As this list of ridiculous, mental and sometimes troubling plug-in-ables can prove...

Above: The Piss Screen in action. Remember, more than three spins is a *snip! GamesRadar Ed*

The Piss Screen
Created in response to what looks like a marketing brief - encourage people to take taxis after a few drinks, rather than risk driving themselves - this peripheral is really thinking outside the box. Aiming to reach the target audience "in a fresh andeffective way," the Piss Screen enables urinal users to enjoy a Need for Speed style racing game by splashing their waters against pressure sensitive control pads. Although exactly how "fresh" it would be at 2am on a Sunday morning is barely worth considering.

They say: "The player can control the car whilst relieving himself"; "Requires relatively quick reflexes"; "The game ultimately culminates in a shocking crash-sequence, leaving the viewer with little doubt as to the repercussions of driving while drunk."

What they don't say: "Demands considerable bladder size and stream control"; "Don't forget to use both hands!"; "The time and effort put into designing the piss-operated device leaves the viewer with little doubt as to the repercussions of allowing marketing teams to embrace blue sky thinking."

Ben Richardson is a former Staff Writer for Official PlayStation 2 magazine and a former Content Editor of GamesRadar+. In the years since Ben left GR, he has worked as a columnist, communications officer, charity coach, and podcast host – but we still look back to his news stories from time to time, they are a window into a different era of video games. 

Latest in Gaming
GDC The Game Developers logo
Biggest announcements from the Game Developers Conference 2025
FGS Spring 2025
How to watch The Future Game Show Spring Showcase 2025 – and what to expect
Image of the Death Stranding 2 On The Beach Collector's Edition on a purple GamesRadar background.
Death Stranding 2 collector's edition is a sight to behold and here's where to pre-order yours
GDC The Game Developers logo
When is the Game Developers Conference 2025 and why is it so interesting?
Pokemon Legends: Z-A screenshot
Everything announced at Pokemon Presents 2025
Saros screenshot featuring the main character and am imposing monster in the background with a swirling void in its chest and multiple arms with balls of fire
Everything announced at the PlayStation State of Play February 2025
Latest in News
Red Dead Redemption screenshot of protagonist John Marston aiming a pistol
Ex GTA 6 dev says free and live service games are "eating everyone's time," and combined with "open world fatigue," it's getting harder to make players explore
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom
My Hero Academia and Gundam animator explains the issues behind anime shows getting shorter: "There is a shortage of professional staff in all sections"
Saw X
Billy the Puppet gives Saw fans some hope on the future of the horror franchise by updating his LinkedIn profile to "employed"
Bella Ramsey as Ellie and Pedro Pascal as Joel in The Last of Us
The Last of Us showrunner Craig Mazin praises Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal for "spectacular" take on one of Part 2's most iconic scenes in season 2
25 years after Malcolm in the Middle first aired, the revival series starts filming in just "a few days" – and Frankie Muniz is rewatching the original to prepare
"I didn’t have a single ally": Tekken 4's negative reception put series boss Katsuhiro Harada under so much stress that he left Namco for a year