How Young is Too Young? (Introducing Kids to Gaming)

CoalitionDeadboysPod
CoalitionDeadboysPod
edited August 2015 in General Discussion
Hi, all.

I was just wondering what your opinion is about introducing kids to gaming. I have two little kids: my son is going to be five in October, and my daughter will be three in three weeks (yikes!). Right now, the older one enjoys games that don't involve any abstracts, save for "Move 4," or "Look for X." My daughter is about the same, but she likes to scatter things, so it's hard to sit and play games with both of them.

So, that being said, if you have kids, when did you (or will you) introduce them to RPGs? There are other things naturally, like Gamewright's Story Dice that let kids tell imaginative stories and unlock that part of their mind. But when would you try getting into some simple RPGs, and what systems do you think would be best (i.e. not a lot of math involved, more story-driven)?

Comments

  • Unknown
    I don't know if I am the best example in the world, but my start with RPG games was at the age of 5, and I started out with Palladium Fantasy 1E. The reason for this is that my brother closest to me in age is 10 years older than me (I was a tail end last kid), and he and his friends wanted to use my room for their gaming sessions. I would only stand for that, headstrong little kid that I was, if they would let me play. One of his friends promptly handed me a filled out sheet and said "You're playing a dwarf gladiator," and we just went on from there. At the start of things, I didn't really get what all was going on but it was interesting to me. Surprisingly, I started to absorb the information rather quickly, and withing about a year or so I was starting to get myself much more involved in the sessions.

    Again though, I am not so sure that I am the best example of when or how to introduce kids to RPGs. I would think that 5 or 6 may still be a pretty good age to start pushing into it, but perhaps start off with something a little less intense than Palladium Fantasy (1E or 2E for that matter). Maybe something like Toon, pretty basic on how it works and the premise is that you're a cartoon character (which is right up most kids alley). You could also probably look into things like Superhero based games out there if the kids happen to be into that. I think an important aspect is to hit a genre that they actually have some interest in already, it will open the door via something familiar.

    Just my two cents on the topic off hand, I don't have kids of my own but I interact with children often (many of my friends and family have kids). So, take it for what you will.
  • NikMak
    NikMak
    Posts: 379 edited August 2015
    I agree that it may be possible at 6 (my son is 6) but you need to pick what your playing very carefully. Something physical to interact with and hold the attention is a must for my son.

    we have started with the tile/puzzle games like "Labyrynth":https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labyrinth_(board_game) and "Carcasone":https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carcassonne_(board_game) (which my boy loves btw!) and we mix it up with more traditional games like ker-plunk etc. on rainy weekends

    next on the list is to buy a set of "Talisman":https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talisman_(board_game)

    for what its worth, from my experience, most gamers get in to the hobby around age 12+

    Edit

    those wiki links are not quite working properly for some reason, but should still get you to the right page
    Post edited by NikMak on
  • UselessTriviaMan
    UselessTriviaMan
    Posts: 546
    I introduced my son to Carcassonne when he was five. I left farmers out of the game to make it a bit simpler, and he absolutely loved it. Shortly thereafter I introduced him to Fuzzy Heroes, a miniatures war game that uses stuffed animals and action figures as the combatants. I made "character sheets" for a bunch of his stuffed animals and toys, and we went at it. It was a _really_ big hit. I've also run FH with my buddy and his 4-year-old, and she got along great with it too.

    Ptolus, City by the Spire - 2016 Campaign of the Year

    "Please pay attention very carefully, because this is the truest thing a stranger will ever say to you: In the face of such hopelessness as our eventual, unavoidable death, there is little sense in not at least TRYING to accomplish all your wildest dreams in life."  - - Kevin Smith

  • ThuriaDM
    ThuriaDM
    Posts: 4 edited August 2015
    I've really only dusted off my ancient AD&D stuff because my son (aged 9) pestered me to to so. He's certainly old and savvy enough to play. But I notice that he's quite naive about the motives of NPCs who initially seem friendly but whose intentions are secretly bad. Now I'm wondering if he'll learn too much too soon about human nature from gaming... or maybe it's a good thing? A good way of getting to understand the adult mind?
    Post edited by ThuriaDM on
  • NikMak
    NikMak
    Posts: 379
    maybe play the more black and white scenarios for a bit? orcs=bad humans = good?

    I cant help but think you should nurture the innocence for as long as possible, you only a have few years before hes a teenager, then hes going to start wearing black, and listening to bands like 'The Horrors'... or was that just me? though it was 'Fields of the Nephilim' in my day of course! :)
  • Kissthesky89
    Kissthesky89
    Posts: 15
    My daughter is 2, and my wife and I play weekly. One of my players was asking this same thing about her the other day. I'll have to tell him the stuffed animals idea, he is going to start writing stats for all of them every time he comes over haha.
  • Glistam_
    Glistam_
    Posts: 11
    I don't think it's too early to get your kids into these games, and if the games are simple I think it'll work well. I've heard good things from people who started their kids early into gaming. I, unfortunately, did not - so now my oldest two are 17 and 14 and neither has any real interest in gaming. My 17 year old will game, but only because his friends showed an interest and my requirement to his friends when they asked me to run something was that I would only do it if he played. My youngest is 9½ and has shown an interest, but when I let him sit in with his brother's game he just giggled and laughed the entire time. So, for him I need a new strategy, and I think simple is the way to go there.
  • MachineGunHarry
    MachineGunHarry
    Posts: 115
    The most important piece of this puzzle is to get interested in what THEY are interested in. I have two sons, 5 and 7 years old. It is easy to game with them. We started when they were 4 and 6. They love the TMNT, so I have created a TMNT-FAE (Fate Accelerated) based on ideas from Palladium Books version. The rules are simple. I use the Approaches (that are more like Mike Olsen's Atomic Robo Modes) of Streets, Ninja, Booyakasha, Discipline, Science, and Feral. Its fun, its quick. My older brother has had success in taking their toys and moving around the house to different scenes. The extra dimension of tactile movement speaks greatly to the kid mind/spirit.

    I mention interest in the beginning, because my daughter (age 9) does not like to game in the same way. But, I do have success using her stuffed animals like UTM does. I have also played a moderately successful Fairy game based on Tinkerbell and their fairy talents. Sounds cheezy to the adult ear, but to a kid it is like ice cream!

    When ever their cousins come to visit we play "The Buggits":http://the-buggits.obsidianportal.com. It is also a FAE game. The characters are anthropomorphic insects/bugs that exist as a parallel world to LoTR and The Hobbit. They have fought 3 _'giant'_ Ogre-shrews, a horde of Opillions (Daddy-long-legs that parallel goblins) a monstrous 7-tailed mutant scorpion, marched toward the lost Mwarv (Ants) kingdom of Terra-Bore (a gianormous Anthill), and are about to come across the drakonian-being calling himself Smog (he is a Cricket that has commandiered a swarm of mosquitoes that swarm around a half-used can of Bug Spray).
  • kettle
    kettle
    Posts: 72
    I started gaming when I was 8 years old, when a neighbor got me to play (because his older friends weren't around). My nephews started board games when they were 7 and played their first D&D Game when they were 9. My Niece started playing when she was 6 with her brother and now (age 14) runs a monthly Pathfinder game with her friends.

    I agree with machinegunHarry, the age is less important than interest. You just need to tailor the material to fit the age of the child. When the boys were 7, I emphasized story over mechanics.

    "Rise of the Dead, Campaign of the Month June 2013":https://rise-of-the-dead.obsidianportal.com/wikis/main-page
    Currently playing "Book of Taliesin":https://the-book-of-taliesin.obsidianportal.com/wikis/main-page
  • UselessTriviaMan
    UselessTriviaMan
    Posts: 546
    For the record, "Fuzzy Heroes ain't expensive.":http://www.fuzzyheroes.com/catalog.php?item=2&catid=Fuzzy%20Heroes&ret=fuzzyheroes.com%2Fcatalog.php%3Fpage%3D1%26category%3DFuzzy%2520Heroes

    I created simple custom Word doc character sheets specifically geared toward making it easy for little kids to understand. (I just realized I don't have copies of them on my flash drive. If you want, I can post examples of 'em after I get home tonight.)

    "Ptolus":https://ptolus-city-by-the-spire-by-bryan.obsidianportal.com/

    Ptolus, City by the Spire - 2016 Campaign of the Year

    "Please pay attention very carefully, because this is the truest thing a stranger will ever say to you: In the face of such hopelessness as our eventual, unavoidable death, there is little sense in not at least TRYING to accomplish all your wildest dreams in life."  - - Kevin Smith

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