Illustration by Donna Racer
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Playing on a TV Near You
By Damon Brown, September & October 2005
Video games aren't just for teens—and they might even be good for you
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Walter Day has had a life-consuming obsession for about 25 years now.
Whenever he passes an arcade, he's lured inside by the flashing lights and
whirring of the video games. He pops in a quarter. Or two. Or 10. The former
oil broker, now 56, even opened his own arcade for a few years—Twin
Galaxies in Ottumwa, Iowa—"as an excuse to play more video
games." Day's arcade evolved into the Twin Galaxies organization,
which eventually became the official scorekeeper for the world of video games
and pinball.
Yes, it's possible to be both game-obsessed and past puberty. The
average video game player is 30, and 19 percent are 50 or older, up from 9
percent in 1999. And online, women over 40 rule, spending more hours playing
games than even geeky teenage boys do, according to research firm Digital
Marketing Services. "Casual games" like puzzles and card games are
the big draws for this group, who play for the social interaction and to
relieve stress.
Yes, it's possible to be both game-obsessed and past
puberty.
Companies are even designing equipment for older joints. KY Enterprises, for
example, offers joystick devices that can be used by a player's arm, foot,
or mouth (you breathe in and out of a tube to control the action on the
screen). "We get inquiries from grandparents who want to play games with
their grandkids, and these adaptive controllers can help," says KYE's
Diane Yankelevitz. And video games may even boost your health. A 2002 Harvard
University report noted significant increases in reaction time for people over
60 who play video games. Playing games also helps keep your cognitive skills
sharp.
AARP: Lifestyle Information for People 50 and
Over
The entertaining and informative content on AARPmagazine.org is just one of the
many benefits of AARP membership—only $12.50 a year. Join or renew online today!
Yet it's competition rather than cognition that has spurred several
fiftysomethings to enter the record books. Over-50 pinball wizard Judith Sawyer
and Bob Lawton, a Rally-X (car-racing game) expert, are both pursuing national
and international records. But what really excites the video game industry is
that younger players may keep playing as they age: 53 percent of active gamers
expect to play the same amount or more 10 years from now. "Video game
graphics, sound, story line, and characters are only becoming more compelling.
I think people will continue to play into their 50s and perhaps beyond,"
says Doug Lowenstein, president of the Entertainment Software Association.
Walter Day can vouch for that: he holds some of the world's best scores
in the alien shoot-'em-ups Galaxian and Gorf. "I'm sure I've
played four, five, six hours straight," he says. "Just like any of
these kids."
Ready to play? Click here for a list of top video games
for grownups.
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