EA Sports Active 2 - Playstation 3

Just finished the 9 week program on medium difficulty. In short, I had a great experience with EA Sports Active 2. I read a lot of these reviews prior to my purchase, and during the program I kept in mind some of the things (hopefully some unique) that would be good in include.1) I got in shape!I am a 24 year old male. I am 5'9" and started at 159 lbs and about 18% body fat, and ended at 157 lbs and 14% body fat. My biggest area of improvement was in my legs and behind. My arms and shoulders have shown moderate improvement, not much bigger but more toned. And my midsection showed the least improvement, but my chest got a little bigger and my belly a tad smaller. I am not surprised, as in the program leg exercises are everywhere, and by the end each session maxed out with just 4-5 core exercises.2) I got motivated!Not keeping up with a exercise regimen in years, this was the first time since starting college that I kept up with a workout schedule. I hated seeing a red "X" on a missed workout, so every missed session I made up later! Not to mention I am a gamer, and getting trophies for my PS3 kept me pretty happy. (Though some trophies are impossible! e.g. 1000km of mountain boarding?)3) The sensors were not a problem.Sure, there would be hiccups where it didn't track me, but by the end of the first phase I had worked out the kinks. I turned up the volume on the sound effects so that I can hear the "ding" when I hit the proper range of motion, and I kept to the pace of the game. The thing I could never get right: Running Kickups. My avatar would oscillate between really fast and super slow, so I just "ran" to overcome my inability to hit the perfect pace. As another reviewer mentioned, moving your arms while "running" is very important. When in doubt, try to perfectly mimic the avatar, even the body parts that you wouldn't think that mattered, and you'll see improvement in your response.4) Start the program with spare batteries and a different exercise band.Halfway through the 9 weeks my heartrate band was dead, and by the end all the sensors had their batteries replaced. Of course the new band is optional, but I went to a heavy one pretty quickly. I just wish I could set different bands to different exercises. (e.g. super heavy for biceps and squats, med/heavy for triceps) But come to think of it, what do I care if the game knows I'm using one or the other? It'll just be a few calories off...5) Thoughts on music.I went halfway through the 9 weeks until I loaded my own playlist. My only gripe is the limited functionality. You select the playlist in the game, and it will play it at a random starting point in your track list on shuffle. But from workout to workout, it pretty much started on the same track and followed the same random track pattern. To fix this I had to go to the playstation menu and shuffle my list and delete the songs I heard too many times. If EA could simply assign a controller button to skip tracks I would love that. Additionally, halfway through my 9 weeks EA released an update to not play your playlist for step aerobics, which was very helpful for keeping up with the trainer! Very good update!6) Would I do it again?The 9 week program was fantastic for getting me motivated to exercise, especially during these cold months. I really wish I could adjust the 4 times a week for 9 weeks to 3 times a week for 12 weeks. Luckily, I can individually select the workouts without starting a new program. From now on, I'll be selecting some "hard" workouts outside of starting another program. The only functionality lost would be the food/exercise journal I gave up on anyway.

I had the original EA sports active for the Wii, so I knew exactly what I was getting when I bought this game. The manufacturer would like you to believe that this will make working out fun, but it is anything but fun. The few exercises that are disguised as games are slow and really predictable. For example, when the goal blocking exercise comes up you know exactly in which direction you will need to lunge or jump, before the directional arrow comes up. Other than a few exercises like that, you are really just watching an avatar do an exercise and mimicking his or her movements. I was also somewhat perturbed that they really didn't seem to update this game much. I haven't used my original EA sports active in a long time, however the music was the same a lot of the exercises are the same, it just seems like the same product repackaged for the PS3, with some dandy new hardware. I think it would be good for them to incorporate more game-like exercises that actually require some skill, maybe when EA sports Active 3 comes out.The reason I bought this version as opposed to the Wii version (I also have the 360 but no kinect so it wasn't an option) is mainly that I always found having the nun chuck strapped to my leg and having the hold the controller a pain. Really it is just too much to hold all that crap and a resistance band when you are doing arm and shoulder exercises. I don't know whether you still have to use all those items but the PS3 version has three sensors you just strap to your arms and leg and you are ready to go, nothing to hold onto so it seemed like the safe choice. The sensors do seem to get in the way every once and a while during certain exercises, but far less that the nun chuck used to bother me when it was strapped to my leg. Also, the leg sensor actually stayed on my leg instead of sliding down every couple seconds, I really hated that stupid nun chuck on the Wii version, sorry. I read a lot of these reviews about bad sensors and the reps not being counted, but I had no problems with the sensors. Make sure to follow the tutorial at the beginning on how to put on the sensors, I initially had them on the wrong way, which is why it is important to watch. The heart rate monitor seemed to work great as well so it is a nice added feature to this version.I do think this is a game that will help me reach my fitness goals if I stick with it. I'm not going to mince words I am really out of shape and this game kicked my butt the first go around so much that I couldn't even finish the first workout. For people who are fit I am sure this would be a cake walk but for someone who could stand to lose a good 50 lbs this stuff is not easy. If you haven't exercised in a long time I would suggest easing into the first workout. I was using a more difficult resistance band and basically hitting every exercise my hardest, which is why I couldn't finish. I will definitely be going easier on myself during the next workout, at least easy enough so I can finishIn summary, this is basically a virtual personal trainer, don't expect to have a lot of fun, unless you really like working out, then maybe you will find it to be fun. I like the new hardware that comes with this version, but the actual game is pretty much a rehash of the first one. If you stick to it however, I do believe this game can be good for your health. Here's to hoping I can.