A common issue some people have against video games is that they believe it promotes laziness and inactivity in children. Granted, we’re all aware of the classic image of someone spending hours a day in front of the TV or computer playing a game. But with all three major consoles adopting a motion control system, the argument that games = laziness can hopefully start to fade away. In fact, some companies have taken a cue from Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony by creating virtual exercise software that make working out fun.

Okay, so we’re down to less than 12 hours until 2011. Every store has put together every sale it could before the year ends. I think we’re ready to relax. Oh, wait, Amazon’s at it again! If you check out its video game section, you’ll find a New Year New You video game sale designed to help people get in shape next year with games and accessories…

The President’s Challenge is meant to encourage people of all ages to increase the amount of physical activity they do everyday. The idea is to promote a more healthy lifestyle amidst the growing obesity numbers in the United States. EA Sports has now joined the President’s Challenge as an advocate.

Electronic Arts is on the receiving end of a lawsuit brought forth buy a fitness firm named Active Network. Active Network claims it owns the trademark “Active” when it pertains to sports related activities and training services. Active Network is looking to halt the release of EA Sports Active 2.0 until this issue is settled.

I’m not into this whole weight loss culture. My problem is that, by and large, most fitness gurus I run into make me want to punch them in the mouth. I don’t, of course (I’m a gamer, not a fighter), but the “trainers” EA has included in SPORTS Active More Workouts are much more annoying than any fitness trainers I’ve met in real life. I can’t hate them too much, though, because the program they’re leading does produce results.

Activision is getting into the whole Wii fitness thing, and teaming up with Anchor Bay Entertainment to do so. See, Anchor Bay Entertainment has a series of exercise DVDs called 10 Minute Solution. If you’ve ever sat up, watching infomercials, you’ve probably heard about them. There’s titles like 10 Minute Solution: Pilates, 10 Minute Solution: Tone Trouble Zones, 10 Minute Solution: Hot Body Boot Camp, and so on.

So, what Activision is doing is compiling some of the most popular and useful exercises from the 10 Minute Solution DVDs into a $19.99 10 Minute Solution Wii game. There’ll be three categories of exercises to choose from, aerobics, cardio boxing and mixed games, and each workout lasts exactly 10 minutes.

As you can see from the screenshot at the right, 10 Minute Solution will have balance board support….

According to the latest inclusion in Nintendo’s Personal Trainer “game” series, I am not a fat, lazy slob. Instead, I am as active as a Daytime Deer and, some days, an Evening Owl.

Thank you, Personal Trainer: Walking. You make me feel thin…

How would you like to take your Mii with you wherever you go? It certainly sounds like an untapped gold mine that Nintendo has yet to dig into.

Well it seems that Nintendo has stealthily unlocked this Mii transporting ability for Personal Trainer: Walking for the DS. All you have to do is go to the Mii Channel on the Wii and press A, B, 1, and hold 2. Afterward, you’ll see a screen that says, “Waiting for a connection from a DS that can communicate with the Wii Channel.” The Mii will tell you how far you’ve walked through a series of charts and graphs. You can also get three more people to track their walking progress on one game cartridge.

The NPD report has been released for September 2008 and Star Wars fans sure made a Force-ful impact.

Along with the positive news that total game sales were $1.27 billion, Star Wars fans had the pleasure of seeing their games place high on the charts. The console iteration of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed placed in 3 of the top 10 spots in this month, totaling 1.16 million in individual sales. The Xbox 360 version of the game accounted for 52 percent of those sales, with the Playstation 3 version taking 28 percent. Other notable games that appeared on the software side of the NPD charts included Wii Fit, Nintendo’s “exercise simulator,” the latest iteration of Mario Kart, the ever-present Wii Play and…

It turns out that all the way back in 1987, a game for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) was tricking its unsuspecting users into exercise routines. Bandai’s Dance Aerobics is the spiritual predecessor to Nintendo’s Wii Fit and natural movement.

The game features a few modes of following an instructor’s robotic stomping pattern that you repeat on a Power Pad accessory…