Kevin Phillips

Hi All. I looking for suggestions/help about video game consoles. I'm an older fart, have never owned a game console and the last PC game I played was Quake 2, almost 20 years ago. I have a bunch of questions and am hoping you can help.

My son will be 8 years old next month and we are thinking about getting him a video game console. My wife was leaning toward the XBox One. Are there age-appropriate games for the X-Box? Is there a different console that may be more appropriate for an 8 year old?

Would purchasing a console also require subscribing to a service? For example, if we did get an XBox, how useful would it be if we didn't want to subscribe to XBox Live?

Thanks!

cleaver

I think there hasn't been much in the way of first party support for Xbox One this year, but the Xbox game pass might be the best service to use if he's coming in tabula rasa. The PS4 is to me the best value and the best library, but then the Switch might be the best choice because you can find it on the shelves now, and you get Zelda and Mario next month you know you'll be ok as far as quality/kid-friendliness/amount of content. Finally you can find a 3DS a little cheaper especially if you're ok with a refurb or preowned and they're durable and likelier to be owned by their friends statistically.

Adam Tyner

A lot of the best age-appropriate games are multiplatform, so you'll be on fairly even ground whether you get him an Xbox One or a PS4: Rocket League, basically any Lego game, Skylanders, Plants vs. Zombies 2: Garden Warfare, Minecraft, Rayman Legends, Overcooked, all the sports titles... Those tend to be really local-multiplayer-friendly, so it can be something you'll all enjoy together as well.

If you consider a PS4, you open up a few other doors as well. Ratchet & Clank, the Knack franchise, and Crash Bandicoot would be appropriate for an 8 year old. LittleBigPlanet 3 isn't the best reviewed entry in the series, but it could help fuel a creative spark. There aren't a lot of kid-oriented exclusives on the Xbox One, but you do have things like Screamride and Zoo Tycoon. Ori and the Blind Forest is age-appropriate in terms of content (maybe a bit scary/ominous), although I think that's more likely to appeal to a slightly older crowd. If he's into racing, the Forza series (especially the Horizon games) would be a great fit on the Xbox One.

I wouldn't sweat subscribing to Xbox Live or PS+ if you're not interested in online play (for yourselves or for him). There are other benefits, but in practice, it'll probably be just "free" games you'll rarely play.

It'd be worth considering a Nintendo Switch as well since nearly every title on the console is age appropriate, and it has the added benefit of portability (although I'm sure you'd want to get a tempered glass cover to stave off scratches).

Sonny Corinthos

We got our then seven year old a Xbox One for Christmas last year. I download a bunch of 360 games on it like Duck Tales, Crazy Taxi, Sonic, 1,2, 3, Sonic CD, Sonic and Knuckles and the Banjo-Kazooie games.

She absolutely loves it. She play games and watches kid friendly shows on Netflix. This year she's getting a Nintendo Switch for Christmas. (You know I will be playing the heck out of the Switch as well )

DVD Josh

I'm sure you can find a 360 with a ton of games on craigslist for cheap if you look.

Kevin Phillips

Thanks for the info everyone. I had not heard of the Switch until today; its portability makes it a good fit for our needs. The only reason I am not all-in for the Switch is Roblox. My son's playing it on our Windows laptop, and loves it. I just checked out the Roblox website, and the XBox is the only console that Roblox has been ported to.

I can't go with used hardware. As far as my wife is concerned, if we're going to get something, we're going to get it new, or not at all. It is not a negotiable point with her.

DVD Josh

I guess you were a virgin when you married her then?

fumanstan

You can find an Xbox One S for under $200, seems like there should be plenty for an 8 year old to play. Throw in something like EA access or Xbox Game Pass and he'd probably be covered for awhile.

Adam Tyner

That does change my previous answer a bit. Per roblox.com:

Gideon68

You don't need to subscribe to Xbox live but I would suggest you do because you can get 4 free games a month (2 for the 360 platform which you can keep, and 2 for the X1 which you can only play as long as your gold membership is active). I recommend this because your son is only 8 at the moment and as he grows he'll be able to play the games for older/mature kids. In the meantime you should be able to put age restrictions on the system so he won't have access to them (at least unless they changed the system).

You can usually find the year gold memberships for around $40+ so each game will be $.83+/each. You'll get a mix of good/bad games depending on what you each like but for $.83+ it's not bad. Here's a list of what's come out so far https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...ith_Gold_games. You won't get these free anymore but it'll give you an idea of what we've gotten so far.

As for the 360 games, you're prob asking how will these work on the X1. Well the X1 is backwards compatible with most 360 games and the library keeps growing and future 360 Games w Gold will be compatible with the X1. The other question is how do claim these 360 GwG without a 360? You can get them on-line and then download them to the X1.

Good luck deciding.

Kevin Phillips

Yikes. While my wife's hangup is that she only buys new, mine is subscription services. I can't explain it except to say I really hate them. I can live with TV/Internet/Phone, but I'd have to be really hard-pressed to go for anything else

I hadn't gone far enough into the Roblox site to see that the Xbox version required Xbox live Gold. If I had known that, I wouldn't have brought it up.

Kevin Phillips

I'm going to plead the 5th.

cleaver

With your additional comments I think Switch is the way to go. You lose the least if you don't subscribe to their service, and it will likely have the longest life span since it's the newest.

cruzness

@ Kevin the Subscription services are well worth the $40-50 annual cost for both online gaming and building a library of games your family can enjoy as they mature.

Gideon68

The subscription services also gives you weekly discounts that's non-subs don't get.

SunMonkey

Terraria is very popular with that age, and on all platforms.

K&AJones

I think both the PS4 and XB1 are good enough for the 8yr old with appropriate games...Legos and Skylanders, Plants vs Zombies alone will keep them entertained for a long time. Knack 2 on the PS4 is a great couch-co-op as is Plants vs Zombies 2. I've played Plants vs Zombies 2 and frankly it's entertaining for everyone. Both systems offer some good deals if you have the subscription....PS Plus or Xbox Live which is IMHO, well worth it when some games pop up free or at a discount.

And you mentioned you played in the "old days" of Quake/Unreal....there are games out that from those days are still kicking like Diablo III; Reaper of Souls which has great couch co-op as well so who knows you might get bit by the Game Bug again.....

The Questyen

Just to clarify it's Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare 2. Plants vs Zombies 2 was supposed to come to consoles and never did. I know us who follow games know what you were talking about but the OP might not.

Kevin Phillips

Thanks for the game suggestions!

Once we actually buy the console, we'll choose a few age-appropriate games. Looks like PvZGW2 is only on PS4, Xbox and PC. Terraria is supposed to be released for the Switch this year.

Still not interested in subscribing to an online service. But if there's a chance I'll break down and subscribe, getting the Switch definitely looks like the way to go, since their service is $20/year. XBox and playstation are $60. No way I'm going for that.

Gideon68

Not trying to dissuade you from buying the Switch if that's what you really want but it seems your decision seems to be more based on a console's subscription services. Keep in mind, you don't have to subscribe to these services but if you do there are perks.

MS - You get 2 Xbox 360 games which you get to keep and play even if your membership expires, and 2 X1 games which you need an active membership to keep playing. You also get weekly discounts on games which non-subs don't get.

PS - You get monthly free games to play but you have to have an active membership to keep playing them. You also get weekly discounts on games.

Nintendo - I haven't followed Nintendo in a while so I don't know if you get free games from their service.

Also with MS and Sony, you can prob find an annual membership for around $40+.

Believe me, I never thought I would ever pay for the membership either but I have for a few years now. I do it for the free games. I seldom play on-line.

mndtrp

How about parental controls? How do they differ between the units? I know that the differences were pretty big back in the PS3 days. The xbox at the time allowed for time limit settings, while the PS3 more or less only had ratings restrictions.

I'm aware that the PS4 just had a big update with regards to parental controls, but I haven't dug into them yet.

mattysemo247

Normally I would tell people to pick up a PS4, but in your case Kevin the Xbox One is probably your best bet. Pick up a Xbox One S for $200 on sale and get the Rare Replay (can be had for VERY cheap since it was once a pack in game with older systems), get some cheap backwards compatible 360 games (physical or digital copies), and pick up an EA access subscription. For $30 (or $20 - $25 if you can find on sale) you would have instant access to a ton of EA games. A good mix of sports, racing, Plants vs Zombies, and other kid friendly stuff in there (with some more mature games for you as well).

fumanstan

I wouldn't pick the Switch just because their online service is $20 a year, given that Nintendo's app and services is pretty mediocre compared to what Sony/Microsoft provide.

K&AJones

Thanks for clarifying the difference and yea, for me just saying PvZ2 is usually enough....just a fun game for the family where I have to say the MP (that be multi-player for the OP) is not some die-hard ragging obsession where one can laugh about being sniped by a Zombie Soldier, Corn Cobb or a Cactus....

foxdvd

Another great thing about the xbox one is the backwards compatibility with a lot of older xbox games. There are a lot of 8 year old appropriate games that will work on the xbox one that you can pick up dirt cheap.

https://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-one/...-compatibility