The Gift of Gaming Gone Wrong?

I am a man on a mission. My goal is to convert as many of my relatives into gamers as possible. I need people to play with….and borrow games from. I never said this mission was altruistic. Like any good indoctrination scheme, my focus is on my younger family members. Their minds are there to be molded. Anyway, enough of the creepy backstory. I want to buy a gaming device for my niece who’s about 5 years old. So, I’m exploring my options.

My first instinct was to buy a Nintendo console but there are some problems associated with that. A Wii requires a TV and the WiiU is a bit out of my budget. Also, I’m not sure that she could hold the WiiU tablet comfortably. If anyone can provide more information on that I would be grateful. Nothing annoyed me more as a kid than having to wait for the TV to be free before I could use it. The holidays were great for gaming for me because everyone would usually be too busy to annoy me for the most part. A Wii with a TV is an option, but giving a gift that takes up that much space is not a great idea. Plus, I don’t want to mess with the “aesthetics” of their living room. She is also an only child, so sharing is not a huge concern. I’m leaning away from a home console.

So, next up on the list of options are the handhelds. The 2ds is what I’m leaning towards. It’s well within budget which means that I can throw in a few games. It looks fairly durable. The ergonomics seem right. So, yesterday I mention to my brother what I want to buy. I was a little disappointed by the reaction though.

“I can’t afford to pay $30 on a game” he said politely and somewhat apologetically “buy a better tablet instead, I could buy a game every week for that.” "All her other friends have tablets anyway"

This brought back other memories from my childhood. Playing one game for months on end until a birthday or Christmas would bring some respite from the monotony. I was not particularly concerned with quality at that age, I was more concerned with quantity and “seeing something new”. New characters and new environments. I did not play till completion. I played till I was bored with the premise or until I could not go any further in the game. I think quantity may have been preferred to quality.This is a major issue with game design. If i cannot get past world 2 in a game, the rest of the game remains locked away, and essentially , i have just paid $40 for 2 worlds or $10 worth of content. There have been many times where i have been called upon by younger relatives to beat a stage so that they can progress further. Unthinkable as it may be, games should have a way to unlock all stages if that is what the gamer desires. Better still, sell each world separately via digital distribution because i may not want $40 worth of your game. I may just get bored half-way through.

I feel somewhat dirty doing this. I feel like a Judas. Nintendo definitely has better software, but is that quality lost on a 5 year old? I would have played anything with a bright screen that made noises at that age. Hell, I played ET when I was younger. Still, it’s better than having her read a book or something. So, I’m gonna buy the tablet. I understand my brother’s decision from a financial standpoint ad I’m not sure I can afford to buy games at a rate that keeps pace with how quickly a 5 year old gets bored.

I know a lot of people think that the thought of Nintendo putting their games on a tablet seems like blasphemy, but tablets are taking over the younger market from a cost perspective. Sony and Microsoft have already set their sights on older gamers. However, what about the entry point? Do we simply hope that these kids find their way to consoles and PC? Is it time for Nintendo or some other company to re-examine their software strategy when it comes to these younger gamers? If Nintendo or Sony can provide a safe mobile platform with cheap games that prevents kids from accidentally racking up huge amounts of debt via microtransactions, they may be on to something. Maybe some Mario games can be broken up into $5 worlds instead of one giant $40 one?
Sony could make a VitaKids console with its own, simple to navigate, uncluttered, online store. Its obvious that kids and parent have no problem with digital purchases anymore. Maybe its time to abandon the "$40-cartridge" business model?

I can tell you one thing from experience, simply saying “our games are better” is not going to stem the exodus away from handhelds. It’s especially true when the people making the decisions don't appreciate that fact. Even when they do, it may not be enough. I'm not happy with what I’m about to do, so please guys, give me better alternatives.