Fitness Gaming discussion

[Kaido]

For me at least, indoor cardio is pretty boring. There are some cool wearables trying to make exercise more interactive, but I think gaming is where the future is at...if you can get sucked into a game that just so happens to also be exercise, then that'd be the bomb! I pre-ordered a simple VR exercise bike called the VirZoom ($250 shipped pre-order), coming out next year, which I think is pretty neat. More info here:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2458088

This same technology could be applied to recumbent bikes & rowers for even more gameplay options, so I'm really interested to see where they go with this. This lets you get a cardio workout in, regardless of the outside weather, as well as do something fun (a videogame) & optionally play online with your friends.

Second one is an omni treadmill, another immersive VR product. Virtuix is probably the most popular one at this point, although it runs $700. Walk, jog, and possibly run in it. Can you imagine playing Zombie Run, but in 3D with this? And of course, their Youtube channel has GTA5, COD, Fallout, etc:

http://www.virtuix.com/

DDR is still around, if you like to do dance-cardio. StepMania, a DDR clone for PC, is still being actively developed:

http://www.stepmania.com/

Or BeatX on Android: (same idea, and you can hookup a DDR pad via USB to a tablet or whatever device you've got)

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=sk.maniacs.bm

Even more interesting, they came out with a fun game called Crypt of the Necrodancer, which incorporates more interesting dance music combined with a game. This is the type of thing I have in mind for fitness gaming...something that makes it really fun to do physical exercise & take your mind off what could otherwise be drudgery:

http://necrodancer.com/

And of course, there are camera & motion-based games for the Xbox Kinect & Wii:

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-one/accessories/kinect-for-xbox-one

http://wiifit.com/my-wii-fit-plus/

Probably the most motion-oriented is the Just Dance games:

http://just-dance.ubi.com/en-us/tracklist/index.aspx

Anyway, wanted to kick off a discussion about gaming & fitness. I think anything you can do to make exercise more appealing will motivate you to do it more often & more consistently, which leads to improved health. With 2016 being the year of virtual reality headsets, I think we can look forward to some pretty awesome fitness-related games that involve running, biking, and so on. The future is cool to imagine, too...imagine doing a few boxing sessions of Punch-Out with a sensor-enabled punching bag:

http://www.impactwrap.com/

Lots of possibilities for motion-based target toys for stuff like martial arts as well. Or swim with the dolphins (or in the Olympics) with a swim trainer:

https://vasatrainer.com/vasa-trainer.html

Lots of neat opportunities with VR that puts you in the game!

 

[bradley]

For enjoyment I bicycle everywhere. Otherwise high impact interval training is the only "cardio" that does anything for fatloss, metabolism, maintaining lean muscle and increasing heart health. You won't have time to be entertained for those 15-20 minutes.

 

[Kaido]

For enjoyment I bicycle everywhere. Otherwise high impact interval training is the only "cardio" that does anything for fatloss, metabolism, maintaining lean muscle and increasing heart health. You won't have time to be entertained for those 15-20 minutes.

My problem is weather. Snow & ice limit outdoor running & biking for half the year where I live. Also personally, my body operates best with a minimum of 30 minutes of cardio a day.

 

[iluvdeal]

I remember playing a boxing game at an arcade years ago that I got a great workout from. I always wanted to see a game like that released on consoles where you throwing punches and ducking and moving served as the controls.

Regarding VR, I don't think that will usher in a new age for fitness related games because of the bulky headsets and fact they need to be tethered to something. I thought we'd see more games that relied on a person's movement with cameras like Kinect but interest seems to have died off, is it the tech's fault or lack of killer apps? The sales of the Wii Balance Board and Kinect broke records so there's a market out there for controlling a game with your entire body, I hope they haven't abandoned it.

 

[fiberst]

Riding bicycle is my choice.

 

[Kaido]

I remember playing a boxing game at an arcade years ago that I got a great workout from. I always wanted to see a game like that released on consoles where you throwing punches and ducking and moving served as the controls.

Regarding VR, I don't think that will usher in a new age for fitness related games because of the bulky headsets and fact they need to be tethered to something. I thought we'd see more games that relied on a person's movement with cameras like Kinect but interest seems to have died off, is it the tech's fault or lack of killer apps? The sales of the Wii Balance Board and Kinect broke records so there's a market out there for controlling a game with your entire body, I hope they haven't abandoned it.

Yeah, the thing to remember is that this is all first-generation stuff. I'm sure we'll see sunglass-thin wireless headsets within a few years once the technology gets more refined. For example, Dell uses WiGig technology in their wireless laptop docks:

http://accessories.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?sku=452-BBUX

Basically 10x the speed of WiFi & can handle two HD displays. If they stuck a WiGig card in the Oculus (along with a battery) & did a direct-wireless tether like Dell does with their laptops, problem solved. They could probably solve the battery issue by turning it into a bicycle helmet & distributing the weight. I'd imagine within a few years they'll be selling Teflon omni-treadmills similar to the Virtuix model at places like Toys R US and Gamestop for a few hundred bucks as well.

 

[CPA]

I have a Concept2 Rowing Machine. It has some games built into it you can use instead of just watching your numbers. There's a fishing game, dart game and racing game, among others. Kind of simple, but neat and definitely helps keep your mind a little busier.

 

[FleshLight]

Zwift