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History
In the early 2000s, the educational video game system was booming and was mostly dominated by V-Tech. Hasbo, as a toy maker, wanted in on the action. Hasbro decided to partner with GestureTek, a leader in interactive entertainment systems to develop the ION Educational Gaming System (or ION E.G.S.). The system was first announced in February 2005 with a planned release for Fall 2005. The console was then delayed and made its first public appearance at the E3 on May 10th 2006.
Release
Similar to the PS2 EyeToy, the iON was finally released in Fall 2006. With the iON Educational Gaming System, kids, ages 3 to 7, could see themselves on the family TV screen, as they move to participate in learning adventures focused on core preschool and elementary skills. A small camera built into the console’s base places the child onscreen and literally “in” the game–right next to their popular characters from their favorite TV shows. The iON E.G.S. came packed with 2 games and released alongside 5 additional games.
Games
Aside from the 2 pack-in games, 5 additional games were released:
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| Batman | Blue’s Room | Dora the Explorer | |||
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| Lazy Town | Danny Phantom | ||||
Cancelled Games
The original announcement also mentioned 4 additional games that we were unable to track:
- Blue’s Clues
- Scooby Doo
- Bob the Builder
- The Wiggles