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DS

Nintendo Offers Brain Age to President Bush

by Jonathan Metts - July 6, 2006, 1:35 pm EDT
Total comments: 50 Source: Nintendo of America

Commander-in-Chief gets a special package from Nintendo of America on his 60th birthday.

For U.S. President George W. Bush's sixtieth birthday, Nintendo of America has sent him a special package with a Nintendo DS Lite and a copy of Brain Age to sharpen his mental faculties. We'll leave the jokes to our talkback goons... Here's a photo of the gift package and a copy of NOA's letter to the President:

President Bush's Brain Age Birthday Gift

Nintendo of America

4820 150th Ave. NE

Redmond, WA 98052

July 6, 2006

President George W. Bush

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Bush:

Happy Birthday!

Don’t worry, turning 60 is an exciting milestone. As you know, you’ve joined millions of other baby boomers in an invigorating new decade of your life. And, like many boomers, you may be looking for ways to keep your mind sharp. That’s where we come in.

Please accept our gift of a new Nintendo DS Lite system and a copy of Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day. You now join millions of people around the world who have fun challenging themselves with Brain Age. If you have never played a video game before, don’t worry. Brain Age is part of our new Touch Generations brand, which includes games that are easy for people of any age – regardless of their video game experience – to pick up and start playing immediately.

It’s obvious you don’t have a lot of time to play games, which makes Brain Age such a great activity for you – just a few minutes a day with more than 15 daily training tests will help keep your mind sharp. Training tests include categories like math, reading and memorization. Try it for a few days and watch your score improve. Brain Age also comes with more than 100 sudoku puzzles – these could make your next long flight on Air Force One a bit more fun! (Perhaps copies of Brain Age for journalists joining you on your next flight would be a nice distraction!)

Have fun exploring Brain Age with your Nintendo DS Lite and be sure to let us know your brain age!

Have a tremendous birthday!

Sincerely,

Your Friends at Nintendo

Talkback

StrellJuly 06, 2006

As I said in another forum, thank god they didn't give him Advance Wars. Otherwise he'd think our officers could make blizzards appear out of freakin nowhere.

Saturn2888July 06, 2006

Oh god this is great. Apparently Nintendo wants to help out the President get some smarts. They're like, oh, this is easy for anyone, even YOU! lol lol. There was SUCH a hidden message there regardless of your political preference. God I love Nintendo. Who would've thought they'd pull something like this. Cracks me up.

Smash_BrotherJuly 06, 2006

ROFLMAO!!!!!!

Too much, just TOO much....

Of course, this assumes that he can, you know, read...

TanookisuitJuly 06, 2006

That's awesome.

TJ SpykeJuly 06, 2006

Haha, this is just too easy. Thanks to Nintendo for providing us more chances to joke about Bush's IQ.

MaryJaneJuly 06, 2006

I'll start laughing when the economy improves and I don't spend more than a Wii to buy gas each month.

GoldenPhoenixJuly 06, 2006

Yeah because we all know only dumb people have bought or played Brain Age.

nickmitchJuly 06, 2006

If only they gave him a game to help with his building skills. . .

RequiemJuly 06, 2006

Hahaha...

What's next? An original Nintendo with Duck Hunt for Cheney?!

Saturn2888July 06, 2006

You know, I'm really interested in his "Brain Age" lol! Let's see if he can hold up some number that at least says he's living. It's not as much Bush bashing as much as the stupid decisions the man makes.

GoldenPhoenixJuly 06, 2006

Yeah I know, that Bush must be brain dead he only graduated from Yale. Why must people turn these boards into political discussions? I was starting to respect some of the people heer but most of that has went out the window after reading some of the idiotic political bashing of Bush. There is no hidden message behind giving Bush brain age, it was a gift from NIntendo in order to gain publicity for its touch generation label, with Brain Age being one of the most popular both here and in Japan.

Smash_BrotherJuly 06, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: VGrevolution There is no hidden message behind giving Bush brain age, it was a gift from NIntendo in order to gain publicity for its touch generation label, with Brain Age being one of the most popular both here and in Japan.


The word "naive" is not in the dictionary. Go look, I swear!

BiLdItUp1July 06, 2006

Hmm...if he likes it, (and even this imbecile can't - I've not met a soul yet that didn't love Brain Age) it could mean some good publicity for video games for once, not just Nintendo games per se. Smart move.

Dandruff5July 06, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: VGrevolution
Yeah I know, that Bush must be brain dead he only graduated from Yale.


Gee, I wonder what one would need in order to graduate from Yale, own a baseball team, and become President.

Lots of money from daddy perhaps?

Saturn2888July 06, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: VGrevolution
Yeah I know, that Bush must be brain dead he only graduated from Yale. Why must people turn these boards into political discussions? I was starting to respect some of the people heer but most of that has went out the window after reading some of the idiotic political bashing of Bush. There is no hidden message behind giving Bush brain age, it was a gift from NIntendo in order to gain publicity for its touch generation label, with Brain Age being one of the most popular both here and in Japan.


You are wrong. I am sorry, but very wrong. He went to both Yale and Harvard, but it is unknown as to whether he graduated from either. I'm sorry, but I'm not lying at all. I wasn't bashing him, if I was, I'd bring up the Patriot Act which I hope no one here gets into. I was saying, because he had made such stupid decisions during his presidency and yes, Nintendo wanted the coverage, but it's a two sided coin. The Bush lovers will say, wow, Nintendo is cool, the Bush haters will see the joke, and anyone who has actual met the President and talked to the man would know that he's pretty dumb. He hasn't lived the life of a poor college student and doesn't normally converse with "commoners." I am not lying. You meet him and talk to him before trying to say he's smart because he graduated from Yale. I'm sorry, but Bill Gates dropped out of High School, and not one person I've met thinks he's brain dead. Actually, while he's not gathered the most respect, he has made a feasible amount of money, and I personally would consider him to be a smart man even though he dropped out of High School.

Also, I don't appreciate being called stupid because I didn't graduate from Yale which is really what you're saying if you think about what you actually just said. You're judging a person on their accomplishments rather than on who they are.

Smash_BrotherJuly 06, 2006

I have a friend in the army who has met him and said Bush LOVES to talk, like he'll just go on and on and on without end.

Also, I printed out the first 50 pages of the Patriot Act and taped it together for a Halloween costume once, claiming that I, the Patriot Act, was without question the most evil thing at the party.

No one argued.

The usual rule about no political discussion is still in effect. Jokes are fine if contained in this thread, or you can make a serious comment on any historical significance of the gift, but do not get into a political debate in this forum.

EasyCureJuly 06, 2006

found this on the gonintendo forums and really hope the politics dont get as bad here as they did there...

anyway, its pretty funny and anyone who doesnt mind making a joke at the presidents expense could appreciate it.

GoldenPhoenixJuly 06, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: Smash_Brother
Quote

Originally posted by: VGrevolution There is no hidden message behind giving Bush brain age, it was a gift from NIntendo in order to gain publicity for its touch generation label, with Brain Age being one of the most popular both here and in Japan.


The word "naive" is not in the dictionary. Go look, I swear!


So witty, did you make that up yourself? I still not believe this has any significance, Bush was turning 60, and Nintendo did this as a way of freely advertising a popular game that is supposed to train your brain age (In a way I guess it was a joke but not like the smart alik way some here take it as meaning, it is more of an age joke).

To Saturn, I take it you have talked to Bush? I've heard from individuals who have talked to him on a personal level and say he is not stupid, he may not be the best speaker but that does not make you stupid. In response to your grossly exagerrated claim that my statement about going to Yale indicated your own intelligence, all I meant was to graduate from Yale shows intelligence, and that is it. Nothing about whether you can be smart and go to college (I know many people who did not go to college yet are intelligent). To graduate from Yale and Harvard you need more than money since most kids at Yale or Harvard have rich parents (Unless they got a great scholarship). Also I would like to see your source that it is unsure that Bush graduated from college, I believe he has a Bachelors in History from Yale and MBA in Business at Harvard.

In response to Bill Gates, I could have swore it was college he didn't graduate from, I think he had 3 years at Harvard, he only dropped out because he wished to pursue software development. And finally just because you don't agree with someone's descisions doesn't make them stupid, has Bush made mistakes? Every world leader has, but many of his descisions are based upon a different approach to solving problems. You are never going to have a successful debate with anyone if you call their descisions stupids instead of actually trying to understand where they are coming from.

GoldenPhoenixJuly 06, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: EasyCure
found this on the gonintendo forums and really hope the politics dont get as bad here as they did there...

anyway, its pretty funny and anyone who doesnt mind making a joke at the presidents expense could appreciate it.


Lol that is pretty funny actually.

Mario323July 06, 2006

Let's see if he can figure out how to get the cartridge into the system. If he holds it down and lets go, the spring-loaded slot will shoot the cartidge in his face. Maybe he will declare that the Nintendo DS is a WMD and that Japan is using this device as a way to sneak the deadly thing into our homes. Such a brilliant strategy!

UncleBobRichard Cook, Guest ContributorJuly 06, 2006

On an interesting note, did y'all know that Dubya tried fairly hard to prevent Nintendo/Yamachi from buying the Mariners because he was against a Japanese company owning an American Baseball team?

(which makes you look at that ports deal eariler this year completly different, but that's politics and not for this board!)

Saturn2888July 06, 2006

You made good points. I feel like my argument is downed by just that. Yeah, on Gates, I was wrong. I was thinking someone else from back before 50s. I don't remember who. What I meant was that I was unaware of if he graduated, sorry about that. I did not talk to the man when he was probably at his best, so that may be why. I also remember another time speaking with him while he was under alcohol. That did not help my views any.

I agree though. This is GREAT marketing. If Bush likes this game, then oh wow will Nintendo maybe finally get public recognition as an actual competitor for once and man I really like how this could mean good things for videogames in general.

GoldenPhoenixJuly 06, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: Saturn2888
You made good points. I feel like my argument is downed by just that. Yeah, on Gates, I was wrong. I was thinking someone else from back before 50s. I don't remember who. What I meant was that I was unaware of if he graduated, sorry about that. I did not talk to the man when he was probably at his best, so that may be why. I also remember another time speaking with him while he was under alcohol. That did not help my views any.

I agree though. This is GREAT marketing. If Bush likes this game, then oh wow will Nintendo maybe finally get public recognition as an actual competitor for once and man I really like how this could mean good things for videogames in general.


In case you are wondering I do not think you are stupid at all, you appear to be quite logical and respectful, I appreciate that. On the subject of the DS, I do think this is a great marketing tool, I don't recall this ever happening before. Do any of you guys know of another situation where a company donated a gaming system to a president?

GoldenPhoenixJuly 06, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: Mario323
Let's see if he can figure out how to get the cartridge into the system. If he holds it down and lets go, the spring-loaded slot will shoot the cartidge in his face. Maybe he will declare that the Nintendo DS is a WMD and that Japan is using this device as a way to sneak the deadly thing into our homes. Such a brilliant strategy!


NDS is a WMD not only because of that but also it is sneaking up on the PSP and ready to deliver a devastating blast to the system, wiping it and all its games off the earth. face-icon-small-wink.gif

ZachJuly 06, 2006

OH NOES!! Japan is trying to assasinate the president with their WMDSL!!! best of luck to them

Wanna add, since this has come up a few times, what I think. I would not be surprised if Bush is infact more intelligent than people give him credit. Its just that he has, in my opinion, made some very poor decisions, and done some rotten things involving foreign policy. Also, I hold completely different morals than him, so that makes me think he is a poor president.

Im not sure if there is any kind of (intentional) joke in this whole thing. But that doesnt make it any less funny.

Saturn2888July 06, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: VGrevolution
In case you are wondering I do not think you are stupid at all, you appear to be quite logical and respectful, I appreciate that. On the subject of the DS, I do think this is a great marketing tool, I don't recall this ever happening before. Do any of you guys know of another situation where a company donated a gaming system to a president?


Well that's good. Yeah, sorry VGrevolution. I was like, exploding there. So this will be really cool to hear about tomorrow. He HAS to have played it by now. I mean, it's so tempting. "Touching is good." I mean, who WOULDN'T like a company that supports that? Also, does this have to do w/ PSP sales in the states being more than in Japan? Also, man, I still can't believe the 2 sided coin whether they intended it or not. Seriously, it works for whoever wants it to work and if it really turns out tomorrow in the news we hear about Bush playing DS, OMG, I will hail the man that day. I will have a lot of respect for him especially if he says he likes it since it would just make me feel really good that maybe Nintendo's image might improve and that this could possibly spark Wii sales (if he says he's getting one). I mean, I'd feel a connection with the President then. It'd be an "I play Nintendo and so do you" connection that I really wouldn't mind having one bit. It shows that the man knows how to have fun! LOL! Excitement will die down tomorrow when I have to wake up in 5 hours for work.

GoldenPhoenixJuly 06, 2006

Hmmm Saturn, I'm not sure what the reasoning is behind this event except to increase awareness of the DS Lite in America. I may be wrong, but isn't DS Lite turning the tide a bit in favor of Nintendo within the US when it comes to hardware sales? Then again it is my contention that a system that sells hardware yet struggles to sell games is not winning!

nolimit19July 06, 2006

sorry to inform you folks, bush's iq is in the 95 percentile based on his SAT and military aptitude scores. this is hard for many to understand, but just because you don’t agree with someone, DOESNT MAKE THEM STUPID...hard to believe, i know. also, believe it or not, someone with a degree from Yale and Harvard might know more about economics than you...SHOCK..kids graduate from high school before you open your mouths.

nolimit19July 06, 2006

um if you dont know if bush graduate from yale and harvard....i think YOU better learn to be able to read before you talk about the president being dumb...there is no debate about whether or not he graduated. yes naive isnt in the dictionary....look it up man. its right underneath grassy noll

KDR_11kJuly 07, 2006

Bush takes great care to act stupid in public so he seems friendlier. The other theory is that he's filled with psychopharmaka.

Smash_BrotherJuly 07, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: VGrevolution So witty, did you make that up yourself?


No, that joke has been around longer than the internet, except it's usually "gullible" instead of "naive".

On the subject, I don't care how stupid he is. All I care about is that our country is right now plundering an oil-rich nation and yet gas prices are $3+ per gallon in most places in the US. Historically, this sort of thing causes gas prices to go DOWN, not up.

Quote

Originally posted by: KDR_11k
Bush takes great care to act stupid in public so he seems friendlier. The other theory is that he's filled with psychopharmaka.


I watched a video of him years ago when he was running for governor of Texas and he was quite coherent and very much a good speaker.

Years later, his speeches aren't 1/10th the caliber of his older ones.

The simple working theory is that he had a coke overdose at some point between then and now which has reduced his cognitive abilities greatly.

Trust me: go back and watch his old speeches, then watch his recent ones. There's a disturbing difference.

GoldenPhoenixJuly 07, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: Smash_Brother
Quote

Originally posted by: VGrevolution So witty, did you make that up yourself?


No, that joke has been around longer than the internet, except it's usually "gullible" instead of "naive".

On the subject, I don't care how stupid he is. All I care about is that our country is right now plundering an oil-rich nation and yet gas prices are $3+ per gallon in most places in the US. Historically, this sort of thing causes gas prices to go DOWN, not up.

Quote

Originally posted by: KDR_11k
Bush takes great care to act stupid in public so he seems friendlier. The other theory is that he's filled with psychopharmaka.


I watched a video of him years ago when he was running for governor of Texas and he was quite coherent and very much a good speaker.

Years later, his speeches aren't 1/10th the caliber of his older ones.

The simple working theory is that he had a coke overdose at some point between then and now which has reduced his cognitive abilities greatly.

Trust me: go back and watch his old speeches, then watch his recent ones. There's a disturbing difference.


::avoids a political debate and instead laughs::

KDR_11kJuly 07, 2006

The simple working theory is that he had a coke overdose at some point between then and now which has reduced his cognitive abilities greatly.

Remember the buzz the "secrets from the White House" thread on SA caused? The guy on the inside there said that Bush is still very well spoken when he's not near a camera and that he doesn't give anyone those nicknames he uses in public. That's one big PR stunt to look like Uncle George rather than President Bush so people can sympathise with him.

ThePermJuly 07, 2006

this is a very Nintendo-esque move, rather than bitch and complain about the presidents intelligence as most do, they solve the problem by making him smarter! Brain-Age made me smarter, so good job NOA.

Smash_BrotherJuly 07, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: VGrevolution ::avoids a political debate and instead laughs::


::gently pats VGrevolution on the back::

There, there, it'll be alright.

Quote

Remember the buzz the "secrets from the White House" thread on SA caused? The guy on the inside there said that Bush is still very well spoken when he's not near a camera and that he doesn't give anyone those nicknames he uses in public. That's one big PR stunt to look like Uncle George rather than President Bush so people can sympathise with him.


That doesn't explain the before and after, though, nor does it explain why he would intentionally try to come across as a poor speaker during election times. You can be affable and still be coherent.

I do wonder how he'll take to the notion of Brain Age, though. If I were Nintendo, I would have included some other games in the package, like NSMB. You absolutely could not beat the publicity of Bush caught on camera playing NSMB on his DSL.

ZachJuly 07, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: Smash_Brother
I do wonder how he'll take to the notion of Brain Age, though. If I were Nintendo, I would have included some other games in the package, like NSMB. You absolutely could not beat the publicity of Bush caught on camera playing NSMB on his DSL.


Thats not the kind of publicity they want though. Like most 60 year olds, I dont thing bush would really be int SMB. The idea that nintendo wants to spread is that The DS has something for everyone.

Edit: heh.... post number 666, figures it would be on this thread face-icon-small-happy.gif

Smash_BrotherJuly 07, 2006

Nintendogs then. DEFINITELY Nintendogs.

The president having a virtual puppy because he doesn't have the time to take care of a real one would be better advertising than ANY form of currency could buy.

One of the busiest and most influential men on the planet using your product to relax and entertain himself would be pure gold, especially if they got a video of him giving the puppy voice commands.

Donutt007July 07, 2006

and I get no credit for mentioning this first on the DS board before it was even on talkback....sigh

SlayerZeroJuly 07, 2006

Political crap aside (I think pretty much all polticians are Senile old fools, including my Uncle Jom Jeffords, who was completely mentally gone at my family reunion) this is one of the funniest and most brilliant things Nintendo has ever done.

EasyCureJuly 08, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: Smash_Brother
Nintendogs then. DEFINITELY Nintendogs.

The president having a virtual puppy because he doesn't have the time to take care of a real one would be better advertising than ANY form of currency could buy.

One of the busiest and most influential men on the planet using your product to relax and entertain himself would be pure gold, especially if they got a video of him giving the puppy voice commands.


i thought he had a dog. also, im pretty sure he was caught on camera dropping his dog on the head or something. i remember hearing of some incident with his dog. it was back either during the early days of his presidency or before he took office.

i mean i couldnt of just dreamt that up. after all this IS the leader of the "free world"; whome choked on a pretzel and bashed his head upon exiting a helicopter. (gotta give him some slack though, i think most presidents do that last part. if i recall nixon did it as well.)

GoldenPhoenixJuly 08, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: EasyCure
Quote

Originally posted by: Smash_Brother
Nintendogs then. DEFINITELY Nintendogs.

The president having a virtual puppy because he doesn't have the time to take care of a real one would be better advertising than ANY form of currency could buy.

One of the busiest and most influential men on the planet using your product to relax and entertain himself would be pure gold, especially if they got a video of him giving the puppy voice commands.


i thought he had a dog. also, im pretty sure he was caught on camera dropping his dog on the head or something. i remember hearing of some incident with his dog. it was back either during the early days of his presidency or before he took office.

i mean i couldnt of just dreamt that up. after all this IS the leader of the "free world"; whome choked on a pretzel and bashed his head upon exiting a helicopter. (gotta give him some slack though, i think most presidents do that last part. if i recall nixon did it as well.)


He did drop the dog, but I haven't been able to find anything but still photos of the event (after the dog hit the ground). Even though it is not a big deal, it could have been the dog moving around too much and he lost his grip. The pretzel thing was a bit overblown by the media, all that was confirmed is that he didn't chew and swallow one right which caused him to blackout (they think it may have been caused by a sickness and a nerve being triggered). Regardless Bush is still human, and it isn't unbelievable when you choke (if that is what happened) on something, if you believe it is you need to get out more. Same goes for "hitting" your head whether it is getting out of a helicopter or anywhere else, I'm sure everyone here has been a klutz at least once in their life. If these things are your main reasons for attacking and insulting someone, perhaps you should go back to the drawing board.

You can refer to this link for the real facts behind the so called "pretzel" choking incident, in fact it turns out choked was never used by the doctor that treated him and was made up by a reporter (What a surprise).
http://archives.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/01/13/bush.fainting/

KDR_11kJuly 09, 2006

Yes but does he have a son named Laharl?

EasyCureJuly 09, 2006

it was a joke dude, relaaaax. you come off as if i offended your father or something

ZachJuly 09, 2006

yeah, nobody here is calling Bush a bad president because he choked (or whatever you wanna call it), or because he dropped his dog, or hit his head, or any of that other dumb stuff that just means that the president is infact human.

There are plenty of reasons to say he is a bad president, but not because he does the same stupid stuff everyone else does (its just he is on camera all the time so people hear about everything he does).

GoldenPhoenixJuly 09, 2006

Quote

Originally posted by: EasyCure
it was a joke dude, relaaaax. you come off as if i offended your father or something


I apologize, but sometimes people come off like this stuff is somehow related to how dumb he is, yet it happens to everyone. Still cant' find a movie clip of the dog dropping thing, any of you have it?

EasyCureJuly 11, 2006

apology accepted. i cant find video of it either, i guess i was wrong on that.
my statements were merely jokes. if i thought bush was the best damned thing to happen to america or not is trivial. pgc is hardly the place for any type of political debate, unless those politics had something to do with the one with we all have in commen on this site; video games.

PaleMike Gamin, Contributing EditorJuly 11, 2006

Hey guys? This thread is still flirting with disaster... can we only talk about how the president got a ds and not about whether or not he is stupid OR a good or bad president?

GoldenPhoenixJuly 11, 2006

Any new reports on whether or not President Bush has played the DS Lite yet? It would be hilarious if he got Mario Kart DS or Metroid Prime Hunters and played people online! Or Nintendo could promote a Presidential death match in Hunters between George Bush Jr., Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter and George Bush Senior.

Saturn2888November 24, 2006

I'm wondering myself if he even played it. Jokes aside, I'm wondering if he just tossed it or not.

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