No more shuffleboard, Grandma — Welcome to the Wii!

I know video games reach a wide range of people — people who love technology, people who like competition, people who get their kicks from being in an alternate reality for a while, and the list goes on. But I never thought about Grandma and Grandpa getting into this hobby that my friends do on the weekends. I'm still grappling with the thought of this "trend" that has a reputation as a young person's leisure activity doubling as something senior citizens and those in the single digits like as well.
I still think it's strange (but understandable) that my mom can't put down her portable Nintendo. She's a child of Pong. But Grandma? And that 5-year-old DDR whiz on YouTube? It may be my pride telling me that all things "technologically cool" belong to my generation — the 20-somethings — but I guess it's time to understand that these games that are so popular now, are popular in all aspects of the word, in all age groups. They aimed to hit the mass market, and they hit it hard.
Nintendo's Wii is becoming increasingly popular in retirement communities around the country, according to a recent CNN article. Having played the Wii and after giving this some thought, it's a no-brainer as to why the elderly have taken a liking to this gaming system. First off, it's not strenuous activity. The animation and design isn't flashy or too fast-paced; however, I don't remember seeing an option to create a gray-haired character.
It's great these folks are getting some exercise and getting to feel like they're part of a nation-wide, somewhat new hobby. One man in the story said he never thought he'd be participating in something his grandkids enjoyed, too. The story said, "Players, who often look quite silly and occasionally injure themselves in fits of overzealous play, upload video of their Wii antics to a variety of technology Web sites like GameTrailers.com and Google's YouTube." So, not only have they conquered the Wii, but they are recording themselves and using computers to upload that video. The Wii may not be difficult to operate, but recording and uploading may be for some, and it's great they are experimenting with multiple forms of technology.
And what about the portion of gamers who haven't even reached double digits? The 5-year-old on YouTube is practically setting world records with his DDR skills, while other children across the country are learning their first dance steps on the DDR pad. I can only imagine the hand-eye coordination these kids will have by the time they reach adulthood.
Vas Patibandla, a Kent State University professor, told me it's much easier for children to learn these physical types of video games than to memorize and execute button sequences. Actually, there's really no learning involved since we already know the motions of bowling, how to cast a fishing line and how to swing a baseball bat or tennis racket. These games, he said, are also bringing families together.
He said: "(Nintendo is) promoting it like that: a game that you play just like Monopoly with the family. They’re positioning themselves really well and it’s been successful in that regard because it’s just so intuitive. It’s not as technical as games have been in recent years."
Those youngster gamers will have an advantage as they grow older because they might know how to fish before they've actually touched a fishing pole, hit a homerun before their body strength physically enables them to and bowl a strike without ever experiencing the atmosphere of a bowling alley.
For senior citizens, it might let them experience all these things for the very last time.