Common Sense Media Review
By Jinny Gudmundsen
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Walking becomes a fun game of exploration and getting fit.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 10+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Play
Videos and Photos
Walk It Out
What's It About?
WALK IT OUT is a rhythmic walking game that helps families get fit by walking everyday. Kids create an avatar which represents them as they explore walking paths within the world of Rhythm Island. They start on a limited number of paths but the more they walk, the more the island expands. As kids walk in place in real life, their avatar walks in the virtual world. Each rhythmic step earns a chip to use to unlock additional walking paths, trees, buildings, landmarks, rainbows, new music, and even the ability to change the time of day. You choose what to spend your chips on by pointing your Wii remote at floating capsules. For example, if you click on a palm tree that costs 50 chips and you have earned that many steps, a palm tree instantly grows beside the path.
Is It Any Good?
Walk It Out makes it fun to hit the pavement, counting steps. By turning walking into a game, Walk It Out turns exercise into an enjoyable experience for kids. It is easy to start up, and hard to stop, which is a good thing because it makes you want to keep walking. You can walk just holding the Wii remote with the Nunchuk tucked into your pants pocket or waistband; or you can walk on a DDR dance pad or by using the Wii Balance Board – they all work. You can even walk with another person with two avatars showing on the screen, so that this game is a great way for a parent and a child to play together. It is a video game that can help combat childhood obesity.
This is a game all ages will enjoy from as young as age 3 to 99. But if you are playing it with little kids, select your own playlist from the 120 songs because some have edgy lyrics. And don't elect to play the two optional mini-games that involve whacking humanoid figures. Also, you will want to fiddle with the options so that little kids don't lose points if you miss a beat while walking. You can even set how hard it is to earn the capsules that decorate and expand this world.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the importance of getting exercise everyday.
Families can also discuss the creation of an avatar to represent you onscreen. Why did you choose the traits that you did?
Game Details
- Platform : Nintendo Wii
- Pricing structure :
- Available online? : Not available online
- Publisher : Konami
- Release date : January 12, 2010
- Genre : Exergaming
- ESRB rating :
- Last updated : August 31, 2016
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