Kotaku Off Topic: Early Edition [How Is This News?]

Welcome to a slightly early edition of Kotaku Off Topic, the not necessarily video game related center of discussion that isn’t Talk Amongst Yourselves. What will we do with all this extra time? Well, we’ll talk about whatever we like, perhaps while I raise my heart rate on the exercise bike, all part of a regimen to be fitter, have more energy and ultimately get up earlier. I’ve been taking it a little too easy lately, struggling to find the energy a more youthful me once had. I don’t want to turn into a Kevin Smith-sized mountain of a man, unable to fly on the lovely Southwest Airlines, you know. What’s your fitness plan? Does it involve more than just exercising your mousing arm and contributing to tonight’s Kotaku Off Topic? Adult Swim is expanding – The kids love the Robot Chicken. They may enjoy it earlier. Windows Phone 7 sure looks interesting – Gizmodo paws Microsoft’s mobile updates. Looks sharp, but I won’t be giving up my iPhone any time soon. Taxi Driver remake? – That Lars Von Trier is crazy! Marvel launching Astonishing line of comics – For new readers and true believers.

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Kotaku Off Topic: Early Edition [How Is This News?]

Woman Loses 112 lbs., Thanks Wii Fit [Wii]

A 38-year-old British woman, once so large she was afraid to have sex with her husband, now parades about her home in sexy lingerie after losing 112 pounds, a dramatic change in physique she credits to a Wii Fit regimen. Lara Roberts specifically thanked the Wii for allowing her to work out in her home, because she was very self-conscious about visiting a gym or jogging in public. As a result, she went from 252 to 140 pounds in a year. Note: There absolutely was a dietary component to this change. British tab News of the World says she “ditched the comfort eating,” which had surged to nearly 4,000 calories a day until a friend pointed out her nonstop consumption. “I knew if I didn’t do something, chances are I wouldn’t live to see my girls grow up,” she said. But while this sounds like the textbook definition of “results may vary,” I find it believable. First, it took a full year of getting up at 5 a.m. to work out. That’s not a quick-fix miracle program. Second, she recognized fully how her eating habits required a very disciplined change in behavior. And third, she was motivated by concern for her children and she had the support of her family. Shame or embarrassment are powerful feelings, but they can’t motivate you without a support network, you’ll just give in to defeatism. I also buy the fact Wii Fit appealed to her because it allowed her to work out in private. The benefits? Lara’s become quite the cougar. She says her daughter’s male friends have eyes for her, and an appearance on BBC 3’s “I’m Hotter Than My Daughter” backs it up. I’m a Wii Bit Thinner [News of the World via Go Nintendo. Image by News of the World]

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Woman Loses 112 lbs., Thanks Wii Fit [Wii]

The Wii Loses Some Of Its Fitness Thunder To Dance Town [Wii Fit]

Show of hands. Who has heard of the video game Dancetown? You know, the video game that National Public Radio reports might better whip you into shape than Wii Fit . NPR’s Morning Edition, the radio show I wake up every morning, got around to covering a study we covered in November that shows people can get more fit from non-gaming exercise. But the surprise in the report, revealed by NPR, is that a game called Dance Town — maybe this DDR-looking game? — is better for some of you than Wii Fit. NPR Reporter: “Cedric Bryant is chief science officer for the American Council on Exercise which recently studied the fitness benefits of the Wii Fit and Dance Town. Dance Town is a video game where participants follow on-screen prompts to dance steps.. Bryant says the study found that generally, video game workouts alone arent enough of a good thing. Take the running games on the Wii for example.” Cedric Bryant, American Council of Exercise: “[Wii Fit's] Free Run and the Island Run yielded about five and a half calories per minute. Real running you would expect to get about twice that.” NPR Reporter: “The study found that just using the Wii isnt enough for people in their twenties or for older folk who are reasonably fit. But Bryant says Dance Towns moderate and hard levels are sufficient for many older adults, especially those who are sedentary.” Listen to the full report over at NPR’s site. Study: We Need More Than Wii Workouts [NPR]

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The Wii Loses Some Of Its Fitness Thunder To Dance Town [Wii Fit]

Teen Drops 150 Pounds With Video Game-Inspired Diet [Fitness]

Taylor LeBaron weighed nearly 300 pounds when he was 14 and has lost half of that, thanks, he told the Today Show, due to a strategy he got from video games. LeBaron told the Today Show that he tackled his weight loss as if he was confronting a series of enemies in a video game. In his case, the enemies were things like being idle, skipping key meals or experiencing stress. He also gave himself a currency to work with, calories that he classified as “money.” MSNBC explains a little more: In devising his Ultimate Fitness Game, LeBaron calculated how many calories – converted to money – he had to spend each day. He set about going through a maze of rooms without running out of dough; for example, eating a cookie would cost him 200 points. Exercising upped his cash reserves. LeBaron’s program may not sound that much different than other exercise strategies, but if the model of pursuing weight loss as if it was a video game worked for him, more power to him. More details on how LeBaron did it — and about the book he’s promoting about it, “Cutting Myself in Half: 150 Pounds Lost One Byte at a Time” — at the link below. Teen cuts size in half with ‘video game diet’ [MSNBC.com / Today Show]

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Teen Drops 150 Pounds With Video Game-Inspired Diet [Fitness]

Christmas Cards [Night Note]

To: Luke From: Owen Re: Day Note Puzzle Fun Counting Challenge This is the time of year for holiday cards and, in our business, for showcasing the ones sent out by major publishers and studios, and bragging about which ones you’ve received. They’re very flattering, but few could be as flattering as that virtual card we got yesterday from Nic – aka commenter Flagg – whose brother Shawn has done the programming for the the site hosting it, The Card Chest . Nic put a holiday spin on the Metal Gear Solid equip-a-box joke for the card, which he designed in Photoshop before uploading and sending over to us. We cover some important people and companies, and we’re happy to have professional relationships with them. But they are not and never can be our constituency. These gestures from readers mean a great deal, and I’m not sure if a reader understands how much they mean when a writer considers how fortunate he is to do the job he does. Happy Holidays to you all. Out Outs the ‘Gayest’ Video Games Uncharted 2 Art, Straight from the Artists Themselves Sony Piques ‘Qriocity’ by Registering that Trademark Blank N64 Cartridge Challenges Your Manhood [Updated] Microsoft Patents the Exercise Guilt Trip Stick Jockey: The 2010 Video Game Bowl – and Playoff – Spectacular Confused about commenting on Kotaku? Read our FAQ .

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Christmas Cards [Night Note]

Christmas Cards [Night Note]

To: Luke From: Owen Re: Day Note Puzzle Fun Counting Challenge This is the time of year for holiday cards and, in our business, for showcasing the ones sent out by major publishers and studios, and bragging about which ones you’ve received. They’re very flattering, but few could be as flattering as that virtual card we got yesterday from Nic – aka commenter Flagg – whose brother Shawn has done the programming for the the site hosting it, The Card Chest . Nic put a holiday spin on the Metal Gear Solid equip-a-box joke for the card, which he designed in Photoshop before uploading and sending over to us. We cover some important people and companies, and we’re happy to have professional relationships with them. But they are not and never can be our constituency. These gestures from readers mean a great deal, and I’m not sure if a reader understands how much they mean when a writer considers how fortunate he is to do the job he does. Happy Holidays to you all. Out Outs the ‘Gayest’ Video Games Uncharted 2 Art, Straight from the Artists Themselves Sony Piques ‘Qriocity’ by Registering that Trademark Blank N64 Cartridge Challenges Your Manhood [Updated] Microsoft Patents the Exercise Guilt Trip Stick Jockey: The 2010 Video Game Bowl – and Playoff – Spectacular Confused about commenting on Kotaku? Read our FAQ .

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Christmas Cards [Night Note]

Christmas Cards [Night Note]

To: Luke From: Owen Re: Day Note Puzzle Fun Counting Challenge This is the time of year for holiday cards and, in our business, for showcasing the ones sent out by major publishers and studios, and bragging about which ones you’ve received. They’re very flattering, but few could be as flattering as that virtual card we got yesterday from Nic – aka commenter Flagg – whose brother Shawn has done the programming for the the site hosting it, The Card Chest . Nic put a holiday spin on the Metal Gear Solid equip-a-box joke for the card, which he designed in Photoshop before uploading and sending over to us. We cover some important people and companies, and we’re happy to have professional relationships with them. But they are not and never can be our constituency. These gestures from readers mean a great deal, and I’m not sure if a reader understands how much they mean when a writer considers how fortunate he is to do the job he does. Happy Holidays to you all. Out Outs the ‘Gayest’ Video Games Uncharted 2 Art, Straight from the Artists Themselves Sony Piques ‘Qriocity’ by Registering that Trademark Blank N64 Cartridge Challenges Your Manhood [Updated] Microsoft Patents the Exercise Guilt Trip Stick Jockey: The 2010 Video Game Bowl – and Playoff – Spectacular Confused about commenting on Kotaku? Read our FAQ .

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Christmas Cards [Night Note]

Study Finds Wii Fit Produces "Underwhelming Results" [Nintendo]

Anyone who does proper exercise could have pointed this out, but it’s always nice to have it in writing; the American Council on Exercise have claimed that Nintendo’s Wii Fit produces “underwhelming results”. The group has released a report on the super-popular home fitness program, drawing on research performed by the University of Wisconsin. And this report has found that even Wii Fit’s most physically taxing workouts can’t hold a candle to actual exercise. Wii Fit’s boxing, for example, burns only 1/3 the calories of actual boxing, while the other four most intensive modes – Free Island Run, Super Hula Hoop, Advanced Step, and Free Step – only burned between 100 and 160 calories every 30 minutes of exercise. Considering a cheeseburger has around 300 calories, you’ll be on Wii Fit all day if you want to really burn some fat. Perhaps most damning/hilarious, however, is the report’s finding that while Wii Fit burns more calories than a regular game – where you’re doing nothing – it’s not as good for you as a session on Nintendo’s own Wii Sports. Ah, the power of marketing. American Council on Exercise Charts ‘Underwhelming’ Wii Fit Health Benefits [Gamasutra]

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Study Finds Wii Fit Produces "Underwhelming Results" [Nintendo]