This year, Tesla was the subject of a second Investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). This time, officials are poring over the passenger-game features available in more than 500,000 Tesla vehicles. Playing fun video games in Tesla's infotainment system is nothing new, but passenger games can be activated while the car is in motion.
According to a report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the feature was added last year and is currently available for 580,000 Tesla cars since 2017. All current models are included in the survey, which will determine whether playing video games while driving will distract people's drivers. This sounds like the biggest smart move of the century, but it's important to note that the NHTSA report doesn't mention anything about drivers playing games. Since the system is called Passenger Play, presumably passengers are having all the fun.
As for the driver, our colleagues at InsideEVs pointed out that participating in the passenger game is actually pressing the digital button on Tesla's touchscreen to confirm that you are a passenger. This is certainly something drivers can easily do, and it's not that we're not without seeing videos of people bypassing safety features not only on Tesla cars but also on other cars.
Given how easy it is for drivers to use the system, it seems possible to click on the game screen while driving, perhaps by implementing an additional system to confirm that the passenger is actually inside the car. In any case, don't play video games that make driving a safety hazard while driving.