Japan: who would have thought? Video games for seniors?

Like many retirees, Isamu Shishido sometimes forgets names and evenhis own telephone number. But now the 67-year-old says he’s found aproduct that could sharpen his thinking: a new brain-training game fromNintendo Co.

The ailing maker of Mario and Pokemon games hasscored a smash hit by courting Japan’s burgeoning gray market with”Brain Training for Adults” — a number and puzzles game that Nintendosays can stimulate the brain and ward off dementia.

“I don’t wantto end up some crazy old man,” Shishido explained at a crowded Tokyoelectronics store after trying the game on display. “I want to play alittle everyday before going to bed.”

The game, played on thecompany’s hand-held DS console, is part of an effort by Nintendo tobroaden its customer base amid falling profits.

Other recent DSsoftware hits let players study English, raise a virtual puppy, orconverse with animals in an imaginary village — all departures fromtraditional games that cater to young males by focusing on sports,shootings and fist fights.

The brain training game has sold 3.34million copies since its May 2005 launch. That in turn has fueled thepopularity of the easy-to-use Nintendo DS console, which is operatedwith only a plastic pen and touch pad, rather than a complicated set ofcontrols.

Read the rest at Manichi Interactive.  Or read this review of the game.  The Brain Game will hit the US Market in April.