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Forums - Gaming Discussion - When to start gaming

kljesta64 on 13 March 2015
Faxanadu said:

I have a 3 year old son who will be 4 in a few months. Any experience on when it is best to start playing games with your children? Any age that fits best?

I thought maybe wait till he is 5 or so...

i gave my son playing mario kart,super mario and even metroid prime at the age of 2  

now he is 4yo and he doesnt ask at all to play.



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Faxanadu on 14 March 2015

So it seems between 3-5 is appropriate. Thanks a lot for the input!



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d21lewis on 14 March 2015

My daughter learned to game on a Vtech V-Smile and then simple stuff like Crazy Taxi (can't lose), Feeding Frenzy, and Space Channel 5. She was also my partner in Mario Galaxy. One day I came home and she had beaten The Maw on Xbox 360 and I was so proud of her!

I'd say five is the perfect age.



VGPolyglot on 14 March 2015

I started at an age earlier than most. While intellectually/morality wise I'm fine, socially...not really. Though video games may not be the cause of it.



RCTjunkie on 14 March 2015

I think 4 or 5 is a good age depending on their intellectual/cognitive abilities.

I was pretty terrible at Super Mario Bros and Super Mario 64, but it didn't stop me from enjoying the crap out of them and letting my imagination run wild with awe and inspiration. I still remember playing on the kindergarden playground pretending I was Mario climbing up to the top of the jungle gym to defeat Bowser.

As the parent, you should know what is best for your kid. If you think there are some signs that may make playing video games more of a hassle on the kid's life (addictive behavior, anti-social tendencies, poor sportsmanship, etc), then maybe wait on them. Otherwise, I think it's a great bonding experience to have with your kid.



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Marks on 18 March 2015

I started when I was about 6 or 7 probably. Games like NHL 98 and Crash Bandicoot.

I'd honestly say wait till he's about that age, or even like 8ish if you want. And please for the love of all that is holy don't be the parent that gets their kid an iPad. It's disgusting going out to dinner, and seeing a family with young kids and each of them is on a smartphone or iPad. It keeps them quiet which is nice, but it's sad seeing kids with smartphones that young.