Tesla Faces Review After Update Allowing Drivers To Play Games On Dashboard Of Moving Car

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced on Wednesday, Dec. 8, that it is under discussion with automobile company Tesla regarding a feature allowing drivers to play video games directly on the dashboard.

Tesla recently updated the software of its cars over the summer to include an arcade of video games in its archive, including Sky Force Reloaded, Solitaire, and The Battle of Polytopia. The games are playable while the car moves, but supposedly is only allowed for the passenger, The Verge reported.

However, safety concern groups have pointed out that it would be easy for the driver of the car to click the “I am Passenger” button on the touch screen so that they, too, can play the games themselves, putting them and others at risk, according to Bloomberg.

“It should go without saying that enabling drivers to play or be distracted by video games while operating a multi-ton vehicle at highway speeds is exceedingly dangerous,” Jason Levine from the Center for Auto Safety said.

While Tesla has yet to make a statement regarding the features of these cars, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said that they are currently looking into the features themselves to ensure their safety.

“We are aware of driver concerns and are discussing the feature with the manufacturer,” a statement from the agency said. “The Vehicle Safety Act prohibits manufacturers from selling vehicles with design defects posing unreasonable risks to safety.”

This is not the first time Tesla has gone under the eye of regulation committees regarding their technology. They are currently being investigated regarding the beta test of the “Full Self-Driving” feature as well as the Autopilot feature of some cars.

“NHTSA should move quickly from suggesting guidelines to enforcing the law against unreasonable risks to safety and Tesla should stop playing with the lives of their owners and anyone else sharing the road with these vehicles,” Levine said.