What is the minimum age of Gaming?

[BENZOOKA]

I started on Amiga, somewhere in the early nineties. I suppose I was four or five years old, so '93-'94. For FPS' and PC, I first played Duke Nukem 3D at the age of eight.

I think you first need to know what your doing. There is no definitive age. I really wouldn't call mindless button bashing as gaming, but oh well.

This being The Escapist, I'm not surprised that people are saying 2, 3, or 5 weeks old for that matter. Not that people here are smarter than elsewhere; it's just the exaggerating and loose definitions.

 

[Veldel]

I started at 5 with an N.E.S. I think the minimum is when a child can comprehend how to use a controller.

This is truth becouse not everyone can at certien ages while others can

 

[Ickorus]

I was gaming from my mothers womb.

Ok ok, I was about 4 when I played my first game on the sega megadrive.

 

[SovietX]

I watched games since I was 2 (Mainly just watching my uncle play the original Prince Of Persia)
I started gaming around age 5 - 6
Favourite childhood game? Croc, Abes Oddysee and Resident Evil.
I think kids can game all they want, but they shouldnt start playing online until they reach the games ESRB rating. It angers me when im playing in a server and I get kicked for swearing, because "Children play this game too". Well, they shouldn't.

 

[Veldel]

I'm conflicted here. Cause alot of kids these days play games instead of going out and exploring and shit. I started young cause of where I grew up there wasn't much I could do assides from gaming and lego and what not.

Although these days entire suburbs of kids are going on Xbox live instead of going out on their bikes.

Well that's a just a few points but I dunno where I'm going with it.

Im simmuler for this I cant do sports or any really physical things due to being born without a soft spot causing premeture hardening in my skull so i constently had to have reconstructive sergerys on my head most my life

 

[bassdrum]

Age really depends on the game and the gamer. I started when I was 6 or 7, and I think that I've turned out halfway decent. These are really the sorts of decisions that parents need to learn to make (and hey, maybe if parents make more reasonable choices about what their kids should play, we wouldn't see so many 12 year olds playing violent shooters online! Everybody wins!)

 

[Spineyguy]

I know a five-year-old who has a PS3. Seriously, his parents bought it for him, and they keep asking me what games he'd like. I usually tell them things like Mad-nation-racers or Little-Big planet, but this Christmas he got Black-Ops from some uncle who thinks he's cool. This is just depressing.

My first game was Mariokart 64, hence the username. I've been a fanboy ever since. But I was seven when I played that, and that was probably too young, because I didn't really understand what to do.

If and when I have kids, I'll make sure they don't get inappropriate games, I won't be a nazi about it, I'll just buy them games for their age group, like a good parent.

 

[Veldel]

My cousin has a Xbox 360, and he is only seven years old.

He doesn't even know how to turn on the damn thing, let alone how to set it up.

I think he is far too young to have a Xbox, but that's just me.

That is to young for him todays systems are to complex for kids and alot of ppl do not relise this

 

[gibboss28]

My cousin has a Xbox 360, and he is only seven years old.

He doesn't even know how to turn on the damn thing, let alone how to set it up.

I think he is far too young to have a Xbox, but that's just me.

That is to young for him todays systems are to complex for kids and alot of ppl do not relise this

...your being sarcastic, right?

 

[Vykrel]

id say 2 or 3 is an appropriate age to start playing little games. 4 to start playing any E for everyone game. racing or whatever

let the kid play something

 

[Ilikemilkshake]

i started at about age 2 with the sega megadrive playing sonic, you should maybe try something like that where the only action you can do is a jump.

 

[ENKC]

I stated in 1994 when I was 5 with Wolfenstein 3D.

So... you're a murderer by now? That's what games do, right?

I can't even remember when I started but I know my classmates and I were in the full swing back in the SNES era when I was five years old.

 

[RobCoxxy]

I started with DOOM when I was 5.

And I wonder why I'm desensitised to violence.

 

[YoBadMama]

3-4 years old, I played Super Mario World on the SNES, Doom2, and Spyro the Dragon on the Playstation. Those were great times...

 

[EvilMaggot]

you cant really... tell at which age should it be allowed because i play World of Warcraft (yeah yeah haters dont reply on this just because of this -.-) and i play with alot older people than myself (im 19) but we have some young ones in the guild (clan) some of them knows everything about the game and been playing for a looong time like me, and some of them is just dense as a door... seriously ive played with a 9 year old that was a better healer than some of the older guys ive been playing with... so.. imo its matter of thier attitude, skills and much more also some adults are more childish than some kids are ;D

i started at 11 of age started off with Heroes of Might and Magic III, and went over to Counter-strike 1.6.. i was a bit late on the gaming but... LEGO!

 

[Cerrida]

Portal? Of course he randomly pushed buttons; he was new to using a mouse. Anyway...
I started gaming probably around 11 or 12, on my stepsisters' NES. I had a GameGear too, which I absolutely loved.
As far as a minimum age, I really don't see the need for one. I teach a class of four-year-olds and we were able to get a SmartBoard (giant touch screen monitor; it's awesome). The kids know how to open the links on the desktop they want and one or two even know what the Back button in the browser does. The games we let them play are very simplistic and designed for little fingers that aren't used to using a mouse yet. For example, there's a reading site called "Starfall" with big, shiny buttons that are easy for them to click. The games we let them play are educational and have similar features with simple directions that they can hear: "Click on the number," "move the arrow in the direction you want him to go." Even the younger schoolagers in the daycare (around 6 and 7 years old) have trouble moving a mouse and using WASD at the same time, but they're learning. A couple of them has a DS, which is a little more user-friendly. A large part of development is motor skills and coordination. Remember the first time you had to play a complicated PC game? "I have to use the mouse AND the keyboard? At the same time?" It just takes a little patience and time to show them what to do. If they're randomly clicking buttons, it means they're trying to figure out what that computer thing is and why all those buttons are there.
Sorry, this was longer than I intended Also, before you yell at me about letting kids play games "all day long," their time is limited to 15 minutes a day.

 

[kebab4you]

Started at 4, played flash game on a old swedish game site.

And just something I thought about when I read the title, allowed to game with a mic on you should have at least passed puberty.

 

[Khada]

My first game was wonder boy and I was roughly 5 years old. I don't think there should be a minimum gaming age. Its all about parent supervision and moderation. He may simply be trying to replicate your actions or those of another which would be natural if hes not being payed attention.

 

[ultimateownage]

I started playing games when I was 4, I started on the Playstation my brother's friend lent us. After that I played on an N64 lent to us and then finally got myself a Gamecube and Gameboy to play with myself.

As for PC gaming, I started that at 7 if I don't count adventure games like Monkey Island. For years before that I was content to watch my brother play and learn from him. I think the first time I played a PC game was when my brother went to town with his friends and hadn't exited the CSS server he was in. After a minute I found the W key and the mouse to move and shoot, I had no idea how to buy or reload so I just went around shooting people with the Glock and getting the occasional lucky kill.

Really, starting at 3 is fine as long as you're not playing a complicated game. I don't know what game he saw the other kid playing, but he can't play games like that. Find a game from Miniclip or something which only uses the arrow keys and is really simple, then put his hand on the arrow keys and leave him to figure it out.