Andrew Sroufe of Jasman Toys says Peter Pan was on to a good thing.

Toys. They’re not just for kids anymore. Adults are getting into the game, and the toy industry has taken notice. “Big kids” of all ages are the industry’s newest market; and with their bigger size comes much bigger allowances!
In the most obvious case of the past year, non-traditional gamers have been flocking to Nintendo’s highly active Wii console, making it the highest selling game console this past summer. Wii games encourage users to get off the couch and demand physical activity on the part of the player. The ease of playing as well as the wow-factor of this new technology has brought a whole new wave of women, families and “non-traditional” gamers into the marketplace.
A recent survey by AOL and the Associated Press shows that while eight out of ten kids between the ages of 4 and 17 regularly play computer or video games, 38% of all adults also admit to playing computer or video games. Additionally, while adult gamers were often thought to be male, the poll revealed that 45% were female. Other studies have shown that adults need play as much as kids—in some cases even more—and that it has far-reaching benefits in the form of stress relief, creative development, and positive risk taking. Breaking the monotony of the everyday world is a critical challenge for any age and many adults require help from the outside to get them in a playful mind state.. Toys, especially when loaded with tech, keep adults happier—and healthier.
Remember the adage, “All work and no play makes Johnny a dull boy?” Toys are the tools that help us work by encouraging imagination and keeping players thinking, planning, and doing at any age. Whether it’s a sleek phone that lets you send pictures to your kids, a video game that sends you into outer realms, or a game such as Jasman Toys’ replica Halo 3™ laser tag that gets you off and running, we all need to rediscover the joy of playing like a kid again.

This entry was posted on Friday, December 14th, 2007 at 9:03 am and is filed under Gaming. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.