Can't say I've found anything decent in the non-crap and educational vein on steam yet Jonman. I've found iOS and Android have plenty of options though that's not what you asked. Curious to hear about it if you do though.
Best typing games for 7 and 9 year olds?
Bookworm Adventures, maybe? That might be more of a 7-9 kind of thing, but depending on how well your kid is reading/spelling, it might be an option.
My 5yo and 8yo really like Mario Odyssey (partly thanks to the kids mode) but have over played it and want something new. My 5yo finds Mario Galaxy and Yooka-Laylee too hard. Is there a game like these that a 5yo can manage? They like the 2D games as well but they really want something like Mario Odyssey. We haven’t tried Hat in Time yet but it looks too difficult for my 5yo.
There's a bunch of great "Kid Friendly" levels in Super Mario Maker 2. Levels where all the enemies are behind walls, and there aren't any pits or anything for the kids to fall in. My kids had a blast playing through those.
They also love the first dozen or so levels of Thomas Was Alone for the same sort of reason
My 5yo and 8yo really like Mario Odyssey (partly thanks to the kids mode) but have over played it and want something new. My 5yo finds Mario Galaxy and Yooka-Laylee too hard. Is there a game like these that a 5yo can manage? They like the 2D games as well but they really want something like Mario Odyssey. We haven’t tried Hat in Time yet but it looks too difficult for my 5yo.
At that age my kids really liked Zelda BotW. They weren't great at it, but really enjoyed it. I wouldn't say it's similar to Odyssey, but I can't name anything that is, besides other Mario games.
Thanks for the replies.
There's a bunch of great "Kid Friendly" levels in Super Mario Maker 2. Levels where all the enemies are behind walls, and there aren't any pits or anything for the kids to fall in. My kids had a blast playing through those.
They also love the first dozen or so levels of Thomas Was Alone for the same sort of reason
I have Thomas Was Alone on PC. I'll put it on for them and see what they think. I was considering Mario Maker as a new 2D game but was also debating whether New Super Mario Bros. U would be better for them. I keep hoping in vain that they will drop in price or at least release a demo as I hate buying $80 (Canadian) games with the hope that my kids will like them.
At that age my kids really liked Zelda BotW. They weren't great at it, but really enjoyed it. I wouldn't say it's similar to Odyssey, but I can't name anything that is, besides other Mario games.
I showed BotW to my 8yo and she wasn't interested but my 5yo might as he is more into adventure type stuff. I'll get him to give it a try even if he just adventures around aimlessly.
I'm getting them to give Yooka-Laylee another try on Xbox. I also got the second Yooka game for free on Epic recently so I'll get them to try that one as well.
Re: BOTW: My older child liked doing the story, but my younger got hours of enjoyment just cooking.
Trying to think back a few years...
New Super Mario Bros. was the boy's first Mario game.
Rayman Legends was good, tricky but got the hang. Needed to be there to hand back and forth to help through.
Lego games, specifically Marvel (Batman was a bit too puzzle based if memory serves).
You can play along couch co-op to help them through the story mode. Leave them to muck about in sandbox mode.
I'd say playing through the first Lego Marvel game story to completion co-op with the boy when he was about 5 still best gaming time shared with him to date.
Ooh another of my highlights, (bit of an offshoot to your question) sitting alongside him as he played through Journey. Easy controls, a clever use of light to guide the way and for his playthrough the genius part was the multiplayer, no text or verbal just communication via movement. Players randomly dipping into his game and being a guide for a bit. At the end it tells you who helped and there were maybe half dozen separate players who had dropped in and gently helped him through parts. It was just a really lovely game experience for him and in turn for me cwtching up on the sofa as he did. Naughty parent alert though, I let him play it all the way through in two or three sittings, which was way more than would have usually let usual play sessions stretch to...but so great.
Soon after that Abzu was a similar experience, not as brilliant, but pretty good.
Lots of good ideas.
Last time we tried lego games they couldn't figure out the puzzles and got very frustrated. I've been waiting to reintroduce them.
Journey could work. I loved that game. I've got that on PS3 and PS4. Rayman Legends didn't stick but I could give it another try. I was surprised but neither of them were interested in Abzu when I showed it to them.
Is Luigi's Mansion 3 really similar to Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon on 3DS? I have that one and haven't shown them yet.
My son loves Untitled Goose Game. He can't figure out most of the objectives on his own but laughs and laughs while taking stuff from the gardener. He wants to play Goat Simulator but I feel it is too violent as the first time I let him try he immediately tried to burn some people. I'm keeping him off that one for now.
Lots of good ideas.
Last time we tried lego games they couldn't figure out the puzzles and got very frustrated. I've been waiting to reintroduce them.
Lego games are really good, my kids (then around 8 and 4) played the first Marvel game to death. My 7yo is doing fine with Luigi's Mansion 3 as long as someone translates the texts to her. I haven't played the 3DS game.
pandasuit wrote:Lots of good ideas.
Last time we tried lego games they couldn't figure out the puzzles and got very frustrated. I've been waiting to reintroduce them.
Lego games are really good, my kids (then around 8 and 4) played the first Marvel game to death. My 7yo is doing fine with Luigi's Mansion 3 as long as someone translates the texts to her. I haven't played the 3DS game.
I can't speak for all the Lego games, but for us the first Marvel Superheroes game was the hit and less complex than for example the Batman games. Plus the NY sandbox in the first Marvel was great to let the boy explore with no pressure to do anything if he didn't want to. Just big enough to hold interest, but not so big as to be overwhelming.
Given that a lot of us are going to be both working from home for a few weeks, AND have kids bouncing off the walls, figured I'd give this thread a bump in case anyone has any hot recommendations for passing the time.
My 6 year old has been digging the old SCUMM games Big Thinkers: Kindergarten and Big Thinkers: 1st Grade, which, bonus points, are semi-educational given how much school she's missing.
Does she get access to code.org stuff through her school? I'm probably gonna plop our kid in front of the screen to do as much of that as he wants. I think at least some of the resources are free to access regardless, but through his school it looks like there is some structure to the lessons and his teacher can track where he's at.
Nice list! I think my son will be interested in some of these.
A Short Hike just released this past week on steam, a sweet and highly accessible 3d platformer adventure game.
"Hike, climb, and soar through the peaceful mountainside landscapes of Hawk Peak Provincial Park as you make your way to the summit."'Very positive' reviews on steam and I've played about 20 minutes of it with my 5 year old. Can be played without reading ability but probably not completed without competent reading ability, certainly not full enjoyed without being able to read the dialogue with characters you meet. I'd say ideal for 7+ years of age but my daughter about to turn 6 advanced a fair way with me popping by the help out here and there.
No fail states woohoo!
Free on Epic Store right now
Just want to add in that my two older girls and I have been having a blast playing Raft together. If you play in the easy mode then you don't have to worry about being in the water or the shark eating your boat. It has been a very enjoyable experience for us.
If she does, I haven't heard about it. I'll dig into it. Thanks for the recommend.
I'll also share this massive list of ideas of how to keep your kids engaged while school is locked down that came from a friend of a friend, albeit that it talks a bunch about Seattle schools, a lot is still relevant for the rest of y'all, and there's a lot of goodness to turn screen time into decent educational time.
Seriously, housebound parents, that's a freaking goldmine of resources!
Youre not kidding, looks solid, I'll have to have a closer look tomorrow. Still watching the clock on our eldest school here in Australia closing, there's a fair bit of speculation about the benefit/hindrance to health workers if schools close, but being in the privileged position of stay at home parent I can pull my kid out full time if need be.
I saw scholastic sharing this link with their free resources too: https://classroommagazines.scholasti...
Though far less educational, my 3-yo has his first game obsession. He keeps asking to play "Mickey Mouse".
By that he means the 2013 remake of Castle of Illusion: Starring Mickey Mouse.
I am getting very tired of having to beat the Toyland and Underwater bosses for him over, and over, and over, and over, and over.....again.
Though far less educational, my 3-yo has his first game obsession. He keeps asking to play "Mickey Mouse".
By that he means the 2013 remake of Castle of Illusion: Starring Mickey Mouse.
I am getting very tired of having to beat the Toyland and Underwater bosses for him over, and over, and over, and over, and over.....again.
Excellent I’ll have to look at that although my two are very happy with Rayman legends still it’s about 6 months now we have beaten every level but it still occupies prime spot of a Saturday morning.
My daughter (8) has been enjoying The Sims 4 a lot. Moved over from Minecraft. Sims is available through Origin. I think Steam May have Sims 3. She’s spent most of her time building houses and making Sims / figuring out their clothing options. The one expansion I would recommend for Sims 4 is Pets — unless you’re kid is a monster and doesn’t like cats or dogs.
We are also going to start a typing program today and possibly Bookworm Adventures (great recommendation Kazooka — thank you.
Anyone here know much about the Lego games? Specifically which ones are best for parent child play out of Lego Movie 1 & 2, Harry Potter years 1-4 & Jurrasic Park?
My Daughter (8) and I did all the LEGO Harry Potter titles and by the end she was showing me stuff. Highly recommend them. She is also into The Sims 4, Minecraft and some old classics (e.g., Bookworm Adventures).
My son and I started playing them couch co-op when he was 5 or 6 with the first Lego Marvel Superheroes being our first. He's now 9 and that game still our fave, that might be because was probably our first great dad/son co-op game. The second Marvel Superheroes pretty good too, but got too big for me. Just Free play New York in the first was awesome.
He's just finished the Hobbit game story solo, with me hopping in for a bit of free play now and again. That one seemed really short.
The Harry Potter games are pretty good, I thought a fair bit better than most of the LEGO titles. Your kid would probably have more fun with them after watching the movies, perhaps interspersing movies and matching LEGO episodes.
There's a Hobbit Lego game? Hmm, that might get bumped to the top. Malor, I agree, will be better after she's already introduced. The books are next on the list after my wife finishes Lemony Snickets or they want something different...
I'm probably buying a switch tomorrow and a Lego game would be handy.
Pages