Couch Potato Videos Give Way to Dance Dance Revolution and Missed Blog Opportunities

The days of couch potato video gamers are over. Exergaming and Intensity gaming are internationally popular ways to get into smaller pants.

Dance Dance Revolution players jump around and dance on a special floor pad connected to a PlayStation2 or Xbox. KiloWatt players use a machine that's similar to a ski machine. In both cases, the screen tells the player what moves to make, and the closer the player is to being in sync with the music, the better the score the player receives.

DDR enthusiast Raphael Pungin blogs about DDR. But Sony and a company named Powergrid are missing great blog opportunities.

DDR Difficulty levels range from slow and easy to frenetic. Though it may look simple to an observer, DDR requires both skill and concentration.

The game, which arrived in the United States from Japan in 1998, features a variety of tunes ranging from techno to hip hop and can be found at 1,400 malls, arcades, amusement parks and casinos, according to The Daily News.

Home systems of Dance Dance Revolution are available for Sony PlayStation, PlayStation 2 and Xbox for approximately $40 and feature 100 hours of music. In workout mode, players can track the number of calories they've burned during a session.

Dance pads are sold separately, ranging in price from $30 for a basic soft dance pad to $200 for a high-end metal pad. People who've lost weight with DDR tell their stories on the Web site www.Getupmove.com, which sells a variety of game packages and accessories.

KiloWatt ($695) by Powergrid Fitness is a an "intensity gaming" controller for Xbox or PlayStation II that lets you burn calories as you play your favorite games.

The KiloWatt controller does everything other game controllers do but relies on pushing, pulling back and tilting the bar (Segway-style) to control direction and speed. Powergrid Fitness took the thumb stick controls that are present on standard PlayStation 2 and Xbox controllers and put them in something resembling a cross-country-skiing contraption.

The unit lets you become a human joystick of sorts using body movements to direct your onscreen items. KiloWatt measures force rather than motion, so the reaction and game play is responsive and the effort level can be made as tough or easy as you'd like. "It burns you up, melts you down, and has you beg for more... "

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