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Gamer Dads I Need Your Help!


Mercury33

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Looking for some advice from the gamer dads out there. Im looking to start getting my 5 year old into console gaming for the first time and I need some advice on good games to start with. He’s been playing games on a phone/iPad since he was 2 so he’s got a pretty good grasp on general principles of games. But transitioning him from using his finger to using a controller, especially today’s controllers, has me at a loss. 

 

Any good games out there that would be good for a kid, that aren’t too complicated control wise that he can start to learn how to use a controller with?  Thanks guys!

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I'm not a father, but my nephew (who's 6) has started getting into games, and I can attest that Mario Kart 8 is really fantastic for younger or inexperienced players.  The auto accelerate and smart steering functions (both easily activated from the pause menu) are incredibly helpful in terms of making the game instantly accessible and easy to control.  If you have a Wii U or Switch I would highly recommend that.

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1 hour ago, Mercury33 said:

Looking for some advice from the gamer dads out there. Im looking to start getting my 5 year old into console gaming for the first time and I need some advice on good games to start with. He’s been playing games on a phone/iPad since he was 2 so he’s got a pretty good grasp on general principles of games. But transitioning him from using his finger to using a controller, especially today’s controllers, has me at a loss. 

 

Any good games out there that would be good for a kid, that aren’t too complicated control wise that he can start to learn how to use a controller with?  Thanks guys!

Knack, all day and almost none of the night because you know, little people should have reasonably early bed times! :p

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My kids started gaming on some of the Xbox 360 Pixar games -- Toy Story 3 and Cars 2 I believe.  They were relatively easy games to get started with, and had characters they were familiar with.  I played WITH them most of the time.

 

They graduated to the Lego games -- the Marvel/DC games were their favourite.  At 5, they mostly played WITH me (or an older brother) on couch co-op.  They can normally be found for fairly cheap, and the puzzles aren't difficult for older kids.

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I recommend coop experiences where you guys work together. Most of my recommendations will be on Switch where I played with my niece. 

 

Snipperclips

Overcooked

Marvel Ultimate Alliance

Mario Rabbids

Captain Toad

Unravel 2

 

All of these have basic controls and easy to grasp concepts. If you are looking for a single player game I think Zelda’s Links Awakening might be a good one since it was originally a gameboy game so the controls will be limited

 

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I’m. not a dad, but has younger brothers 13 and 16 years younger than me, and I’ve got friends with little ones. 

 

My recommendation is cooperative Nintendo titles. Titles where they have the same agency you do and can learn from you to do as good as you, but you can “carry” them so they can feel a sense of accomplishment even when you win. New Super Mario Brothers and Mario Kart are good ones. 

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My daughter was a few years older then yours when she really got into games. We started with co op LEGO games and then she jumped into the L4D series. 

Big N titles seem like a good choice , maybe a DS with a handful of games. The easy button layout should help them get accustomed to using a controller.

 

1 tip I can offer is let them play on their own if they want. Mine learned at a much faster rate when she had to figure it out herself.

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Mario kart 64 and sonic adventures were beloved by my nephews in that 3-6 year old range. So either a fun kart game or something with a very linear level progression would be best.

 

If you have a Wii-u, I would highly recommend MK8 and Mario 3D world. If not get them a n2ds and Mario 3D land.

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My son started playing Splatoon 2 when he was 6.  It really helped him grasp using dual analog sticks. It's casual enough he could hang back in the levels and paint and really learn how to move and shoot. Now he's 7 and while playing the casual multiplayer mode, he's usually in first/second place everytime on his team. 

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Super Lucky's Tale

Mario Kart

Forza

Slime Rancher

Mario, any of them. 

Overcooked (play together)

Rocket League

The Disney Games (basically can't lose)

 

My eldest is six and has been playing Monster Hunter heavily since World has come out. Great game to just let them go out and hit buttons on an expedition, until the get the mechanics and menus down. We play a lot together as well.

 

Consequently my two year old (who calls the game "Hunt") attacks us with sword like objects and sheaths them in their shirt when not in use. My wife is not so happy, definitely blaming the game, and I can't really argue against her position. 

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53 minutes ago, Commodore D said:

Consequently my two year old (who calls the game "Hunt") attacks us with sword like objects and sheaths them in their shirt when not in use. My wife is not so happy, definitely blaming the game, and I can't really argue against her position. 

Shouldn’t look like monsters, then. :p

 

 

I used to do this and I didn’t have a game anyone could blame. I did like He-Man and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles though. 

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14 hours ago, Commodore D said:

Consequently my two year old (who calls the game "Hunt") attacks us with sword like objects and sheaths them in their shirt when not in use. My wife is not so happy, definitely blaming the game, and I can't really argue against her position. 

 

Ha! Back around the time Fire Emblem Warriors came out, I was playing that quite a bit. My son was also two at the time and started screaming while attacking us with anything he could get his hands on.

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13 hours ago, Spawn_of_Apathy said:

Shouldn’t look like monsters, then. :p

 

 

I used to do this and I didn’t have a game anyone could blame. I did like He-Man and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles though. 

We are big people; I am definitely Ajanath size compared to the little one.

 

Yeah, it’s funny to see, we try to hide our laughter.

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Monkey Ball.  Any version.  Super simple controls.  Mostly just the sticks.  Gets that controller dexterity working, and the early levels are so simple that even a youngin' with little to no gaming experience can reach the goal and get that "you won" feeling and it's legitimately them who did it; not with help.  No better game than Monkey Ball for familiarizing a young kid with the analog sticks, which gives them a huge head start on any games they may play going forward after that.

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@Mercury33 I have a 6 and 7 yr old and been playing video games with my kids.  I had same problem with controllers mainly due to size.

 

Overcooked is too complicated for little kids.  Need also a game where death is forgiving.  Here is what I've had luck with

Guacamelee

Any Lego Game

Sometimes Splelunky 

Plants vs zombie garden warfare

Splatoon

Currently playing River City girls 

 

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I don't even remember. We played a lot of the LEGO games when my oldest was a little guy.

 

They figure it out pretty quick.

 

I assigned my son the "homework" of beating Super Mario World because we were playing Mario Maker 2 and I was stunned at how bad he was at 2D platformers. He's 10 and already better at FPS's than I am, but can't play Mario for shit.

 

He wasn't really into SMW, but is currently playing though Super Metroid, which makes me very happy.

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2 minutes ago, ort said:

I don't even remember. We played a lot of the LEGO games when my oldest was a little guy.

 

They figure it out pretty quick.

 

I assigned my son the "homework" of beating Super Mario World because we were playing Mario Maker 2 and I was stunned at how bad he was at 2D platformers. He's 10 and already better at FPS's than I am, but can't play Mario for shit.

 

He wasn't really into SMW, but is currently playing though Super Metroid, which makes me very happy.

:lol: This reminds me of me and my kids when they were younger.  Whenever they'd ask me for a new game I'd tell them I'd buy it for them if they could beat one of my NES games. :P 

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Thanks for all the advice guys. Got him started today. He saw me playing Sonic which he liked but only played for a bit because it was too hard for him. Moved into MARIO Kart 8 with the assists in and he really dug that. Next we tried Arms with the motion controls and he LOVED it! Even started to figure out blocking and the special attacks by the end. Now he’s just running around MARIO Odyssey exploring which he’s really enjoying. We’re off and running haha. 

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