Online games are so easy to access, fun to play, you don’t need to depend on anyone to play them and not to mention they are mentally stimulating which promotes brain health., writes Vinita Alvares Fernandes
The brain naturally ages, just as the body does, such is the circle of life. Age accompanied with forgetfulness and declining cognition can be a daunting fact to accept.
Enter online games. If you’re a senior, with no one to interact with daily, if you’re living in an assisted living home or just bored of the same routine, you can turn to your screen to keep you entertained and stimulated for a while. Online games are so easy to access, fun to play, you don’t need to depend on anyone to play them and not to mention they are mentally stimulating which promotes brain health.
“Adults shopping for themselves have become a major driver of growth for the toy industry. “Kidults” are responsible for about a quarter of annual toy sales (~$9 billion worth) and account for 60% of the dollar growth for toymakers,” according to the NPD Group.
Because toy companies have figured out that people with paychecks are treating themselves and not just the kids in their orbit, they’ve started making toys specifically to appeal to the demographic, such as Marvel collectibles.”
Now with these statistics, as an older adult you never have to say — ‘I’m bored!’ or ‘I’m lonely!’
Online games especially, have been one of the greatest inventions of all time to beat loneliness. On your smartphone, tablet, desktop or laptop, with the click of a button and whoosh of the game downloading you can play any and every game you like. The only requirement to play an online game is interest in playing the game and access to technology.
Here are steps of what you need to do —
- Go into your app store and ‘search’ games, there will be a multitude of them that will pop up.
- Look for the star rating. This will tell you how popular, efficient and user friendly the game is. Four stars are generally popular games and easy to learn.
- Download the game onto your device and begin with the easiest level.
NOTE: A lot of the games are free of cost, but be prepared for advertisement disturbances. It’s better to download the free app, test it out, get the hang of the game and only if you really like it, invest in the disturbance free, paid version.
Here are some games depending on your interest to get you started
Games with no partner —
Lighthearted games for fun — Solitaire, Candy Crush, Angry Birds, Fruit Ninja, 2048, Checkers, Cooking Mama and video games like FIFA, Grand Theft Auto or Nintendo games.
Thinking games to keep your mind active — Word Crush, Sudoku, Crosswords, Word search, Scrabble, Mahjong, Bridge, Rummy, Texas Poker, Wordle, Memory Game, Trivia, Spot the Difference
Games of skill — Painting and colouring palettes, Puzzles, Duolingo, Poker, Black jack, Rummy, Canasta
Games that require you to partner with the computer or join an online group — Rummy, Ludo, Chess, Football, Wheel of Fortune
This time with your device is great but don’t go overboard. Use this time to unwind, focus on yourself, doing what you enjoy and what makes you happy.
Word of caution- Don’t let your screentime turn you into a couch potato. Be sure to balance your screen time gaming with your physical and mental exercising.
Being able to do things yourself and spending time in your own company, away from all the distractions of others and constant dependence on them will dramatically change how you feel. You will notice that your emotions have changed, you will no longer get nit picky or fly off the handle as you will be focused on your poker game or getting to the next level on candy crush to bother.
However, don’t lose your human connections and only focus on your screen. Use these online games as a way to take a break from life and not the other way around.
Now that you have so many downloaded, be sure you have the best Wi-Fi deal and connection. There’s nothing worse than slow Wi-Fi to disrupt your online game.
No one will irritate you, they will get irritated with you having no time for bickering anymore and wonder why your responses are just a smile or raised eyebrows.My advice- pick games that pique your interest and avoid ones that fail to excite you. Happy gaming!
