Introducing kids to the world of videogames can be a rewarding experience if you know which games to choose. There’s been many times when I’ve rented or bought a cheap Xbox 360 game made specifically for kids that’s turned out to be a while heap of confusing controls and boring gameplay.

In the past year I’ve gone through many games, some new and some old, and found the ones that seem to be perfect both for me and for my kids whether we play them together or they play them on their own. In the junior class of gamer (5-10) the following are some of the best titles on offer.

First up is the obvious Mario Kart for Wii and DS. This has been the mainstay for our household since it was released in 2008. Whether its split-screen multiplayer or going online to battle it out against people from around the globe, it’s the one game that’s got the most use – to the point of me actively ‘losing’ the disc so we can play something else.

Recently we tried a similar game, Sonic and Sega All-Stars Racing on the Xbox 360. This is very much like Mario Kart with its range of power-ups and boosts, but a bit more interesting for the adults as it has many of the characters we grew up with. Plus any game that’s got Banjo & Kazooie guest starring gets my vote. It’s simply much more polished than other cheap Wii games.

Moving away from racing games another recent favourite was Rabbids Go Home on the Wii that offered a lot of fun on different levels. Firstly it has a similar co-op system to Mario Galaxy with the second player able to use the Wii remote to pick up extra trash. This was one game that my kids enjoyed just watching me play thanks to the comical Rabbids and the crazy stuff that goes on-screen. It also had a very subversive sense of humour that went well over their heads and made the whole experience far more interesting for me.

Another game on the Wii that got everyone involved was Boom Blox and its sequel, Boom Blox Bash Party. It also gave us a pretty good workout too as the physical interaction with the game kept us on our toes. What we took away from both these games was just the huge amount of fun we were having. 5 to 10 year olds love to exercise their competitive spirit but Boom Blox is more of a giant, destructible playground that doesn’t need any restrictive rules.

Moving onto the handhelds the one game that still gets a lot of use on the DS is New Super Mario Brothers. It’s not the main levels that my son enjoys so much but the wide range of mini-games that are hidden away in the main menu. These were great five-minute fillers that didn’t come with any of the frustration kids can experience with platform games. No matter how well they’re made, Mario games can get fiendishly difficult at times.

More family-specific games such as Buzz! Or Scene It! are good for parties or social gatherings but I’ve learnt to use caution with many of the film/TV tie-ins that get released nearly every week. Mini-games can be good, just see Wii Sports Resort, but more often than not these licensed games can be pretty variable and it’s worth renting these to see how they are rather than taking a risk and buying. Often the cheaper Wii games simply aren’t as good as the quality first party titles.

The great aspect of many of these games I’ve mentioned is that they can be short experiences. With kids in this age range liking a lot of stimulation and variety in their gaming diet, these games work well as rentals with the odd mainstay like Mario Kart becoming a purchase.

Let me know what games you’ve found best in the comments below and we can build a list of the best kid games available to rent or buy.

All of these titles and many, many more are available to rent or buy from Boomerang and we offer a 21 day free trial on rentals!

Topics: PS3, PSP, Nintendo DS, Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360, PS2 |

Comments

You must be logged in to post a comment.

« Grand Theft Auto Episodes From Liberty City (GTA) | Home | Just Cause 2 »