Many retirees struggle with loneliness and boredom, but these senior gamers have found community, activity and quite a bit of fun: ‘They let me explore worlds and fantasize, and they’ve kept my reflexes quite good’
Obviously, it’s probably inevitable that younger generations who have grown up with video games will wheel a cart full of controllers and game systems into retirement homes. But Boomers like David are becoming more and more aware of the mental and increasingly communal benefits of video games, too.
“It always bugged me that people will sit and watch eight hours of television, but then say playing video games is a waste of time,” adds John, a 60-year-old in San Francisco who dedicates roughly three hours a day to gaming. “Games, especially story games, can be just as engaging and emotional as TV or a movie. They let me explore worlds and fantasize, and they’ve kept my reflexes quite good.”
It’s something I’m sure I’ll be doing when I become a senior one day. I already don’t spend my evenings watching TV so I’m probably a good candidate for this one day. If I had to choose a seniors home it would be one with the fastest broadband, not the most TV lounges.
See #^https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/video-games-retirement-senior-men
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#^Meet the Gamer Grandpas: The Seniors Who Spend Retirement Playing ‘Fortnite’ | MEL Magazine
It didn’t take long for David to realize he had a little too much time on his hands when he finally retired from the IT…