The Games My Mother Played

May 1st 1980 I came home from school to find my mother waiting there for me, a giddy smile on her lips. She always loved birthdays. Back then we were living in an apartment, my younger sister and I sharing one room, my older brother and sister sometimes sharing another, and birthdays were the one time my mother, taking care of four children on child support and a modest income from the dancing school she ran, would really get to splurge on her kids.

Seven year-old me knew this, so I was nearly as excited as she was as she handed over a small wrapped package, my shaking fingers tearing at the colorful paper to reveal the prize beneath. Space Invaders for the Atari 2600! My heart leapt! At that point I had only been exposed to video games at my dad's house or when my brother borrowed a friend's Odyssey 2, but I had already developed the hunger that would one day lead me here. I looked around the room for the missing piece of the present...behind her, in the kitchen, on the glass coffee table my brother would eventually put his foot through in a bout of teenage rebellion, but it was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's the Atari?" I asked, my voice shaking with excitement.

"What Atari?" she replied, looking perplexed.

I know a lot of you have memories of your mom surprising you for the holidays or your birthday with a game or, better yet, a console, or a birthday party at the local arcade or mini-golf. That's one of the best things about moms, when you're a kid; when they come out of nowhere, without a word of begging, pleading or conversation, with the coolest, bestest, most non-Mom thing ever in the world.

My brother and I both have an elephant's memory. We often astound our parents with perfect recall of years, dates, things said going back 25 years or more. I know Pac-Man was the only game that ever really amused my mother. But sitting here, racking my brain, I cannot ever recall her playing a video game.

Walmart.com using Wii Fit to boost Mom's Day sales

Wii Fit isn't just a casual game, now it's the "perfect gift" for Mother's Day if you believe Walmart.

Reuters reports that this weekend the fitness-meets-game Wii title will dominate the Walmart.com homepage and include a link to pre-order the game in time for it's May 19 launch. People who pre-order by May 11 will get a $10 online gift card for use on the site down the line.

"Initial response is extremely strong, and we're feeling really good about Nintendo Wii Fit dominating the home page," said Kelly Thompson, Walmart.com's chief merchant, of early shopper demand for the game. "... We really like the angle of marketing it to Mom."

Nintendo of America marketing maven Cammie Dunaway goes on to say that the upcoming game will be marketed not just to women, but to men as well.

Walmart.com using Wii Fit to boost Mom's Day sales [Reuters]

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