Besiege

Building medieval machines while your legs are moving sounds like a decent treadmill pairing, but Besiege asks you to stop and rethink your design often enough that I’d treat it as a low pace workout, not a game for a hard run. The machines are the fun part, and they can also turn one simple goal into a lot of tinkering.

Gameplay

I like that the game lets you solve problems by building something ridiculous and seeing whether the physics agree with you. You’re making machines to take on armies, castles and obstacles, and I think that open ended approach is much more interesting than being told there’s one correct way through a level. Sometimes a pile of parts does the job. Sometimes it just falls over. Both are useful information.

The building and testing do interrupt the action, though, and that matters if you want a steady workout. You may spend a stretch placing parts and adjusting a design, then get a short burst of mayhem while the machine does its thing. I don’t think that makes the game slow in a bad way, but it does mean you’ll have to be comfortable with your pace going up and down. Your legs can keep working while your brain is making a small wooden problem worse.

Campaign goals give you a reason to keep changing your design instead of building the same machine forever, and I think that’s where the game stays engaging. A castle calls for a different answer than an obstacle, and I like games that let you try an idea rather than making you guess what the designer expected. I don’t know how many people will want to carefully tune every machine, but you can also make a rough attempt and see what happens. Some attempts are educational.

There’s multiplayer too, with skirmishes against friends, which sounds like a nice option when you want less campaign structure and more immediate trouble. I’d probably keep that for a session where you’re comfortable looking down and thinking, though, because trying to build something clever while your attention is split sounds like inviting your machine to become a cart with a personal grudge. The game is at its best when you have room to experiment.

Category Score: 2 out of 3

Treadmill and Bike Compatibility

The slow building sections are the part I’d plan around. I’d use a comfortable walking pace, or ride at an easy effort, and make a design before turning the simulation loose. Then you can watch the machine attempt its job without needing to make a bunch of quick corrections. That rhythm could work well if you like a workout with pauses in the action, but it won’t suit you if you want constant movement and straightforward controls.

I wouldn’t assume the building controls will feel good on a controller just because the machine testing is simple to watch. Placing and adjusting parts asks for a fair bit of precision, and I’d check your own control setup before committing to a long session. If you’re using a treadmill, I’d keep the speed low enough that looking down to build doesn’t make you wobble around. On a bike, the seated position might make those moments easier, but you still have to manage the careful input.

The game doesn’t sound like it’s constantly demanding fast reactions, which is a point in its favor. You can take your time between attempts, and I’d skip multiplayer if you’re trying to keep your attention on exercising rather than coordinating a machine with someone else. I don’t know that I’d want to rebuild a complicated contraption while bouncing along, so I’d make the simpler designs part of the workout and save the fiddling for when you’re stopped.

This is a better fit for an easy session than a workout where you’re pushing your pace. I’d give it a try if you enjoy figuring things out and don’t mind a few stretches where the game becomes more of a construction project than an action game. Just don’t expect every minute to have the same rhythm.

Category Score: 2 out of 3

Computer Requirements

The listed minimum is modest by current standards, so you don’t need a new high end gaming computer just to consider it. I’d check that your graphics hardware meets the dedicated memory requirement, especially if you’re using an older machine.

Category Score: 3 out of 3

Conclusion and Score

Besiege makes sense for you if you like experimenting and can keep your workout easy while you build. I’d skip it for a fast run or a session where you want the game to handle itself.

Overall Score: 2.33 out of 3