Gamification and Active Games for Physical Exercise: A review of literature

Abstract

Physical and active games can attract young people and children to have regular physical exercise and to promote healthy habits. We presented a review about different studies on games and gamification applied to physical exercise, specially focused on the promotion healthy habits. We found that manly studies on active games or gamified physical exercise has been focused on energy expenditure and motivation. Personalization of user experience and emerging technologies (big data, wearables, smart technologies, etc.) are presented as promising opportunities to keep the engagement in game based program and gamification of physical exercise in a long term.