Nintendo’s Wii video game system was designed to appeal to a non-traditional gaming market. Nintendo has succeeded beyond even their own highest projections. Despite the machine being on the market since November of 2006, finding a Wii is still difficult. Where are all those machines going? They’re winding up on cruise ships, in retirement homes and now in physical therapy clinics. The innovation is in the motion sensitivity and the simple controls; users wave the controller to initiate actions.
Many reports have documented the bowling leagues, tennis matches and golf tours organized by retirement homes around the U.S. As one granny said after playing a round of Monster Truck, “This is fun! I haven’t been able to drive for fifteen years.” Now physical therapy clinics are using the Wii to eliminate the boredom of repetitive exercises. The various Wii sports games require body movements similar to traditional therapy exercises, One doctor at Illinois’ Herrin Hospital observed, “When people can refocus their attention from the tediousness of the physical task, oftentimes they do much better.”
Read the Wired article.
Posted by Mugly 