First Gaming Fitness Arcade Opens in CA

Turismo writes "In an effort to convince teenagers to exercise, one entrepreneur has started a 'fitness arcade' in California that lures teens with movement-based videogames, WiFi, and study lounges. Should kids be getting even more exposure to media when they workout?" From the Ars Technica article: "When asked whether incorporating gaming into a workout routine was sending mixed messages to adolescents whose free time is often consumed by video games, instant messaging, and TV watching, Ferrell said that the approach Overtime Fitness is taking was necessary. 'In some ways, we're waving the white flag,' he admitted. 'But if we went the opposite way, they would be far less likely to jump in.'"

Comments

Adults aren't welcome?

[andykuan]

Why restrict access to this club to kids? I'll bet there are plenty of adults who'd pay to use a gym like this. In fact, if my gym plopped me in front of a treadmill and a DDR machine, I know I'd go for the DDR machine.

Re:I can't be the only one

[UbuntuDupe]

What would be great is if the Wii could have some game where you strap Wiimotes to your arms and legs with some sort of holder and you could have more of a full-body dancing game that could detect your motions. I wonder if this arcade has or plans to have some game like that?

It beats watching TV at the gym

[Animats]

I've been after my gym to get something like this. For a while, they had some of the cardio machines equipped with Internet access, but the gear was from a dot-com that went bust. They have TV, but that's boring, and working out usually doesn't align with the TV schedule.

There was an arcade game called "Sky Cycle" about ten years ago, with a stationary bicycle. If you pedaled harder, you gained altitude. But all you could do was pedal along a canned route and pop balloons. Something like that, but more aggressive, would be fun as a piece of gym equipment. Tie it into a game like "Crimson Skies". Offer multiplayer mode, so you can have dogfights at the gym. Even in single player, though, Crimson Skies is fun. Now that would liven up cardio machines, which are, let's face it, boring.

Who goes to gyms? Middle-aged people, now. Thirty years ago, the average age at gyms was 18-23. Now it's 46. It's the same people working out. That's part of why we're seeing teenage "wide loads". We need more fusions of gaming and gym equipment.

Not even a question..

[le0p]

Should kids be getting even more exposure to media when they workout?

That's not even relevant now, they aren't working out! I say anything that gets the kids in the gym is a good thing.

It's not just DDR, Konami has sports gyms too

[WillAffleckUW]

I get sweaty playing DDR and that boxing game with the 3lb "gloves" and that sword fighting game with the 5lb sword. Throw in some old Nintendo running pad olympics, and I think you've got a business plan!

I used to own Konami shares - the Konami firm actually owns a chain of sports gymnasiums in Japan, and I could easily see them expanding DDR with some Wii games here and doing quite well. It's a fairly profitable component of their business, not counting the gaming machines (Mah Jong and gambling ones) they also run here in the US.

some schools are already doing this.

[GlenRaphael]

If the government had ANY, I repeat ANY sense at all, they'd look into this, and support or fund, to stem the apparent obesity epidemic the media is reporting on among America's youth. Is there? Really?

The government is already on this bandwagon. Local grade schools are using Dance Dance Revolution as part of a physical exercise program. West Virginia has it in all 765 public schools in the state.

If you're interested in following this issue, let me humbly recommend my blog.

Disclaimer: yeah, that was a blatant plug.