Puma has released an £80 pair of shoes specifically designed for wearing while playing video games.
The company’s “active gaming footwear” look like high-tech, space-age ankle socks. Puma promises they will deliver “seamless comfort, support and grip so gamers can adapt to different active gaming modes and game their best.”
The idea of wearing special shoes to sit on your sofa and play video games may seem ridiculous, but Matt Shaw, team head of digital marketing and gaming for Puma, said there was a market for athlete-designed clothing.
“Obviously, Puma’s heritage is as a sports brand, but it’s patently obvious to us that our consumer makes very little distinction between athletes in stick-and-ball sports and esports athletes,” he said, earlier this year.
On Twitter he defended the shoes, saying they developed out of research for a Puma “playseat” on which video game players can sit.
