We hope you are making it through the last throes of winter! Here at Black Box VR HQ, we are looking forward to showing off our fitness gains in some warmer weather.
In the last few months, we’ve been working on a brand new onboarding experience to help new members understand how Black Box VR games are played. We’ve added in a storyline, new challenges, and more intuitive tutorials. It’s been a lot of work, but we can’t wait for members to try it out.
We have a laundry list of requested features and fixes that are coming soon that will be released as soon as we finish onboarding. It should all be out very soon!
Our team is dedicated to giving you the best fitness experience of your life. Thank you for your continued support!
Athlete of the Month
Username: Tactix
Hero level: 20
Arena level: Gold League Arena 4
Background: I’m originally from South Texas, but moved to the Bay Area about 14 years ago to get my Ph.D. from Berkeley. I’ve lived in SF for close to 10 years now, and love it!
Why I Love Black Box VR: I have NEVER been a person who liked working out or going to the gym. I’m addicted to the mobile game Clash Royale, and the gameplay is so similar that I love to play. After a good workout, I love to look at my stats, buy cards, and set up my next session! I think the fact that you have to schedule your time and the game is so fun makes it so easy to keep coming back!
Physical/Mental Health Results: Because of Black Box VR, I’m in the best shape I’ve EVER been in. It actually inspired me to care about my workout routine, so I go to Black Box every other day and try to be active at a regular gym/Ring Fit Adventure on my off days. I’ve gotten so many compliments from friends about how great I look!
Fun Facts: I used to work for a video game website called Destructoid as their Community Manager! Because of that, I fulfilled my lifetime dream of going to E3 and even did a few interviews and Twitch streams as part of the coverage!
Favorite Champion: Skadi. I love watching her decimate champions from afar while a tank takes up the damage as long as I have a keep a good tank in front of her. Also, SHES FIERCE!
Favorite Direct Damage Exercise: I actually love doing Lat Pulldowns. I’m not as strong with my Rows, so my Lat Pulldowns are my go-to wind attack.
Game Play Tip: Recently, I’ve been starting the round with a Lightening Tiger in the opposite lane where the AI sends out their champion to force them to respond. If they load out a fire attack, I’ll quickly load a water tank to soak up the damage after the Lightening Tiger is dead. I’ll then kill whatever champions the AI sent out on that opposite lane or in response, and suddenly, I have a huge Elixir advantage!
Game Update
Hey all, Colby here from the dev team!
I have some good news! A new build is coming out soon.
Here are a few things in the new build.
- Whirlwind is now invisible!
- Whirlwind can’t be targeted by other units but can be targeted by direct damage. AoE attacks will also damage her.
- Hot Rocks are one-hit-one kill!
- Their HP was lowered in the previous build, but now they are even easier to kill but now do significantly more damage to structures.
- Rock Dude and Hammer Time now temporarily stun enemies when they attack.
- Performance updates
- Various bug fixes
- Plus more!
We will announce on Discord when the new build is released! Excited to see how everyone will use the new character’s abilities.
Thank you to everyone that is a part of our online community. Please drop us a line on Discord with any feedback, testimonials, or ideas.
Colby Morgan
Software Engineering Manager
Exercise Science
Do you need three-hour daily workouts to get results? A new study suggests that you don’t. Researchers had overweight men workout three times per week for six weeks. Each workout was only 15-20 minutes long, doing one set of nine exercises at 80% of 1RM to failure.
They all built serious muscle and strength and improved their insulin sensitivity, substantial overall health improvement.
So what’s the actual secret to fitness success? Consistency. The easiest and hardest answer. Luckily, Black Box VR workouts are fun, easy to stick to, and give you fantastic muscle building and fat loss results.
Full study: https://physoc.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1113/EP087435
Hero Trainer of the Month
Username: SimonExile
Current Hero Level: 29
Arena: Platinum Arena 1
Background: I’m a freelance musician, a lifelong gamer of over 30 years, became a fitness enthusiast about 7 years ago, and was the first member-turned-trainer at Black Box VR.
Why I Love BBVR: In the mid-90s, I watched an infomercial for an exercycle that controlled a cycling video game for the SNES. I thought the concept was ingenious and a real way to get overweight and shy gamer kids like myself to get in shape. While that particular product faded into obscurity, the idea of merging gaming with fitness always stuck with me. When I found out about Black Box VR, I had to try it. Within the first ten minutes of my first session, I was absolutely hooked. I started coming in three times a week, minimum. Nothing else has kept me as engaged as Black Box.
Physical/Mental Health Results: I’ve gained about 20 pounds of muscle mass since first coming here in June. My arms, chest, and legs have all visibly grown in size, and my confidence level has skyrocketed. And I thought I was playing a game all this time!
Favorite Champion: Chill Bill. Whether gate, crystal, or any champion of any element, Chill Bill kills all!
Favorite Direct Damage Exercise: Definitely a tie between the chest press and the overhead press. The chest press feels good to use when you start to build a rhythm, but at higher levels, a Supercharged or Hysterical overhead press does insane damage!
Gameplay Tip: Tanks (Rock Dude, in particular) are great for prioritizing the workout itself. Deploying one gives you a great deal more sustain against the enemy attacks. You can focus on just performing the exercises without needing to think about game strategy too much. If you need to end a round quickly, using a Supercharged or Hysterical Berserk power-up on a Lightning Tiger, paired with another heavy-hitting DPS champion will do massive damage and can take down both a gate and crystal in less than a minute!
Fun Personal Facts: In my early and mid-20s, I was an internationally-recognized electronic music producer and DJ. I still get the itch to play out, so maybe soon, there will be a return to the decks!
Fitness Tip
We all have up and down swings in our motivation to be fit. Some days we are ready to take on the world, but other days it’s difficult to get motivated to even put on your workout shoes. That’s normal. As long as you accept that not every day will be perfect, you can set yourself up for long-term success.
When you are feeling low on motivation, try to at least take small steps that keep your healthy habits in place. Instead of going for a full workout, take your dog for a long walk outside, or do a 10-minute body-weight workout at home. Instead of eating chicken breast and broccoli for every meal, try to limit your sugary carbs and extra snacking.
It won’t be long before your motivation is back, and you won’t be starting over from scratch. You’ve got this!
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Discord: https://discord.gg/taWr6wm
