I have a four (almost 5) year old son and he is wanting a Game Boy for X-Mas. Now, he is very smart. I got him one of those V-tec games and in an hour he already had gone through all of the levels and won the game. Do you think that he's too young for a Game Boy? I've never really been into it, so I need suggestions.
Thanks!
2006-12-11 05:22:08 · 27 answers · asked by jen 2 in Games & Recreation ➔ Toys
I don't think so, but be warned, if you start letting him play games now he'll continue to want to. If you're going to let him start 'gaming' this early, please make sure you watch what he's allowed to play.
More parents blame video game companies for making their children violent when they didn't read the warning lable on the box of the game they were allowing their children to play.
NOT ALL VIDEO GAMES ARE FOR CHILDREN!
There are ratings on the box for each game that tells you what age group the game is made for. Make sure you get him the ones for his age range, and don't let him tell you what games he wants. Do a little research online to make sure you don't have him playing something with cursing and nudity when he's only 5.
Video games are not a bad thing, if you control it, but you have to be willing to learn a little about the product your son is interested in, even if you can't stand it.
2006-12-11 05:31:11 · answer #1 · answered by tamara_giggles 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your son is just about the right age. Personally I would recommend a Gameboy Advanced over a DS for him though. The DS's touch screen controls on most games might be a little beyond him at this point. The DS does play Gameboy Advanced games though, so if you're willing to spend the extra cash (the DS runs about $150, the Advanced costs about $80) you can start with Advanced games and work your way to DS games. As far as the people who are saying that video games will rot his brain, ignore them. There are an abundance of educational games on the market made for your child's age range.
Where you get the system doesn't really matter, but when it comes to games I would suggest that you go to a game retailer like Gamestop or EB Games. They don't always have the right answers, but the vast majority of the time they will have information and knowledge that you probably won't find at Target or WalMart. I hope this helps.
2006-12-11 06:07:31 · answer #2 · answered by bigdog82000 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have a twelve year old that loves video games of any kind. I started him off young and I regret every second of it. All I wanted to do was be a cool mom like all the other mothers that live near us. I just didn't want to say no, and I also thought "what harm can it do?" Well it doesn't necessarily harm your children physically, but let me give you a few of my thoughts: My son would prefer to be inside playing video games then outside with all of his friends. He almost became addicted to these video games, he didn't want to do anything except play these games and play them until he beat the game and then he didn't want anything to do with them anymore. And now that he has Gameboy, Nintendo, Playstation 2, PSP, Xbox, and just about every other game out there, we are at the point where we don't know what else to get him , and that is because each year we had to get him something bigger and better and more new. Which it shouldn't be so difficult to buy for a 12 year old kid but it is when you start them off that young with extravagant gifts. I am not saying deffinently don't do it but if you do just be careful about the amount of time he spends on it and make sure that he knows the value for it and he knows that this type of gift is not going to happen all the time. Just one more suggestion for you what is wrong with getting him something different this year and if he is still asking for it next year or even for his birthday maybe then you can get it for him and then you will know that he really appreciates it because of how long he waited to get it.
Hopefully this helps,
from one Mom to another
2006-12-11 05:44:20 · answer #3 · answered by ineedtoknow 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
We held off until our son was around nine, mainly because his interest level was not very high.
Someof the cons I've noticed are:
1. ONce they get started with this, there;s no going back.... it's there to stay.
2. Many of the systems have built-in obsolescence... pretty soon there will be a new version of the system, and all the "good" games will work only on the new version
A big advantage, is... this is a great disciplinary tool. Taking it away is an easy and effective punishment that will serve you well until you can use car keys in the same way....
2006-12-11 05:28:22 · answer #4 · answered by Ms. Switch 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I would try to find harder games for him to play on the V-tec first. Right now you want to keep the things he does educational. If he gets the Game Boy he'll start spending a lot of time on it, too much actually, and the games are educational. I've seen it happen to a lot of boys, when they get into video games they don't quit.
2006-12-11 06:49:16 · answer #5 · answered by Ash 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Boys are never too young for a Game Boy, however they can be very harmful in the sense that they become addicted and distracted form doing their daily acitivities. I have a cousin who is five and he became an X BOX addict; playing more than his older brother who is eight. I would wait at least a year to get your son a Game Boy. At such a young age they have little control over their habits and he will be able to limit his time on games as he matures and gets older. If you decide to get him a Game boy let him know in advance that you will be monitoring his time on it, so he knows ahead of time.
2006-12-11 05:28:04 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
He's not necessarily too young for one. But you bought him the V-tec. That should be fine. Just buy him some more challenging games for now. Get your money out of that system before you begin investing in another.
2006-12-11 05:30:42 · answer #7 · answered by Souris 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
children of all ages can enjoy this game...but if you do get your son a gameboy advanced only get the games that have an E in one of the bottom corners!some games are too violent or scary for younger children...there are also games that have an E but have a 10+ on top of that ... this means that it is only recomended for everyone 10 years and older...
2006-12-11 05:45:46 · answer #8 · answered by ashleyxxoo 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He isn't too young for a gameboy!! Of course you will need to say which games are appropriate though. All games have ratings: E(everyone) T(teen) M(mature). He will need only E(everyone) games.
It is your call. I think he will enjoy it. If he is doing okay with the V tech then he should do fine with the gameboy.
2006-12-11 05:26:14 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
He is not too young, he sounds like a very intelligible kid, Give it to him but allow him too use it in moderation. Although they are not too many educationally encouraging games out there. Hand eye coordination is key and will help him advance quickly in his overall pursuits.
Hope This Helps
Merry Christmas
-GarySomers
2006-12-11 05:26:15 · answer #10 · answered by imgarysomers 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋