Nintendo guru targets education
Last Updated: Friday, March 19, 2010 | 1:06 PM ET
The Associated Press
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Could Nintendo's Mario be swapping his world of magic mushrooms and ravenous dinosaurs for the staid confines of the classroom?
The man behind the massively popular video game franchise thinks so, saying he's working hard to turn Nintendo Co.'s brand of hand-held consoles into educational aids and teaching tools.
"That is maybe the area where I am devoting myself [the] most," Japanese video game guru Shigeru Miyamoto told The Associated Press in an interview.
Speaking through a translator, Miyamoto said that Nintendo's DS console was already being used in Japanese museums, galleries and aquariums, and that his company was beginning to roll out the Nintendo DS system "in junior high and elementary schools in Japan starting in the new school year."
He framed the project as part of his company's effort to broaden the audience for gaming consoles.
Miyamoto's design credits include Super Mario Bros., Legend of Zelda and Donkey Kong. He also played a pivotal role in designing Nintendo's popular new motion-sensitive console, the Wii, which has consistently outsold rivals by attracting nontraditional gamers such as women and seniors.
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