Zestum Scentbar is like a Sonos Beam for your nose – adds a whole new dimension to gaming

Gamescom is Europe's biggest annual video games show and it often plays host the latest games and launches. However, it can also throw the odd curveball your way, with a device or product a little more unusual.

Such is the case with the Zestum Scentbar. Having undergone a successful crowd funding phase on Kickstarter earlier this year, it's a gaming accessory that is quite unique. I've certainly never experienced anything quite like it before.

Imagine a small soundbar-shaped device that sits under your gaming monitor, but instead of blasting you with audio it coughs out relevant smells instead. So if you're riding through a forest, you might be treated to the whiff of green grass and tree bark.

Or you're walking through a village that's burning around you, and the aroma of smoke wafts towards your sitting position. That's the Scentbar in a nutshell.

In technical terms, it plugs into a PC through USB-C – or a console using an adapter – and you load it with up to 10 different scents provided by Zestum. Each comes in the form of a cartridge filled with scent pellets – a bit like an elaborate Glade air freshener – and then, once the bar's software thinks an appropriate aroma should be released, it fires up the relevant miniature fan(s).

The specific scent (or scents) hit your nose, enhancing the immersive experience. And it really works.

I got to try it myself in a hidden corner of Gamescom and while the show has its own unique honk, the Scentbar genuinely impressed. Its software uses AI algorithms to assess what's being displayed on the screen at any one point, and if you have a matching scent loaded, it'll release it.

This can be a combination of different smells to really set the mood, or just the one. And throughout my demonstration, it seemed to get it spot on every time. For example, when I was watching some gameplay of a farming simulator, the smell of cut grass was distinctive.

The same was true when digging a cave in Minecraft. First I got a grassy odour, and what smelled like wood, but then a musty, wet rock kind of aroma. It wasn't as unpleasant as that sounds, and did help place me in that environment.

There was also a sea water scent during a snippet of Grand Theft Auto V (when at Vespucci Beach), and the unmistakable and pungent blast of gunpowder during a gunfight scene. It wasn't completely game-changing, I'd say, but has the potential to enhance play.

Zestum supplies all the different scents itself, which you can get in bundles and packs, such as a collection for racing games – fuel, asphalt, rubber tyres, that sort of thing. And I was told that there's potential to do deals with games developers and publishers in future to supply bespoke collections to match their titles.

The software can also be tweaked, including the strength of each scent, plus profiles to better match your favourite games. But I also found the algorithm did a fine job of figuring out what I was looking at and blasting out the right combinations to suit.

I left impressed for sure. The Scentbar won't change the world, but is a lot more effective that I originally expected. And it's fun, which is important, I feel.

It will be available in Europe later this year, I was told by Zestum, for €299 and can be pre-ordered on the dedicated website. Scentpacks containing multiple modules are €40 apiece, and there's a Scentbar Pro model with even more slots for your scents for an even more rounded experience.

I was also told that it will be coming to the UK in Q1 2027, so keep an eye (or nose) out for that.