LOS ANGELES - VIDEO game lovers are being coaxed off couches as the industry sprints ahead with a trend toward fitness titles and motion-sensing controllers.

The premier Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) that wrapped in Los Angeles on Thursday was rife with exercise, sports, and dance videogames that people play by moving their bodies instead of just their thumbs.

Analysts credit Nintendo with revolutionizing the way videogames are played with the release in 2006 of Wii consoles with motion-sensing controllers.

Traditional controllers on consoles such as Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3 feature toggles and buttons players manipulate to dictate actions of videogame characters.

Other videogame makers including US titan Electronic Arts and France-based Ubisoft have crafted workout titles of their own for Wii consoles and Nintendo will soon release an enhanced 'Wii Fit Plus' videogame.

Ubisoft's 'Red Steel' franchise that launched with the Wii is a pioneer on a growing list of videogames that use the consoles' wand-shaped motion-sensing remote controls for swordplay.

Videogame software lets players act out soccer, tennis, basketball, canoeing, and other sports.

Konami has had people dancing with a 'Dance Dance Revolution' (DDR) franchise that went from arcades to home videogame consoles.

A DDR version about to be released uses Wii balance boards and wands to track players' movements to determine how well they are performing to music.

A Project Natal prototype for Xbox 360 raised the hopes of gamers and analysts because it combines cameras and face and voice recognition software to let players control game play with natural body movements.

Sports, fitness, and swordplay videogames let people try risky new endeavors without having to suffer consequences common to learning, or failing at, such activities, said Interpret vice president of videogame research Michael Cai. -- AFP