294: Anything But Child's Play

[miva2]

great article!
it is indeed interesting to see that different people expect different things from a game.
I for one do absolutely not care about story. i often even enjoy a bad story more than a good story,... somehow(or a good story based on a generic bad game story, like Z.H.P. love the story).
It's also interesting that when i'm usually the person who goes for fun first, then scores (using knife only in cod is awesome, not always great for scores though) it really depends on the game. A friend of mine plays games seriously, but in GTA, he just drives around doing random stuff. i'm not a fan of GTA, randomly driving/walking/shooting around really bores me. while i greatly enjoy just running around in okami.
hmm.. this reminds me of deadly premonition... i need that game.

 

[Lyndraco]

Apparently my inner child never left me....I have always played games for fun (with the exception of online FPS--that's for ownage). My boyfriend continually harasses me about not playing right, doing the quests wrong, not taking care of my inventory (and before you harass me about playing girly games, that is not the case-I had some interesting moments in Fallout and Dragon Age). I find it much more amusing to send me characters into battle sans armor just to see what will happen.

This was a great read-at least now I know I'm not the only one with a different perspective on how games should be played. I may have to rent a child some time to watch them play games, then maybe we can compare notes

 

[Vkmies]

This article got me thinking about my younger brother (about to turn 5). It appears that your son and my brother (I'm just going to assume their ages are relatively close), despite their proximity in age (i.e. demographic), have entirely different reasons for enjoying the kinds of games they enjoy. My brother plays video games simply because he likes to win. He REALLY likes to win.

When at home, I occasionally catch him playing a flash game (based off whatever cartoon he happens to be enthralled with at the time) with this incredibly intense look on his face. He cheers when he wins and gets incredibly irritable and frustrated if he loses (most of those games you can't actually "lose" mind you). I found this extremely frustrating when I tried to get him to play some of the games I grew up on (Sonic and Mario among other things) and found that it just pissed him off. When I was his age I played these (much harder) games and never got very far, but that didn't matter. I had fun just playing the game (whatever my reasons were), but he just can't handle losing.

I can't imagine how he'll be if he continues this behavior into his teenage years. I would hate to see him turn into one of those generic Xbox Live kids we all dread, or even worse... a tournament player (ewww).

Anyway, good read. Its nice to shine light on a concept gamers seem to forget (or simply don't understand).

I have to agree with your post completelly. Altough my little brother is 10, he has always been the same. I happen to sit in the next room and hear him screaming and shouting when that small pause in music comes when you die in Ratchet and Clank. No joy in playing, only in winning.

Altough I have noticed that when I get him to play some games in my retro collection like Mario, Sonic, Banjo-Kazooie, He doesn't do that anymore. He just exhails and puts down the controller for a second. I like to think that these really tough, older games make him more calm, because they just get harder when you get frustrated.

I find it suprising that he often really wants to play the Japanese Mario 2 which is easily the hardest Mario game of all. He doesn't usually even get past the first world, but then I'll play him to the next world or so. Never seen him so happy with a video-game before or after. Makes me feel all warm and cuddly inside. ^^

 

[108Stitches]

The joys of child rearing...it does keep us young at heart.

Having a 17 year old "Halo"nut and a 2 year old in the house, really gives you a nice perspective on how they each approach "gaming".

I spend more time laughing at the 17 yr old when he gets pissed about something in CoD or Gears than I do watching the 2 yr old treat the wiimote like a baseball bat and use it to bash whatever happens to be closest to him (not even realizing the effects it is having on the screen for whatever particular game is in the console).

But what speaks volumes about gaming with kids is the sheer enjoyment you can have as a parent, on either side. My older son owns me on CoD and constantly nags at me because I ruin is K/D. I just created his own account and told him to have at it and not worry about how I play the game...since I do it to have fun. I could care less about my K/D.

Then there's the swapping out of the wiimote for the rockband drumsticks and throwing the game in No Fail mode. I have never seen anyone more happier than my 2 year old as he just bashes the shit out of my kit....and dances the entire time he does it!

Peter Pan was right...there is no reason to grow up.

 

[Steve Butts]

Then there's the swapping out of the wiimote for the rockband drumsticks and throwing the game in No Fail mode. I have never seen anyone more happier than my 2 year old as he just bashes the shit out of my kit....and dances the entire time he does it!

Peter Pan was right...there is no reason to grow up.

Playing Rock Band with a 2-year-old is one of the most amazing things a person can do. I have hundreds of songs and all they want to do is play Yellow Submarine again and again.

 

[Lunar Templar]

Anything But Child's Play

Steve Butts may play games for a living, but things don't really get serious until his five-year-old son gets involved.

Read Full Article

the child is wise

i remember beating Mega Man 2, like 6 times in one day, in one sitting when i was little

the fact i probably couldn't do that now, makes me sad in a way

 

[The Random One]

You know, I think your kid is actually ahead of the curve here. Most of us cynical gamers will only turn to these fun alternatives when the 'proper' way to play the game is spent. But it's those alternatives that stick to mind the most. I've heard great tales of people playing races on Battlefield games, had a lot of fun when me and my friend got tired of shooting each other on GoldenEye and started shouting at each other 'Freeze! I have a gun!', and my most memorable CounterStrike session was when I somehow managed to get stuck inside a jeep that was stuck on the level's invisible ceiling.

Maybe that's why sandbox games got so popular. They're a game that have a story in them when you look for them, but when you don't let you do whatever you want. Although most of them have little secrets and missions hidden in the gameworld - are you really creating your play in childlike fashion when the game expects you to? Hm, let me know when your son is old enough to philosophise.

 

[dubious_wolf]

You know, I think your kid is actually ahead of the curve here. Most of us cynical gamers will only turn to these fun alternatives when the 'proper' way to play the game is spent. But it's those alternatives that stick to mind the most. I've heard great tales of people playing races on Battlefield games, had a lot of fun when me and my friend got tired of shooting each other on GoldenEye and started shouting at each other 'Freeze! I have a gun!', and my most memorable CounterStrike session was when I somehow managed to get stuck inside a jeep that was stuck on the level's invisible ceiling.

Maybe that's why sandbox games got so popular. They're a game that have a story in them when you look for them, but when you don't let you do whatever you want. Although most of them have little secrets and missions hidden in the gameworld - are you really creating your play in childlike fashion when the game expects you to? Hm, let me know when your son is old enough to philosophise.

It's why minecraft is crazy popular.

It's funny about 8 months ago I dug out my N64 and my copy of Starfox 64.
when I was 10 or so I would play this game every sunday morning, I thought I was pretty good.
I replayed it and trashed my high score from when I was 10 in half the time on the first play through.
don't know if that is relevant to the article but I felt I needed to reminisce.

 

[Eri]

This reminds me of my younger sister and Pokemon. I don't play Pokemon hardcore enough to care about IVs or EVs, but I do try to pay attention to natures, typing, special/physical split, etc. My younger sister doesn't care about any of that and she has fun with it and it's a fine way to play, but when we battle, its obvious why I've never lost.

Mine are flat out trained better. She always acts like a sore loser and gets pissed at me, despite me telling her exactly why she lost. I've offered to help many times but she doesn't want any, and just wants to play how she wants, which is 100% fine. Though it's pretty annoying that she gets angry and acts like she has no clue why she's lost. "But I even had legendarys!" Sorry, not gonna help you against a well oiled machine.

I guess this is a case of wanting to have your cake and eat it to. You can sure as hell play how you want, but don't expect to win from just doing that ~_~;

 

[omegawyrm]

I wish everyone would be as positive about games as little kids are. Instead of wanting it to be fun in THEIR way, I think that every game has fun aspects if you approach the game on its own terms. Perhaps I'm waxing nostalgic, but it sure seems that gaming discussion and culture has gotten a lot more negative as I've grown up, and it's not the games' fault. They keep getting more refined, better designed, and more compelling and we keep complaining about them more and more...

 

[Vohn_exel]

This, pretty much. I never just play a game because of one reason or another. If I continue to play a game I've purchased, it's for one reason, I find it fun. The reasons I find it fun might vary, but I almost never play a game the way it's supposed to. I used to irritate my brother because I'd spend all the time I had left playing a level (we had to trade off for Mario and Luigi, and so I'd try to get all the playtime I could,) where he wanted the level to be completed as quickly and efficiently as possible (probably him wanting me to finish quick so he could get more playtime, knowing my brother and how we think.)

It's the reason I can almost never finish a game like GTA. I usually get stuck doing the things I find really fun, and I never get anywhere. Eventually I get bored of what I liked in the first place, and then never finish the game.

 

[Steve Butts]

It's funny about 8 months ago I dug out my N64 and my copy of Starfox 64.
when I was 10 or so I would play this game every sunday morning, I thought I was pretty good.
I replayed it and trashed my high score from when I was 10 in half the time on the first play through.
don't know if that is relevant to the article but I felt I needed to reminisce.

Yeah, I had the same thing happen a few years ago. My buddy and I played Gunstar Heroes for about a thousand hours in college. I went back and played it recently and finished the game in like ten minutes. I'm not sure if it's just a change in ability or perception or just plain old nostalgia, but it left me feeling kind of sad and empty, like a Taco Bell bag lying by the side of the road.

 

[dubious_wolf]

It's funny about 8 months ago I dug out my N64 and my copy of Starfox 64.
when I was 10 or so I would play this game every sunday morning, I thought I was pretty good.
I replayed it and trashed my high score from when I was 10 in half the time on the first play through.
don't know if that is relevant to the article but I felt I needed to reminisce.

Yeah, I had the same thing happen a few years ago. My buddy and I played Gunstar Heroes for about a thousand hours in college. I went back and played it recently and finished the game in like ten minutes. I'm not sure if it's just a change in ability or perception or just plain old nostalgia, but it left me feeling kind of sad and empty, like a Taco Bell bag lying by the side of the road.

Taco bell abuse is a sad, sad affair...
Kids, never abuse your tacos.

I guess I should mention I liked the article. I'm a bit jealous of your kid though. My dad definitely didn't see videogames as bonding time.

 

[Prof. Monkeypox]

Like the old Pokemon adage: The cool looking ones are the strongest.

Trying to explain the deeper mechanics of a game to a kid is missing the point, if you're having fun, you're playing right. I don't recommend playing with a young kid if you are into the more competitive mindset, however, as things can get frustrating very fast.

 

[thecourtlibrarian]

Not much constructive to add here, but great, great article. My Autistic younger brother used to endlessly frustrate me by "not understanding" how to play the game. I eventually gave up teaching him "the right way" and let him dink around with my PS2 whenever he wanted. He's now an avid gamer, and can do some truly amazing things with the controller. The most amazing thing is--he understands the concept of a constructed reality with its own rules and ways of functioning. Through this understanding,I firmly believe games have helped him form social skills and access intelligence that I (to my shame) never really thought he had.

 

[Grahav]

The sound of a whole column of zombie-eating plants chewing must be interesting.

 

[frans909]

Steve Butts is a bit selective. When another quite original game came out (I've never seen anything like it) Butts wrote it into the ground when he was still with IGN. I assume it's the same Steve Butts anyway. Now that it's a little cutesy game it's alright, but when it's a game about freedom of choice that gives you a plethora of options on HOW you want to play the game, it's suddenly all no good because it's too harsh, too violent (hello, it's a GAME), and too "immature".

I wonder if Steve knows which game I'm talking about.

If he's NOT the Steve Butts from IGN, then I apologize for the confusion.

 

[Steve Butts]

Steve Butts is a bit selective. When another quite original game came out (I've never seen anything like it) Butts wrote it into the ground when he was still with IGN. I assume it's the same Steve Butts anyway. Now that it's a little cutesy game it's alright, but when it's a game about freedom of choice that gives you a plethora of options on HOW you want to play the game, it's suddenly all no good because it's too harsh, too violent (hello, it's a GAME), and too "immature".

I wonder if Steve knows which game I'm talking about.

If he's NOT the Steve Butts from IGN, then I apologize for the confusion.

Yeah, that's me and, no, I don't know what you're talking about.