LOS ANGELES, November 7, 2019: Weyo, the award-winning creator of immersive and interactive digital experiences for children, today launched their new Sesame Street Yourself app exclusively in the Apple App Store. Created in partnership with Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization behind the iconic children’s program, the Sesame Street Yourself app provides young children a safe new way to learn and play on handheld devices.
Weyo used Apple’s groundbreaking ARKit3 technology, which allows preschoolers ages 3-5 to safely use Sesame Street Yourself to sing and play along with their favorite screen characters in an ad-free environment without any information being transferred to a server or the Cloud. The app showcases brand new Sesame Street-themed content designed to make each experience engaging and fun.
“Sesame Street Yourself is an exciting way to ignite young imaginations through interactive play with the friendly, furry faces both kids and parents love,” said Baz Palmer, CEO and founder, Weyo. “We are thrilled to launch the app just in time for the holiday season and the 50th anniversary of one of the most important programs in television history.”
Inspiring creativity while encouraging movement and dancing, Sesame Street Yourself recognizes children’s facial expressions and motions, allowing kids (and kids at heart) to transform into Sesame Street characters in both 2D and 3D. With a combination of Weyo tech and Apple’s latest multiplayer AR, the whole family can join the fun by choosing whichever character mask best expresses their Sesame Street self!
“We know children’s safety is paramount for parents when considering screen time, so we are excited to offer families this secure new opportunity for online play,” added Palmer. “Sesame Street Yourself invites kids to create unique vibrant and memorable experiences every time they play.
” Children can collect all their favorite Sesame Street character masks, and new characters will be introduced and updated throughout the program’s 50th-anniversary celebration and beyond. The free-to-download app comes bundled with dress-up play, the Let’s Celebrate theme pack, one interactive game, two songs, plus masks of three Sesame Street friends to start.
Specific games and features include:
- Play and Imagine: Mini-games and interactions offer active playtime for the whole family – up to three players at once – where children can play and sing-along with their favorite Sesame Street friends.
- Dress Up Fun: Allows children to get creative as they become a ready-to-accessorize Sesame Street character. Once transformed into the character of their choice, kids can try on crazy costumes, hats, glasses and mustache styles.
- Sing and Play: Kids can sing their favorite Sesame Street songs — and star in their own music videos! — as a Sesame Street character.
- Watch Videos: Each interactive song is also viewable within the app as a complete video.
- Bake with Cookie Monster: With Apple’s latest rear-facing AR technology, Sesame Street Yourself brings Cookie Monster into living rooms everywhere. Find the ingredients hidden around the room to help Cookie Monster bake a cake. (Only available for iPhone XR and 2018 iPad Pros and above.)
- Extend Playtime: Just because screen time is over doesn’t mean the fun has to end. Head over to Weyo’s website (www.weyo.app ) or the Weyo app and print out downloadable character masks to extend playtime long after screen time is over.
“At Sesame Workshop, we’re committed to offering best-in-class experiences that parents can trust wherever kids and families learn and play together,” said Scott Chambers, Sesame Workshop’s Senior Vice President/General Manager of Educational Media and Licensing, North America. “Together with Weyo, an innovator in immersive video technology, we’re excited to bring the joy and learning of Sesame Street to life in a new way with Sesame Street Yourself.” Sesame Street Yourself is free to download only at the Apple App Store.
