News - Health & Fitness Games

The United Kingdom Department of Health has officially endorsed Wii Fit Plus as part of its Change4Life campaign. Nintendo is expected to use the Change4Life branding in ads and on packaging, reminding consumers of this official support.

“Active video games, where kids need to jump up and down or dance about as part of the game, are a great way to get kids moving more,” said a Department of Health spokesperson. “Little bits of activity like this throughout the day can easily add up to the 60 active minutes kids need”. More...

In other related news, a new active-play controller and game are slated for release in January 2010. European publisher Bigben Interactive will be releasing Cyberbike for the Nintendo Wii, which comes with a full-size exercise bike controller.

The game presents a story mode with an environmental theme where players will be able to ride through 18 different circuits. According to Kotaku, the bike controller also works with Mario Kart Wii.

Bigben Interactive will also release My Body Coach, developed in partnership with sports and nutrition specialists in late 2009. The game offers a personalized training program based on your age, sex, weight and physical condition. It will also include meal suggestions and the game comes with a set of 500-gram (approximately one pound) dumbbells into which players slide their Wii Remotes.