Young dads have much more in common with their kids than one would imagine. No man becomes over “childish” joys immediately after his child is born.
It is normal to still have this inner kid in you, even if you are proudly calling yourself a parent. And what is the favorite thing of modern children? That’s right, videogames.
Gaming is insanely more fun when Player #2 is involved. And guess what? Your second player is sitting right next to you!
A bad thing is, a lot of products are just not suitable for kids. Your favorite co-op shooter may be harmful for your kid, if he or she is too young for it.
Here is a list of five games that in my opinion are great to play with kids. I’ve tried all of them, and some became my son’s favorite.
So make yourselves comfortable, grab some snacks and let the ultimate father-son gaming quest begin!
MINECRAFT
This is perhaps the most famous one for today. Adults enjoy it, kids adore it. Minecraft has a lot of clones and modes. You can play it using any modern device: PC, Mac, smartphone, console, etc.
For those who haven’t heard of it, it is kind of a digital Lego. You can build everything you want from
resources you collect. There are even monsters that try to destroy your buildings and animals that are just for fun.
As I said you can create everything you want there, show it to your friends and be proud about it. There are paid and free versions, user-created mods are always free.
LITTLE BIG PLANET
This game cannot be attributed to some particular genre. Levels do not repeat themselves: there are races, quests, etc.
The main feature of this game is the ability to fully customize looks of your puppet characters. Parts and equipment are found throughout the world. And it may take more time to try various combinations of them rather them running through the levels.
Developers did great in developing cute unique atmosphere, and it is something that this game is really adored.
Unfortunately it is only available for PS3. If you happen to have this console, tons of fun for you and your
DUNGEON HUNTER
You’ve probably already heard about it. A hack & slash game for smartphones and tablets.
Dungeon Hunter is great for kids aged 13 and older. I play it with my nephew from an iPhone.
You create a character and level him up. Find equipment and learn new skills, while killing tons of enemies and bosses.
It may be consuming, as you can replay levels over and over in order to find some legendary weapon.
The sweetest (and the bitterest) part about this game is that it is free to play. However some goods and services could be acquired exclusively for real money. And that means that after a certain moment it is just too hard to beat up monsters without paying anything.
Yet even without beating all of the missions it will still bring you and your son hours of co-op fun
LEGO GAMES
Truth to be told, Lego games are far from something you would imagine. Gameplay has little to do with building anything (But hey, there is Minecraft for that purposes!). Those are mostly funny co-op arcades.
Still they are wonderful to play with kids. Running, collecting bricks, and unlocking playable figures is what it is about.
All of that is followed by great jokes and puns. They kind of let you see movies, cartoons or whatever the particular game is about from another angle. And it is just hilarious sometimes.
GUITAR HERO
Ever thought about making a rock band with your kids? Well, even if you haven’t, you should try this game.
It requires special controllers and the original game is available exclusively for X-Box owners. However there are a lot of similar games, that you can play even using your keyboard (I’ve tried it, and it is way worse than using a controller).
Guitar Hero does not require you to be a gifted musician, but only to feel the rhythm. And opposing a popular belief, it is not the same as playing a real guitar.
There are even special drums for this game, which actually can give you the idea of what drumming really is.
Still don’t expect to learn how to play musical instruments with this one (There is Rocksmith for this purpose).
Don’t be too consumed with those
Gaming is now a father-son activity like fishing or camping. It is something that has to be not only fun, but useful as well.
Still, regardless of how great playing with your kid might be, it is something that needs to be controlled.
Everybody has or had that friend, who does nothing except for gaming all day long every day. If you don’t want your kid to be like that, it is better to limit time that he spends in the virtual world.
It is great to teach children about culture of gaming, however if your kid has no desire to follow rules, there is nothing bad about using some software to control them. I personally recommend PUMPic.com for this purpose.
Hope you’ll try and enjoy games is this list, because we did and it was awesome!
GUEST CONTRIBUTOR:
My name is Wade, I live in Ohio with my five-year-old son, wife, and Golden Retriever named Sandal. We spend a lot of time camping, playing videogames and crafting things from wood (yes, wife is also involved).
Apart from family activities, I work as Marketing Department Specialist for a local company. You can find me on Google+.