By Kalhan Rosenblatt Aug. 29, 2019 for NBC News
At the start of her day, Audrey Buchanan puts on her large, round-framed glasses and walks into her kitchen, where she makes herself a bowl of cereal and opens her Nintendo 3DS XL, a handheld gaming system.
While she eats breakfast at her marbled kitchen countertop, Buchanan, 88, is wandering through the world of “Animal Crossing: New Leaf,” a video game where the player interacts with a colorful neighborhood of anthropomorphized animals. From time-to-time, she will link her handheld gaming system with her grandson’s so the two can play together from across the country.
“I don’t have too much of a social life. I’m mostly stuck at home, and I don’t know,” Buchanan told NBC News. “It feels like company.”
In a 2016 study by the American Association of Retired Persons and the Entertainment Software Association, 38 percent of Americans age 50 and older said they play video games.
Research has shown that some forms of cognitive stimulation may delay or slow the onset of degenerative neurological diseases, such as Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia.
With their complex controls and fast pace, video games can provide a mental workout for seniors, experts say.
But cognitive stimulation is far from the only benefit seniors can reap from video games. Several gamers over 50 told NBC News that video games offered the social benefit of interacting with other players and even the chance to build followings on platforms like YouTube and Twitch.
“There are a range of ways video games can positively impact older adults,” Bryant said. “One is staying socially connected and active, and that’s something we’ve seen continue to grow over time.”
This article introduced me to senior gaming and the benefits from it. The words of Audrey Buchanan speak for themselves, she finds joy and purpose from her Animal Crossings game. In addition, it serves as a vessel for her and her family to bond. It also proves that the stereotype of seniors being unable to adopt technology is, in some instances, a total lie that would be foolish to play into.
Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/video-games/older-people-are-embracing-video-games-some-stardom-n1047906
