About a year ago, Konami and West Virginia teamed up for a three-year agreement to place DDR (Dance Dance Revolution) in all public schools statewide as part of a study to see the effects the game would have on childrens’ health.

The West Virgina Games for Health study involved children who were required to play DDR for five days a week at 30 minutes a day for a duration of 24 weeks. WVU then monitored recorded health indicators such as weight, blood pressure, body mass index, arterial function, fitness levels and attitudes towards exercise.

Not all of the children actually lost weight, but “the majority” stayed at the same weight and had improved overall fitness levels. Attitudes toward exercise and self-esteem also improved.

WVU professor Dr. Linda Carson said, “The answer is clearly more exercise, but the challenge is finding something that appeals to this generation of technologically sophisticated children. DDR combines the appeal of ’screen time’ within a physical activity format. We are excited that we can now demonstrate that it is a valuable health tool and something kids enjoy.

Wanna dance ?

Here is our Kidconfidence mini-introduction to Dance Dance Revolution :

- DDR was first introduced in Japanese arcades in 1998.
- As of 2006, over 90 (yes that’s a –ninety-) official versions have been produced.

In Dance Dance Revolution, a player must move his or her feet to a set pattern, stepping in time to the general rhythm or beat of a song. During normal gameplay, arrows scroll upwards from the bottom of the screen and pass over stationary, transparent arrows near the top (referred to as the “guide arrows” or “receptors”). When the scrolling arrows overlap the stationary ones, the player must step on the corresponding arrows on the dance pad.

- DDR is available for all major platforms - except for the Wii. The Xbox360 version is under development.
- Amazon is your best bet to find the perfect DDR solution for your budget and system.
- Wikipedia has a page dedicated for all things DDR.

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