Unfit Nich

   GIA staffer Nich Maragos has a problem common to many gamers: he's getting a little pudgy. Too embarassed to show his fat ass in a gym, and anxious to avoid the humiliation involved in jogging sweaty around town, he'd much rather shape up in the comfort of his own home. Fortunately for him, his love for gaming translates into more than just an unsightly paunch: he's also plunked down the cash for his very own copy of Samba de Amigo--with maracas. Figuring he may as well use the one to take care of the other, he begins his month-long quest to lose weight while playing videogames.

Where it's at

   Every week, he'll discuss how he's doing so far, and every day he'll post his scores so that anyone with a similar problem can see how they measure up points-wise. At the end he'll evaluate the whole experience just before the game's official release in America, so that would-be buyers can see if the Samba diet is right for them. On with the show ...

   The few of you actually reading this probably noticed that I didn't update last week. Those of you in university will understand when I say this is all the excuse I have: midterms.

The runner up.

   But I'm back into it, and feeling better. I find that Samba is invigorating not only physically but mentally. Nothing like the evening workouts to get my mind off of homework; now all I have to do is keep up on my homework enough to have time to play.

   You might have noticed, last week, the way I let you know there was a correct way to hold the maracas. You might have also noticed that I witheld this information. Such was my devious ploy to get you to come back--did it work? Anyway. I've found that I get better results when the pointy end of the dongles is facing the sensor pad, rather than away. Of course, you'll have to make sure that you don't get too excited while playing, or you might hold the maraca out of the sensor range entirely, something I saw quite a few people do this last week.

   I got the chance to watch other people play at the local anime club this week, where I was asked to bring the game in for people to try out. Watching people try it out for the first time is hard to describe. Even people with a good sense of rhythm just aren't prepared for the total sensory overload at first, but seeing them gradually start to get the hang of it and have fun is just as amusing as watching them flail incoherently. The toughest part is getting them to risk looking silly. Once they tried it, they all liked it, but it's not going to be easy for Sega to convince people to pick the game up.

   Finally, thanks to those of you who submitted logos and names for this thing. The winner is already prominently displayed up at the top of the site; credit goes to Mike Parker for this one. See you all next week in an exciting episode of E/N Weight Loss Slender Time Sweet Diet.