Deftones

Trying to come up with some fun ideas for my son for Christmas. Leaning either towards a cheapie android tablet for him to play educational games on or a Kinect. The Sesame Street game looks kind of fun. I figure even if it isn't something he can use right away, he'll sort of grow into it. Right now seems to be the time to get one for him, since it's $99 for the sensor right now pretty much everywhere. Any thoughts?

TGM

How about some books and a ball.

Deftones

how about i get him to request all sorts of pain medicines when he's at the doctor. or you could just stay the fuck out of the thread if you don't have anything worthwhile to contribute.

JasonF

The questions I would have are 1) is the sensor going to have a clear line of sight to your kid given his height, and 2) is your son coordinated enough yet to make the required hand gestures. I would expect you'd need to be 3 or so before a Kinnect would really work, but I don't have kids, so probably my sense of how/at what pace kids develop is off.

Deftones

Definitely have a clear line of sight. Have an entertainment center and he'd be about 6 feet away. I'd be able to adjust it to his height since the sensor would be at the edge of the entertainment center. As for the gestures, I'd imagine he'd be able to do the movements with arms and legs, but stuff with the hands may be a bit more difficult. Good points to consider, though. Thanks.

TGM

1. How about I report your post? Yeah, just did. 2. How about you simmer down when someone points out that you should be sticking something educational or athletic in your TWO year olds hands instead of getting him a freakin' mind-rotting video game? Yeah, you probably won't.

Deftones

mind rotting? is this 1952?

Liver&Onions

Settle down the both of you. Video game forum is for fun, we all play so to claim they rot minds means yours is rotten too.

Why do we have to force athletics on the kid? Can't it be a periodic table of the elements, or a programming book?

Deftones

I didn't come here for parenting advice. I came here for suggestions about if it would be suitable for a 2 year old. And as if I should have to explain myself, my son is involved in a gym class 3x a week, school where he plays outdoors 2x a week and swimming class 1x a week. OMG I'M SUCH A HORRIBLE PARENT FOR ALLOWING GAMES TO ROT HIS MIND!!!

fujishig

For some games, like Kinect Adventures, the sensor will think he's kneeling because he's so short. At least, that's what it does when my 2 year old tries it.

She absolutely loves Disneyland Adventures, but while the controls are simple enough daddy's the one doing most of the moving and the minigames.

Deftones

thanks for the heads up, fujishig. that might be a real issue. maybe i'll wait until next christmas when he's 3 to rot his brain.

Michael Corvin

Age won't be the issue, height will be. Even then fine motor controls will be a pain in menus.

bahgee

My 3 year old is 3 feet tall. I am going to try it. Hope fruit ninja kinect wont have an issue with her height

Liver&Onions

my 18 month old loves to 'play' fruit ninja.

Rob V

Worst post of the year... this is the Video Games forum not a parenting class.

Back on topic... my 3 year old plays Kinect from time to time and struggles a bit due to his height. Also, some needs to be around to get and keep the game going for him... he enjoys it though. No reason to not let your two year old play if he/she's interested.

TGM

I'd like to thank the academy... God, my mom...

freshticles

My kid is 4 and has trouble with it. His hand disappears a lot when he's trying to select things, it shows him on his knees, or the avatar starts flailing etc.

glassdragon

The kinect is for your kid... suuuuuuuuure :P

TimeandTide

I know you're looking for video game suggestions, but I've learned my lesson the hard way year after year when my son (he's 8 now) would set aside the new DS/iTouch/360 I shelled out a shit-load of money for in favor of the (free) card board boxes his grandma would leave out for him during our annual visits. So while Tallguy's post was a tad dick-ish, he's not far off in terms of what's appropriate and fun for a 2-year old. (Not that I'm advocating giving your kid a box for Christmas.)

Plus, by the time your boys grows into it, something new will be out that you'll want to replace it with.

I say research tablet apps and go for that. It's something he can use on long car rides and while Daddy is on an epic kill-streak in COD.

Or buy him a ball instead.

PerryD

When my kids were between 2 to 5 years old, I played Jumpstart and Reader Rabbit games with them on the computer. They test off the charts now in their teens, and I believe this was the main reason for it.

Decker

Nobody in my family has a great deal of success navigating the Kinect- enabled game menues
, be it the five year old or his forty year old parents.

Deadman31

Is your kid Amish?

TimeandTide

No, he gets major use out of his hand-me-down iTouch and the COD and LEGO games on our 360. In fact, two of the gifts he's most looking forward to this Christmas are COD:MW3 and NCAA Football.

But he's almost 9, not 2, like the OP's child. A 2-year old will have just as much fun with some cheap old-school toy (or box, in my case) than they will with a $100+ tablet or Kinect, which will ultimately collect dust or be replaced NEXT Christmas with the Next Big Thing.

MasterofDVD

I've tried to show my 2 year old how to use the Kinect. It was as aggravating as when the Wii first came out and people assumed that motion control technology was so good that you could flail around like an asshole and the game would respond perfectly.

My son got frustrated and I got annoyed. I'd love to buy his the Disneyland and Sesame Street game but it'll be some time before he calms down enough to stand in front of the tv in a calm and orderly fashion.

maxfisher

While many, if not all, DVDTalk posters were reading at 2, I'm pretty sure it's not the norm. On a more serious note, a parent taking the time to play certain video games with their kid can be just as educational as reading a book to them.

As for the question by the OP, 2 seems a little young. I just got a 360 & Kinect for my sister's family, including my 8-yr-old nephew and 4-yr-old niece and I'm a little worried about the latter being able to play, though I'm sure she'll get a kick out of trying.