Fun electronics spur urge to exercise at The Market Common

Large video-game kiosks, which combine electronic games with a physical workout, have been installed around the lake at The Market Common - the latest addition at a growing recreation hotspot in Myrtle Beach.

The games, available on five large, yellow stations, are free for players and are the latest craze in what's being called "exer-tainment."

"You get exercise and entertainment, all at the same time," said Pam Stone, Myrtle Beach's recreation superintendent, who picked out the games. "If you try it - they are addictive. It's a blast."

Try Music Man or Snake. Or take a crack at the old-school Simon game, in which you light up buttons in the same sequence that the machine lays out.

They make sounds and light up, so you can play in the day or night.

There are nine games to choose from, three skill levels and five play stations.

"It's a surprising workout," city spokesman Mark Kruea said. "You are bending, stretching, lifting, pushing."

Playing the games is a workout that is comparable to jogging or playing soccer, with heart rates increasing by an average of 20 percent, according to Playworld Systems, the company that makes the equipment, dubbed NEOS.

The latest trend didn't come cheap. The Myrtle Beach Air Force Base Redevelopment Authority, which wanted a new attraction to lure families to Grand Park and the nearby shops in The Market Common, spent $250,000 for the games and for a rock-climbing garden that is also around the lake.

Crews are putting the finishing touches on the rock garden, which should be ready for climbers by the end of the week, Stone said.

The games already have some fans.

"We try to play every one they have," said Lynn Barner, who was out Tuesday with her son Joseph, 9. "The kids love it and the adults - I don't see any adults pass it up."

But Joseph wasn't as easy to win over.

"I still like the Xbox 360 better," he said.

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