Guinness World Records don’t have the gravitas they once did; anyone reading this could theoretically go achieve a world record today and have it featured by Guinness. Nothing proves this more than the Guinness World Record 2012 Gamer’s Edition. The book contains records for “Largest Competitive Pokémon Videogame Family“, “Most People Exercising to a Videogame“, and “Most Valuable Kinect Sensor“.

To coincide with the press release below, Guinness also created a video for their Pokemon family entry. While there are many obscure records, I still live in amazement of the hardcore Donkey Kong players, with the record holder amassing 1,090,000 points. If you’ve ever played the Donkey Kong arcade game, you know that’s no small feat.

WORLD’S MOST PROLIFIC POKÉMON FAMILY LEADS THE PACK OF EXTRAORDINARY VIDEO GAME RECORDS, FACTS AND FIGURES IN NEW GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS® 2012 GAMER’S EDITION

Latest “Video Game Bible” Scores Points With Features on Angry Birds, Top Fighting Games, Most Expensive Gaming Records, Fitness Games, Biggest Gaming Fails, and More

NEW YORK – January 3rd, 2012 – The family that plays together definitely stays together… and probably catches them all! The newest edition of the “Video Game Bible” – Guinness World Records® 2012 Gamer’s Edition – hits stores today with the most comprehensive collection of video game records ever known including the most prolific Pokémon playing family in the world – the Arnolds. The ‘Frankfort Five’, hailing from the Illinois suburb outside of Chicago, are Pokémon prodigies who rank as some of the world’s greatest players each year during the official Pokémon Video Game Championships, earning them the title of “Largest Competitive Pokémon Videogame Family”.

The Guinness World Records 2012 Gamer’s Edition contains something for players of all kinds. Notching the latest high-water mark in the seemingly never-ending battle for Donkey Kong supremacy, New York City’s Hank Chien earned the “Highest Score on Donkey Kong” with 1,090,000 points. Mobile mavens will love the spread on Angry Birds, the “Best-Selling Mobile Series” (more than 250 million downloads) and the app with the “Most Days Spent as the Best-Selling App in iTunes Store” (275 consecutive days).

Gamers with a little extra cash can spend $1,242 of their hard-earned money on the “Most Valuable Kinect Sensor”, a special peripheral encrusted with 6,000 Swarovski crystals. Brassy brawlers will be knocked out by an entire section devoted to Fighting Games including Mortal Kombat, Marvel Vs. Capcom and Dead or Alive, while the growing genre of “Lifestyle & Fitness” games boasts achievements like “Most People Exercising to a Videogame” (783 people).

Once again, this year features many women making their mark in the interactive realm. Iowa’s Elizabeth Bolinger preferred to dance her way into the record books, where she earned the title for “Most Prolific Dancing Game High Scorer” with top scores in 85 songs spanning across Dance Central, Just Dance and Just Dance 2 and she’ll be attempting a new high score on popular gaming network G4 in mid-January. Jennifer Hale grabbed the record for “Most Prolific Voice Actor” for lending her voice to 129 video games over the course of almost two decades.

As always, Guinness World Records 2012 Gamer’s Edition is chock full of lists and quizzes that are sure to get gamers talking. One of the featured lists takes a look at the “Top 50 Video Game Endings” of all-time as voted by more than 13,000 Guinness World Records readers. Game historians can also test their knowledge with the “Video Game Tagline Quiz” questions found at the bottom of each page, and read features on professional video game players, the biggest “Gaming Fails”, a PS3 vs. XBOX 360 comparison and much more!

“The 2012 book is the most comprehensive Gamer’s Edition we’ve ever released,” said Gaz Deaves, Guinness World Records Gaming Editor. “Chronicling the video game world’s grandest successes, most embarrassing failures and everything in between, this year’s edition will immerse casual fans with an encyclopedia of interactive info and impress the hardcore crowd with its detailed analysis.”

Guinness World Records 2012 Gamer’s Edition is available now in the US for a suggested retail price of $14.99 and available in the UK on January 19th.

For more information on gaming record breaking, please visit www.guinnessworldrecords.com/gamers.