Would you encourage a kid to become a real gamer?

[anvi]

So this kid is my nephew and he is 10, he has an ipad and he plays games on it regularly. But they are all shitty tablet games. He likes flying games, and random crap shovelware. He is always asking his dad to buy him some gems or whatever for all the free to play crap. The only 'real' game I've ever heard him play is Minecraft, but he played it so much and maybe has started to grow out of it. When he visits me I set him up with Simpsons Hit & Run and some other stuff and he plays with a gamepad and LOVES it. But I run it from a PC and he has no PC in his house.

Anyway, I see him flying little kid Ipad games and he wishes it could do more, and I think to myself, shit.... imagine if he saw Arma3, DCS, or Microsoft Flight Sim, etc. It would blow his mind. He also plays Minecraft but I see games like FortressCraft which is so much bigger and better. He has never played an RPG, loves sport but never played a sports game. Etc.

So the pros of me trying to get him into real gaming are:
It will grow his mind. Tablet games make you dumb. Real games make you smarter. No debate.
He will be a lot less bored, and with generous me and Steam deals he will have millions of games to play instead of the same 5 shit ipad games.
He will be less of a spazzy noob.
Instead of wasting his time watching cunts like Pewdiepie on youtube, he will be busy playing games himself, and instead of being a drooling social media millennial retard who lives on Facebook and takes pictures of their food, he will be busy googling solutions to quests in some RPG or whatever. Far better.

However the cons of me getting him into gaming are:
He may become a long fingernailed socially retarded nerd loser like a lot of gamers.
His parents will hate me because PC gaming is the only way to go, and it isn't cheap. Especially when you are starting from scratch.
He might resist my teachings because using a keyboard/mouse and having so much to learn will be a chore for him when he is so used to pressing an icon on his ipad and he is flying a plane 5 seconds later.
He can browse games all day on iTunes without any danger, but as soon as he starts using Steam, he is open to lots of troll conversations that wouldn't be good for young eyes, and lots of games that wouldn't be suitable for him. 10 is a bit young for GTA5 etc. It wasn't for me, but he is sheltered.
He is outgoing, sporty, and good in school, and gaming is addictive and may fuck all that up.

So currently the cons outweigh the pros, which is why I have a 10 year old nephew who I never told all about my secret life as a hardcore gamer. There are things about serious gaming that I think would be so good for him, especially compared to what he does now (which is shit), but I'm not sure it would be a good thing long term. Maybe it would be better to let him discover his own hobbies? Or should a good uncle try to guide and help?

 

[Somberlain]

I would cover him with gold bodypaint and show him Grimoire at the age of two.

 

[Neanderthal]

Send im down pit.

 

[mondblut]

Sell him for organs or groom him into delivering to you his hot classmates for threesome action a few years down the line. But games? Fuck them.

 

[Jigawatt]

gaming is addictive and may fuck all that up.

Why would you assume this isn't the case for the iPad? PC games can be addictive because they are good. Mobile shit is addictive by design

 

[Big No]

10 is a bit young for GTA5 etc.

That's why you get him Vice City.

 

[Dzupakazul]

Install an emulator on his iPad and trick him into thinking PSX Wizardry (or hell, just Advance Wars or some shit) is the coolest and most current game in the world. Also Star Control 2 is free on mobile devices.

Or try Fire Emblem Heroes or puzzle games, that stuff engages the mind at least a tiny bit.

That's why you get him Vice City.

Dumb. Florida. Moron.

 

[Kev Inkline]

I don't think gaming an sich has ever turned anyone into an antisocial recluse. There reasons are much deeper and complex and there are plenty of other ways of escapism and addictive behaviors, like becoming a hardcore filmbuff or a druggie.
So go for it, if you enjoy guiding him personally. But it must be fun and natural for both of you.

Also PC gaming is cheap, if you play golden oldies. No need for a GTX 1080 Ti.

BTW, it's dumb to generalize all iPad games being shite, that's almost like saying each PC game is bad. There are good games for younger children, such as physics puzzles and games teaching principles of programming. Platform is nothing, content is everything. That being said, PC is of course a more natural platform for good games and a great number of mobile games are developed pure monetization in mind.

 

[anvi]

PSX

Playstation games on his iPad would be amazing...!

I think he got an Xbox 360 but hardly ever played it. I think because he was a bit young for it and Minecraft was so simpler and easier and better for him back then. I might try to ease him into gaming with some Xbox games.

 

[anvi]

There are good games for younger children, such as physics puzzles and games teaching principles of programming. Platform is nothing, content is everything.

That is true. I have a few good games on my phone. Squids, The Quest, and some tower defense stuff.

 

[Durandal]

If he has the natural instincts to socialize with people, then there's no need to impede his way to success in life with video games.
If he's going to be a natural recluse and stay at home playing videogames while the rest are out there partying somewhere, then you might as well nudge him to expand his tastes in videogames.

 

[Western]

PSX

Playstation games on his iPad would be amazing...!

I think he got an Xbox 360 but hardly ever played it. I think because he was a bit young for it and Minecraft was so simpler and easier and better for him back then. I might try to ease him into gaming with some Xbox games.

If you get him a PC eventually, you can just build him a cheapo one he could plug into a TV or maybe give him an old monitor and peripherals. If you're not getting him AAA releases to play at high settings then something like a G4560 and an RX 460 is enough atm.

 

[Dzupakazul]

Also, play video games with him or something if you have the time. Fighting games or some shit. Skullgirls is on sale all the time for pennies, and the only risk you might bestow upon him is that he will discover Zone-tan at 11 and not 13 like everyone else born in the 90s. Plenty of good free fighting games / beat 'em ups (recommending Tower of Doom / Shadow over Mystara series as always) to have some friendly rivalries and achievements in.

 

[I'm Big Into Anal]

posting in a grooming thread

 

[Bester]

but as soon as he starts using Steam, he is open to lots of troll conversations that wouldn't be good for young eyes,

My peers beheaded chickens at 7, we had porn magazines and knew exactly what a clit was, and between ourselves we only used swear words. We had no internet and Steam. We had fights because someone peed on someone's head from a bridge for fun.

What kind of pussy do you want to raise?

Also, it's a bit presumptuous to think that he somehow doesn't know the part of the language responsible for swearing.

 

[†††]

Unless you can engage constantly with him, he's gonna play whatever he puts his hands on, so it's gonna be hard either way. I have four nephews and I tried my best to steer them into good vidya (because they already played a lot, so why not try to improve their taste?) with mixed results:

Nephew 1: the oldest, already 21. He's a complete normie who grew up with NFS titles, FIFA and GTA, later on replaced by more FIFA, more NFS, more GTA and the addition of CoD and Assassins Creed. Good thing is that he's the one who plays the least and has a somehow balanced life

Nephew 2: his little brother, must be 16 I think, he ended up as a weaboo (not my fault) so he plays JRPGs and many stuff but he doesn't have much of a good taste. Anyways he has always received well my suggestions, I've downloaded some games for his computer but he's a total retard that can't install games on his own (he depends on the magic Steam it seems). I feel he's the one that could be molded into a guy with some kind of good taste for games but he lives far away from me so no chance. He'll probably remain a cheap weaboo all his life

Newphew 3: this one is 14 and growing up he always had shitty taste because parents bought him cheap games for the Wii. Tried to buy him some introductory stuff like Zelda but he's a complete retard when it comes to beating games. Now he has the shittest possible taste and only plays money-grabbing mobile games + CoD. I don't bother anymore except when I challenge him to play some retro games just to see his frustration grow to unseen levels. He's just shit at playing games even though he thinks he's the best

Newphew 4: youngest of the bunch, 8 years old, good thing about that age is that he likes whatever I throw at him, good retro platformers, newer stuff like Cuphead and so on. I don't think he enjoys deeper stuff, anyways I lost hope too because getting entertained by everything means that, and boy he does play some shitty vidya, watch shitty cartoons all the time and will probably grow insane from a pychotic single-mother that doesn't care environment. He already has poor behaviour & manners overall so trying to correct that when he's at home is my first priority, not vidya.

Conclusion: Unless it's your own son, don't bother. And even then I'd try to steer him from games as much as I can

 

[Ivan]

my nephew is 5 and he beat Shovel Knight w/my help

 

[Beastro]

If you care about him enough to buy him something, get a cheap computer or laptop and load it with old ROMs and emulators so he can try out old console games while also getting his head around using a computer trying to get them to run.

If he shows interest you can then introduce computer games that the comp can handle and encourage him to look saving up and buying one that can run modern stuff, while if it doesn't work out he's at least got a computer to use for other things like school.

Instead of wasting his time watching cunts like Pewdiepie on youtube, he will be busy playing games himself, and instead of being a drooling social media millennial retard who lives on Facebook and takes pictures of their food, he will be busy googling solutions to quests in some RPG or whatever. Far better.

ROMs would help with that, having tons of games to choose from to fiddle with. Just don't mention save states or any of that shit to help delay that temptation towards perfectionism they can breed.

 

[agentorange]

if i caught my kid playing video games i would beat the shit out of him. not gonna have my kid grow up to be a loser.

 

[shihonage]

He is outgoing, sporty, and good in school

He doesn't need your help.

In anything.

Go away, Gaming Yoda

 

[Black]

I''d encourage every REAL GAMER to suicide.

 

[tmux]

Would you encourage a kid to become a real faggot?

 

[Aqualung]

Boardgames are the answer. Kids should start playing good strategy boardgames as soon as they can. Encouraging the poor creature to play your computer crap will make him a forever alone DA Diversity aficionado with nephews instead of sons, if you know what I mean.

 

[tmux]

Boardgames are the answer. Kids should start playing good strategy boardgames as soon as they can. Encouraging the poor creature to play your computer crap will make him a forever alone DA Diversity aficionado with nephews instead of sons, if you know what I mean.

If you're older than 10 and still playing board games, I have bad news.

 

[Aqualung]

Boardgames are the answer. Kids should start playing good strategy boardgames as soon as they can. Encouraging the poor creature to play your computer crap will make him a forever alone DA Diversity aficionado with nephews instead of sons, if you know what I mean.

If you're older than 10 and still playing board games, I have bad news.

YES!