So you thought the balance board was just for Wii Fit? Well think again. Matthieu Deru and Simon Bergweiler, two researchers from the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence, have managed to hook it into other applications including the immensely popular online role playing game World Of Warcraft.

Using the balance board you can move your virtual character around by leaning in the direction you wish to travel. If these guys can bring this technology forward another step and have it based on a running motion then gamers of the future may end up looking more like toned athletes than couch potato’s.

Be sure to check out the vid below.

Possibly to be taken with a large grain of salt, there is a rumor today that the balance board to be shipped with the European and North American copies of Wii Fit will feature an LCD screen displaying your weight. In some ways it makes sense but aesthetically it might take away from the clean look of current model. Then again giving Nintendo’s track record of hardware decisions in this console generation If they did choose to do it i’m sure they would do it well.

Nintendo is set to increase the weight limit on its Wii balance board for its western release in Q2 of this year. The original balance board which is currently in use in Japan supports 300lbs but the “western edition” is to have that limit increased to 330lbs. Will a 30lbs increase be enough though? Or is it still going to exclude some of those that could benefit from the device.

It remains to be seen as to whether furthur changes will occur before Nintendo’s slated release date.