Nintendo Targets Seniors With AARP Wii Demo
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by Mike Zazaian October 30, 2006 - 12:42pm, 1 Comment
Hosted by the Associate for the Advancement of Retired Persons in Anaheim, CA., the Life@50+ event saw a full exhibition of Nintendo’s upcoming Wii console. The more than 20,000 attendees of the event had an opportunity to use the Wii’s unique motion-sensing controller to play Tennis, Boxing, Golf, Baseball, and Bowling, all of which will be included in the Wii Sports package that comes bundled with the console at its US release in November. Said Amber McCollom, a senior manager of public relations for Nintendo:
Nintendo has never gone after grandparents before. We’re targeting this audience for themselves, not just their grandchildren.
The games demoed aren’t your Grandpa’s (no pun intended) button-clicking arcade games of the past, either. Nintendo’s new Wiimote
tracks the motion of its user, prompting players to actually perform the motions that they wish to be duplicated within the game. As the sports games inlcuded with the Wii require a wide range of motions, Nintendo is actually keeping demo kiosks out of retail stores initially, with the fear that erratic gameplay could cause injuries and lawsuits. The only company that will feature a Wii kiosk at the console’s launch is Gamestop, where each console will be manned by an employee for full supervision.
Aside from the Wii Nintendo also demoed a game called Brain Age
for the portable Nintendo DS. Brain age features a series of games and exercises aimed at keeping the mind limber and improving overall brain functioning.
Nintendo’s efforts at the AARP event mark an increased interest by technology companies to appeal to an older demographic. This year’s event featured 18 tech companies in total, nearly twice as many as the 10 featured at the 2004 event in Las Vegas.
Via cnet, courtesy of the New York Times
Washington, D.C. Capitol Region’s Link to Baseball History Comes in Many Forms – Just Look at Riderwood
Wii Home Run Derby Scheduled For August 9th
SILVER SPRING, MD – August 5, 2007 – As Barry Bonds looks to pass Hank Aaron’s home run record against the Washington Nationals, baseball fans at Riderwood (a full service retirement community in Silver Spring, Maryland), are also stepping to the plate. The Washington D.C. Capitol Region’s possible link to historic baseball blast No. 756, comes as Riderwood hosts its first Wii Home Run Derby.
Based on the growing interest in Wii Sports at Riderwood, on August 9, at 2:00 p.m., in Town Center Clubhouse lounge, residents, staff, and special guests will be “swinging” in Riderwood’s first Wii Home Run Derby. If you think Barry Bonds is a slugger, then you haven’t seen anything. Looking to smash their way into Riderwood’s Wii Sports Challenge history, participants (wearing their favorite team’s authentic baseball apparel), will have a chance to pound 12 fast balls into the far reaches of Riderwood’s Wii baseball stadium. The top three player who hits will be declared Riderwood’s Wii Home Run Derby Champions.
One of the many residents who will be on hand helping batters in the on-deck circle will be Riderwood’s own Doris Terry. Doris (Terry to her friends) pitched for the Racine Belles, a team in the semi-pro All-American Girls Baseball League, in 1947. The league was memorialized in the popular movie, A League of Their Own, directed by Penny Marshall and starring Geena Davis and Tom Hanks.
During this competition, longtime baseball fans will also be discussing their insights about baseball’s greatest record, and who they believe is the most prolific home run hitter of all-time.
Any media representative interested in attending this event (including for photo opportunities) should contact Dan Dunne, Public Relations Manager at (301) 572-8319.
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Dan Dunne