A large part of society thinks that video games are a medium that does not help in any way in the physical part of our body, partly have some reason because most gamers spend hours sitting on a chair or sofa playing our favorite video games.
However, over time video games have adapted to the fitness area, offering a variety of very interesting game modes, allowing anyone to experience the feeling of playing video games while performing healthy activities for their body.
Although it doesn't look like it, this gameplay evolved progressively over time. The first attempts can be seen in the NES console with the Power Pad, an accessory that was released in 1986. Thanks to it, racing simulations could be made, completely changing the game controls for a carpet.
Other companies over the years would try to get involved in this style of game, one of them was SEGA with the Activator, an accessory in the shape of a polygon which served to simulate the movements of fight. In spite of how innovative its system was, it was a complete failure, due to the sensors which did not respond to the movements of the users.
Just as SEGA failed with the Activator many developers also did, making the idea of involving video games in the fitness area was discarded, however, a company would launch a game that would surprise everyone, making an arcade machine capable of making you lose thousands of calories, this was Bemani Developers creator of the video game Dance Dance Revolution.
Konami was the company that distributed this fabulous game, its mechanics consisted of marking with the feet the arrows to the rhythm that marked the screen with the help of certain songs, this helped to burn an enormous amount of calories because you were always in constant movement. It is worth noting that to do this mechanics were inspired by the Nintendo Power Pad.
From that point it was demonstrated that videogames could exercise you and at the same time have fun, for consequence many developers would begin to be interested again in making games of this style, as for example Nintendo which would launch for the GameCube its version of Dance Dance Revolution.
Over the years technology would help the video game industry to develop new ways of being able to exercise playing video games, for example, the Nintendo Wii is one of the most outstanding consoles in this subject because many of their games had as their main objective body training, as was Wii Sport.
Other games like Punch Out!! would make your body feel sore after a long game session, even more so in the abdominal area because it used the Wii Balance Board, a device that allowed the control of the character depending on where we balance the weight of our body.
But one of the games that allowed you to be completely free to make any movement without a doubt was Just Dance, released on the Nintendo Wii in 2008. Its incredible gameplay made it really addictive, because it was to follow the dance steps of the character who was on screen with well-known music from famous artists.
Other companies like Microsoft would not be left behind, launching a product called Kinect that allowed you to move freely thanks to a camera that recorded all your movements and reflected them in the game. Thanks to this, a great number of video games focused on sports and agility were launched that allowed you to burn calories while playing.
Later virtual reality would arrive in a very evolved way compared to that of yesteryear. With it, many developers have been able to create an endless number of games whose main purpose is to amuse you, but in turn, exercise your body to be able to perform short or long sessions of exercise depending on the time you devote to it.
Now, knowing all the above, we can answer: Can video games be used for exercises? I would like to know this answer through your opinion in the comments section.
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