Esports, or the competitive playing of computer games online, is finding broader applications at social welfare facilities across Japan, assisted by specially designed software and devices.
Residents of such facilities engage in brief original games lasting around one minute. The games utilize a button-type switch that has been developed to cater to individuals of all abilities and ages.
Esports is being employed with the aim of preserving cognitive functions in elderly people and serving as a means of social exchange for those with disabilities. In the current fiscal year, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government has started a project to provide game lending services to facilities for disabled people in the capital.