Why Nintendo Mailed Free Gloves to Mario Party Players - The $80 Million Blister Problem

Why Nintendo Mailed Free Gloves to Mario Party Players: The $80 Million Blister Problem In 2000, Nintendo agreed to give free protective gloves to Mario Party players and set aside up to $80 million to pay for them. Kids were getting blisters, friction burns and cuts on their palms from spinning the Nintendo 64 control stick in minigames like Tug o' War, Pedal Power and Paddle Battle. About 90 families complained to the New York Attorney General, and Nintendo settled without a lawsuit. This is the story of the N64 controller, the palm trick every kid learned at sleepovers, the glove settlement, Nintendo's other health scares, and why one of those minigames came back in 2021 with a warning on the screen. I was ten in 1999. Pedal Power got me. Sources: GameSpot "Nintendo Issues Game Gloves" (March 2000), BBC News (March 9, 2000), The New Leaf Journal, Inverse, Kotaku (2021), CNN (December 17, 1997), CNET (2006). Archive footage, commercials and gameplay are shown for commentary and credited on screen. Chapters: 0:00 $80 million in gloves 0:35 Ray's basement, 1999 1:11 The controller 1:57 The game 3:46 The complaints 4:19 The settlement 5:07 Why it mattered 5:33 Nintendo's other health scares 6:23 The comeback 6:43 Your turn Did Mario Party ever get you? Which minigame, whose basement, and did you use your palm? #MarioParty #Nintendo64 #Nintendo