By Li Xinyi, MOOK Travel Life Network, compiled and reported
To promote Taiwan’s distinctive attractions, the Tourism Bureau of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications launched its first tourism-themed gaming app, “Go Go Biker” (踩踩卡打车), earlier this year, centered around national scenic areas, which has seen over 50,000 downloads. Riding on this success, the Bureau has released the second version of “Go Go Biker,” themed around the newly selected “Taiwan’s Top Ten Small Tourist Towns.” By integrating GPS location features, players can now explore all ten of Taiwan’s small tourist towns by riding a virtual tricycle—all from their mobile devices.
Beitou’s traditional Japanese-style buildings remain well-preserved to this day, as shown in this photo of the Beitou Cultural Artifacts Museum. (Photo / MOOK Travel Life Network, Li Xinyi)
Following the announcement of “Taiwan’s Top Ten Small Tourist Towns” in mid-March, the Tourism Bureau incorporated the local scenery, cuisine, and entertainment of Taipei’s Beitou, New Taipei’s Ruifang, Taoyuan’s Daxi, Yilan’s Jiaoxi, Taichung’s Dajia, Nantou’s Jiji, Changhua’s Lukang, Tainan’s Anping, Kaohsiung’s Meinong, and Kinmen’s Jinshui into the game design, shaping the tricycle routes accordingly. In addition to retaining the racing thrills and competitive elements of the first version, the second edition of “Go Go Biker” introduces various obstacles and weather challenges such as thunderstorms to heighten the gaming difficulty. Players must also collect various power-ups before their energy runs out to maintain stamina or boost speed—making the game incredibly addictive.
The “Go Go Biker” app lets everyone “explore” the top ten small tourist towns for free. (Photo / MOOK Travel Life Network, Li Xinyi)
Notably, the second version of the game includes a regional positioning feature. For example, if a player is in northern Taiwan, the game will automatically lock onto that region, unlocking the northern city levels and introducing players to the local sights. Similarly, when playing in southern Taiwan, the game will seamlessly switch to the southern city levels—offering a highly “localized” experience.
The Tourism Bureau has even created a real-life version of the “Go Go Biker – Tricycle Game Promotion Vehicle”! Blending the physical and virtual worlds, this creatively designed, cool, and fun customized tricycle is equipped with actual gaming devices and a large screen, allowing players to enjoy an immersive gaming experience on-site. The “Go Go Biker – Tricycle Promotion Vehicle” will tour major attractions across Taiwan, with scheduled stops on May 19 at the Tamsui Bicycle Path, May 20 at the Northeast Coast Fulong Bicycle Path, May 26 at the Sun Moon Lake Bicycle Path, and May 27 at the Dapeng Bay Bicycle Path.
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