An esports event for a popular fighting game, Tekken 8, was recently held in Japan, but with a unique twist: the players were all senior citizens living in nursing homes. This special tournament, organized by Care Esports, aimed to give older adults a chance to compete and enjoy the world of video games.
Every year, Care Esports hosts tournaments for a different game. This year, the focus was on Tekken 8, where participants battled to see who could claim the title of the best fighter. The players ranged in age from their 60s all the way up to 93 years old.
The event was set up like a real esports competition, complete with commentators and player introductions that highlighted each person’s favorite character and their gaming name. It truly felt like a professional event.
Even though Tekken might seem hard to learn at first, these seniors proved that it’s quite easy to get into. The matches were surprisingly good, and the winner even mentioned that her final match was very close, almost going to her opponent.
Gaming is for Everyone, Even Seniors
Tekken is known for being a tough game to master. Each character has a lot of moves, many more than in other fighting games like Street Fighter 6. Some characters even have over 200 different moves!
However, the way Tekken is set up makes it easier to learn. The four main buttons on the controller each control a different limb. So, if you want to punch with your left hand, you press the button for your left hand. This simple design makes Tekken more straightforward for people who have never played video games before.
These older players learned the game quickly and showed off their skills by performing combos and putting on an exciting show for everyone watching.
By the time the tournament reached the final two players, the competition got intense. One player, who used a character named King, was skilled at breaking throws and using wrestling-style moves in the air.
The other finalist, playing as Panda, focused on using low sweeps to attack the opponent’s legs. She managed to land some powerful hits that turned into combos, giving her just enough points to win the final match in a comeback.
All the players were interviewed after their matches, and real trophies were given out to celebrate their accomplishments.
While these players might not be heading to the big professional tournaments like Evo anytime soon, they definitely showed that playing video games can be a fun activity for people of all ages.
Something similar happened recently in the United States. A person encouraged their father, who had never played video games before, to beat the difficult game Dark Souls. After months of practice, he succeeded and then immediately started playing another challenging game, Elden Ring.
