Kids and Vids

[ma-skis.com]

Looking at that parenting thread, didn't want to derail, but what's the age you guys all started introducing video games into their lives?

my boy hasn't touched a wii or ps3, but we let him play the occasional iphone game if we get stuck in traffic, waiting for our food or if he's barely holding it together.

Thoughts on the topic?

[Rathji]

Originally Posted by ma-skis.com

Looking at that parenting thread, didn't want to derail, but what's the age you guys all started introducing video games into their lives?

my boy hasn't touched a wii or ps3, but we let him play the occasional iphone game if we get stuck in traffic, waiting for our food or if he's barely holding it together.

Thoughts on the topic?

I have bee trying to get my daughter used to the concept of the Wii and it's controls since she was 2. For the longest time, it was just her watching daddy play, but now there are some games she almost understands what is going on, but has a hard time translating that understanding through the controls. For example, she can pick her driver, cart and race on Mario Kart but getting her to move even 100m in the race is rare.

I consider video games an important thing to learn, if for no other reason than it helps her develop her coordination and spatial thinking. That said, video games are a Saturday morning, with Daddy only activity. There is no way I will let her think that she needs to be playing them all the time.

At 3 now, she plays matching games on Grandma's iPhone like a pro, holding so many of the high scores that I really have to work at it to get my name up there.

[Ice]

For a three year old, try Mario Party. It has LOTS (40ish maybe?) of games that are quick to finish, which is great for short attention spans. Some are super easy, like who can shake their soda can the hardest. As they get better with the controller, there are games that introduce using the buttons and directonal arrows. They can race cars, fly planes, walk a tightrope, build things, etc. Its great for toddlers. Some are just guessing games, but they have to move the controller a certain way to, say, cut a rope and see if their character goes flying. Its a big hit with a wide age group of kids.

[Rathji]

Originally Posted by Ice

For a three year old, try Mario Party. It has LOTS (40ish maybe?) of games that are quick to finish, which is great for short attention spans. Some are super easy, like who can shake their soda can the hardest. As they get better with the controller, there are games that introduce using the buttons and directonal arrows. They can race cars, fly planes, walk a tightrope, build things, etc. Its great for toddlers. Some are just guessing games, but they have to move the controller a certain way to, say, cute a rope and see if their character goes flying. Its a big hit with a wide age group of kids.

Mario Party is one of her favorites.

[photon]

We started around 3-4ish, and he has his own Nintendo DS now, but we limit the amount of time quite a bit; lots of other kids seem to get much more video game time. We try to stick to an hour and a half to two hours total of screen time max in any given day, and often it's less than that (one show while eating breakfast, one before bed). Sometimes its more as he likes to watch Discovery channel with me (how it's made, Mythbusters, any kind of space or animal show), but not often.

TV / game time before 3 was almost zero.

I think the Canadian Pediatric Society recommends no TV before 2, and 2 hours max per day for kids.

[sclitheroe]

Katamari is pretty playable on the PS3. There are a number of surprisingly decent PS2 games (if your PS3 has backwards compatibility, or if you have an old PS2) for kids. Stuff made by 2K Games seems good, like Dora Crystal Kingdom, Ni Hao Kai Lan, etc. We’re going to try out VeggiTales for the PS2 this weekend.

Katamari is a good game too, kids grasp the concept quickly and they enjoy identifying all the stuff they are rolling up.

I found Little Big Planet too challenging for ages 6 and under


For time limits and stuff, I find I don’t have to worry about that. My girls are 6 and 4, and they run out of energy playing the games after about an hour and naturally put them down. I’m sure this isn’t the same for all kids (I don’t think it was for me), or all ages, but for now, I can tell when they are done and there’s no whining as long as I promise to let them play another time.

[troutman]

My six year old likes Wii games like Mario Kart, Super Mario, Sports Resort. A friend in Kelowna is developing an on-line game for kids called:

www.blueplanet3.com


My eight year old can already play PC games like Age Of Empires, Starcraft and Warcraft.

You really have to limit the amount of time they play - they can become obsessed.

[macker]

We have gone 7.5 years for my son and 5.5 years for my daughter without any kind of console/game unit etc. They are both very active and we play just about every sport you can imagine so we don't really have time for electronic games....they do watch a lot of movies though....Kinda sad when you go to a rink and see little kids hooked up to games and not lifting their heads for hours on end while their siblings are on the ice. I can see the value in this for keeping your kids content and quiet but I would wait until they ask for it and so far I have been lucky that they haven't felt the need yet. I am old fashioned, I know...

[troutman]

I think these games are good in moderation. Helps with reading, problem solving, coordination. Many Wii games are social, and can be played with 4 or more people. We try to limit it to weekends, and never more than an hour on weekdays.

[Russic]

I agree with most ... video games are a great source of entertainment but like any entertainment I think they should be used in moderation. I adore games and would like my kid to have the same feelings towards them, but not at the cost of spending time with family or being rude. There is a time for them and a time to be social.

I plan on introducing my kid to them whenever he is able to do it. Right now we just play with a piano on my ipad ... he just smacks the screen and makes a racket.

[GreenTeaFrapp]

Originally Posted by fotze

I want to know when my kid can watch Hairy Peter?

fyp

[Jbo]

I wonder if a new right-of-passage will be not when you can kick your parents butt at a sport or something like that, but rather lay the beatdown on your parents at a video game?

As a generation raised on mario and sonic and pacman, I wonder if our kids will look at us weird as we try and explain the golden age of arcades...or how we usedto have to hook up nintendos by running the coaxial through the back.