What If Your Character Was Only As Fit As You Are

We've seen the theme before: Video games, forsaking all outdoor activity to play them, can lead to obesity. Recently someone sent me a video, which does a great job of getting that message across. It also reminds me of this idea I had last year for a game that would use over-the-counter heart rate monitors to track your running ability and then port it into a first-person shooter. Can you imagine, a game where your character can only run as fast as you can? A game that would get you to go to the gym to improve character stats. Yes, I know there are plenty of devices out there that try to port over your physicality in real time, but I think the best way to do this is to pop in your real-life stats, so you don't have to be screwing around with weird controllers.

Alright, I'm totally calling you out video game industry, I want someone to come up with a mode for Call of Duty or Half-Life or some PC shooter that makes this happen. Get to it.

Check out the video on the jump.

Kids Can Burn Calories While Gaming

There's yet another study on obesity, children, and video games. Y'know, just for a change of pace. But wait! This one was done by The Mayo Clinic, making it somewhat reputable! And what makes this study different from all the others? Instead of looking at, "Do video games make kids fat? Y/N," the study looked at just how much energy kids used while playing traditional games, watching TV, playing virtual camera games placing the child on the screen, watching TV while walking on a treadmill, and playing a dancing game. The study had a small sample group, with 15 children considered in the "normal" weight range for their age and height, and 10 children considered mildly obese.

The most interesting result of the study? The dancing game actually expended more energy than walking on the treadmill. Hit the jump for exactly what those results were.

British Gov Doesn't Want Fat Kids Anymore

Sick of being fat? Well, the British government is sick of you being fat too, and they're not gonna take it anymore! British citizens could soon see incentives for putting down the controller and getting fit. In a report made by the Department of Health called Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives, the government makes recommendations to try and help Britain get fit, including getting the number of obese kids down by 2020 to the levels seen in 2000.

The £372 million anti-obesity initiative doesn't overlook video games, and encourages parents to regulate the amount of time kids spend playing online, using some of the available family timers for consoles. The report also says the Department of Health will research the "impact of this 'screen time' on children's outcomes", observing how playing video games affects kids' physical fitness and overall health.

Industry professionals in Britain say that they support the decision and are willing to collaborate:

UK McDonald's Boss Blames Games For Obesity

"I don't know who is to blame," Mr Easterbrook says. "The issue of obesity is complex and is absolutely one our society is facing, there's no denial about that, but if you break it down I think there's an education piece: how can we better communicate to individuals the importance of a balanced diet and taking care of themselves? Then there's a lifestyle element: there's fewer green spaces and kids are sat home playing computer games on the TV when in the past they'd have been burning off energy outside.

British Schoolkids Stave Off Obesity With DDR

Gamers, You Fat Whores

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