Great essay by Danc over at Lost Garden

What activities can be turned into games?

Inspired by an experience with Wii Fit, the crux of the article is that any measurable skill can form the core mechanic of a game. A wider game system can then be used to motivate the player and track their progress, providing a unique, dynamic, and fun way to pick up new skills.

The gravity of this revelation is not lost of Danc:

“As more leisure games emerge that mediate and accelerate the acquisition of skills, there is going to be a economic incentive to spread the science and craft of game design far beyond our tiny game industry. Game design is not just about games. It is a transformational new product development technique that can turn historically commoditized activities into economic blockbusters.”

Wii Fit seems to do a much better job of making this sort of thing fun, an element of the equation that I personally think is still sorely missing from Brain Age.