Matty Benedetto of Unnecessary Inventions Builds a Real GTA VI House Arrest Bracelet

Matty Benedetto has spent years in his Burlington studio transforming minor annoyances into real physical products that no one asked for. With Grand Theft Auto VI set to release on November 19, he pointed to a challenge that most people do not yet face: how to ensure you actually stay inside once you get the game. The end result is a bulky black ankle unit that fits over a pair of trousers and sneakers and regards leaving the house like a parole violation.

When the bracelet is turned on, it begins searching for the home Wi-Fi network. As long as the signal stays strong the screen stays calm, showing a status page that lists an offense of vehicular larceny, an indefinite sentence, and a release condition that simply reads “when you touch grass.” A tap toggles between your battery level, the number of days you’ve been stuck indoors, and a meter indicating how well you’re sticking to your plan. It’s all wrapped up in a thick plastic casing that appears to have been thrown together on a 3D printer and then polished to look like a legitimate product.

Step outside and everything changes. The screen changes to a red warning that reads “parole violation” and “network escape detected” before counting down. Thirty seconds later, an alert sounds and continues until you walk back into range. In Benedetto’s build video, the unit quickly resumes operation when you return to the router; the display goes green, and a small checkmark shows that the home perimeter is now secure. He observes that the alarms go off quickly and the network is re-identified without much delay, which is about as practical as a joke device like this has to be.