Nintendo and Starlight Children’s Foundation have partnered together to deliver the joy of gaming to seriously ill children and their families.
The newest addition to the nonprofit’s popular Starlight Gaming program is the Starlight Nintendo Switch gaming station. The new gaming station was unveiled today at the Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital in Tacoma, Washington. Nintendo specifically designed and manufactured the gaming station for use in a hospital setting.
The Starlight Gaming station features the popular Nintendo Switch system. The device can be completely cleaned with disinfectant to meet a hospital’s strict safety infection protocols. It includes a mounted playback monitor that can roll anywhere in a hospital. Children can enjoy their favorite Nintendo games from the comfort of their own hospital beds or in a playroom with a group of other children.
Doctors, nurses, clinicians, and child life specialists will be able to use a single Starlight Gaming station in a variety of settings. It could be used to entertain children during a relative’s visit to the emergency room or to distract kids during an otherwise painful medical treatment. It may also help them to relax and feel comfortable when communicating with caregivers about their diagnosis.
Since launching the partnership in 1992, Starlight and Nintendo of America have delivered more than 7,200 Starlight Gaming stations to hundreds of hospitals across North America, helping to bring smiles to an estimated 11.6 million seriously ill children. Previous versions of the Starlight Gaming program included the SNES, Nintendo 64, GameCube, Wii, and Wii U.
Every year, charitable donations from individuals and corporations fund the delivery of approximately 300 Starlight Gaming stations to Starlight’s network of more than 800 children’s hospitals and other health care facilities. You can learn more and donate a Starlight Gaming station to a hospital near you at starlight.org/gaming.
