Nonetheless, she acknowledges no study has really looked at the effects over the "long haul."

Of course, for it to have any impact at all, it has to be worth playing.

"It has to be inherently fun," she said. "In a general way, if you're going to reach people during their leisure time, they've got to desire to play."

Commercial viability

But fun costs money. Lieberman believes the healthy gaming market would need a lot of capital before it would be able to compete with the multi-million dollar marquee titles in the consumer market that have state-of-the-art graphics and game-play, although the success of such products as Wii Fit, a Nintendo game that allows you to work out with a virtual character, is a hopeful sign.

Still, she said, "I don't think there's a huge market for the consumer to buy [health] games." Rather, she thinks much of the interest will come from health plans, as insurers could see games as a way to cut costs. "You give them away to your members, and your members stay healthier," she said.

She mentions a six-month clinical trial with a diabetes game, that was found to reduce urgent care visits by two visits per child per year, bringing the health plan annual savings of almost $2,000.

"You pay 20 bucks for a game, and give it away, and on average you'll save $2,000 per person. That seems like a good return on investment," she says.

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