Burn Calories on Kinect, Track Them With Kinect PlayFit

July 10, 2012
REDMOND, Wash

Kinect PlayFit is a new fitness dashboard on Xbox LIVE that lets players track the calories they burn while having fun with Kinect. The new dashboard joins a growing number of titles and experiences that use Kinect as a fitness tool.

Microsoft today unveiled Kinect PlayFit, a new Kinect fitness dashboard on Xbox LIVE that lets players track calories burned across multiple Kinect games. Available as a free download from the Xbox LIVE Marketplace, the app calculates and aggregates the calories players burn so they can track their progress over time, see how they rank against friends, and earn Xbox achievements.

The goal of the app is to motivate families to get off the couch and reward them for having fun, said Chuck Frizelle, executive producer for Kinect PlayFit.

“We’re trying to show that Kinect is not only fun but healthy for you, too,” he said. “Ultimately, Kinect PlayFit is a motivational tool. We want to motivate people to change their behavior and be more active.”

Kinect PlayFit will track fitness progress across a dozen games at first, with more titles to come later, Frizelle said. The dashboard lets players view their daily, weekly, monthly, and overall calorie burn totals, and Xbox leaderboards offer the chance to compare progress with friends and the overall Xbox LIVE community. Players can also earn up to 20 Xbox achievements, including bonus avatar awards, and post them on Facebook.

Kinect PlayFit joins a growing number of games and experiences such as “ Kinect Sports ,” “ Zumba Fitness ,” and the upcoming “Nike+ Kinect Training” that highlight how Kinect is bringing fitness into the living room, said Dave McCarthy, general manager for Kids and Lifestyle Entertainment in Microsoft Studios.

“With our new fitness dashboard, we are acknowledging that Kinect games are a legitimate part of an active lifestyle,” he said. “If you just want to be active and celebrate that, and maybe have fun and compete with your friends, Kinect PlayFit really opens up a whole different world for you.”

he device’s impact on health is spreading beyond entertainment as Kinect for Windows pushes the platform beyond the living room. Developers are now tapping the Kinect capabilities for a wide range of health scenarios, including home physical therapy and remote patient monitoring, which could play a role in the ongoing discussion around healthcare reform.

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