Console for kids birthday

[ZoyzaSorris]

Don't know shit about them these days but considering the cheaper end - ps4, Xbox s, switch. What's good?

[Oosp]

Switch OLED is best. Or vanilla Switch is cheaper. PS5 is NOT geared towards kids. Practically impossible to find a title that's suitable for them on the platform. PS4 no different. Switch is the one.

[jamiefairlie]

Get them hee-haw then you could console them.

Not sure they'd get the joke mind.

[beanheadmcginty]

Barcode Battler

[Mister Six]

How old's the kid? That's the key factor, I reckon.

[Kelvin]

Definitely. If they're entering their teens they'll soon be wanting to game/chat online with their friends, in which case they'll want whatever their mates have (PS or Xbox). If they're younger, Switch is the obvious answer, with a much wider range of age-appropriate games.

Only issue with the Switch is that it's looking very likely a new Nintendo console is coming out next year, in which case you have to balance the large pre-existing library of Nintendo games vs the fact they wont be putting out many more for Switch.

[Mister Six]

That's what I was going to say, re: age. Switch has tons of amazing games for all ages, but its focus on kid-friendly titles from the major companies means that it might not be well met in the difficult teenage years, when Mario running around a colourful world might seem hokey and babyish (it is, of course, amazing for those under 14 and over 19). There's some more adult stuff on there, but a smaller proportion than on PlayStation or Xbox.

PlayStation and Xbox, of course, have the more "mature" selection that might appeal to teens (especially boys). The deciding factor there would be which machines the kids' mates have, so they can play online together. The only other note there is (IIRC; I may be wrong) PlayStation requires a monthly fee to play online whereas with Xbox it's free. However the PS fee comes with "free" games you can play each month.

The caution about a possible new Nintendo console goes double for PS4 and Xbox One, because they've already been superseded by the PS5 and Xbox X/S, and game developers have only just now started to phase out the older consoles. So you're jumping onto the end of the wave whatever you do, but the Switch might retain its momentum for longer. Nintendo is still scheduling new games for next year (Luigi's Mansion 2 remaster! Yay!).

(Note that Xbox S is part of the same generation as PS5, so newer than PS4, although it won't run all of the latest generation of games, and will run them at less fancy graphical settings than its big brother, the Xbox X. But your kids might not know or care.)

The flip side is that all three consoles have a massive library of games to dig into, so depending on how much your kids need to be at the forefront of gaming fashion that might not be an issue. I've still not got a PS5 just because there are so many older games out there for discounted rates that I haven't played. Maybe next year.

...that's made it more confusing, hasn't it?

[Huxleys Babkins]

Why not just ask them which one they want?

[Milo]

Re: playing Online - none of them are free now. The cost for the Switch is very low (£18 a year which includes some old retro system games). The Xbox is probably best done with Game Pass Ultimate which is £12.99 a month with a pretty large library of games included as well as online stuff. The Playstations have something similar but the game offerings are a bit more meagre.

Commonly played online games like Fortnite and Roblox are cross-platform multiplayer.

And note that the Xbox One S is not the same generation as the Xbox Series S. One S is PS4 gen, Series S is PS5 gen.

Regarding chatting online, lots of this is done via whatsapp or discord nowadays so being on the same system doesn't matter so much.

[bomb_dog]

PC with a reasonable graphics card, hdmi output and a steam account. Games are far, far cheaper than consoles, with regular sales and key sites you can get an amazing array of different titles from. Daughter (6) doesn't care what her friends think is cool yet, she's had a great time playing Alba, A Hat in Time, Sonic games, Sam and Max, hidden object stories, Yooka Laylee, townscaper, Carto, A Jugglers Tale... with me over the last few years.

But it does come back to their age and if and who they're playing with. Which takes the choice out of (y)our hands CLOSE THREAD.

[Mister Six]

And note that the Xbox One S is not the same generation as the Xbox Series S. One S is PS4 gen, Series S is PS5 gen.

Oof, fucking hell! Good spot. The Xbox naming conventions are confounding.

[Milo]

They are, it's utterly bonkers. They could have just gone Series [any letter other than S or X] for the cheap current gen one but nooooo.

[oggyraiding]

PS4 is slowly being phased out, so while it has a big library, it's getting to a point where there'll be few new releases. A lot of the big exclusives are for more mature audiences (The Last of Us, God of War, Uncharted, Ghost of Tsushima, Death Stranding), though I suppose a kid of any age would enjoy Spider-Man.

Series S has the advantage of Game Pass and also being current gen, so it will be supported for probably another 4-5 years at least. Main issue would be lack of disk drive so you can't buy cheap second hand games. But you can play a lot of Xbox, Xbox 360, and Xbox One games if you buy them digitally, so there's plenty of stuff on there for all tastes.

Switch is the most pick up and play of the lot, and (I think) has the biggest library though many of the eShop games are shovelware. If you're wanting to get involved, it probably has the most 2+ player games and party games. My brother always brings the Switch out at family gatherings and there are so many games that even non-gamers can get involved in.

[Memorex MP3]

Switch even though it's on the outs seems fairly obvious to me, doubly so if it's only one kid


The person suggesting a PC would be better off suggesting a Steam Deck and a dock imo; although you've got all the usual pitfalls computers have (excessive configuration, higher risk of kids bricking it) so I'd keep away from it unless you're ready to be dealing with that

[madhair60]

Switch. Anyone suggesting owt else is literally insane

[dontpaintyourteeth]

jaguar

[idunnosomename]

Texas Instruments Little Professor

[Papa Wheelie]

Get them a gaming PC, so you can upgrade the parts as they grow up and new technology is released. When they finally leave home, they can take that trusty PC with them and keep inescapably upgrading it with their own money seeing ever more diminishing returns for exponential prices before they eventually hand down the existential burden to their own kids. All the newest chips and cards in place, like a genealogical Trigger's albatross.

[Rizla]

I've ordered a switch OLED with MK8 and SMP wonder for the family xmas prezzie. What's the one that's all family friendly mini games? Mario party? Do I need extra controllers for that if we all want to play together? And is there a good "proper" controller to get?

[waste of chops]

The side controllers of a Switch (Joy-Cons) slide off and would be fine for basic stuff (minigames, pissing about in Mario Kart, etc.) so that'll do you for two players. A "proper" controller would be Nintendo's own £50 Switch Pro. 8bitdo controllers are generally pretty good -- I've got their one that looks like a Dual Shock and it's been pretty decent for computer use, although I can't vouch for how well it works with the Switch (and their Switch Pro-style one is pushing £50, so no price advantage over the official controller).

[Milo]

I've ordered a switch OLED with MK8 and SMP wonder for the family xmas prezzie. What's the one that's all family friendly mini games? Mario party? Do I need extra controllers for that if we all want to play together? And is there a good "proper" controller to get?

1-2 Switch and the follow-up Everybody 1-2 Switch are also minigame things - generally need a joy-con (one of the pair of controllers that slot into the system) per player.

As mentioned, the Pro Controller is the proper traditional style controller. Third party ones also available but often lack gyro controls and support for Amiibos.

[Rizla]

Thanks. I see there's also a way to use a PS4 controller via a USB dongle. Anyone tried that?

[Elderly Sumo Prophecy]

You could use a PS4 controller wirelessly with something like this:
https://mayflash.com/product/magic_x.html

I've got one plugged into the dock. Even the gyro works flawlessly.

[Ignatius_S]

I've ordered a switch OLED with MK8 and SMP wonder for the family xmas prezzie. What's the one that's all family friendly mini games? Mario party? Do I need extra controllers for that if we all want to play together? And is there a good "proper" controller to get?

If you want a party game, I would go with (from another thread):

Mario Party Superstars - the MP games are essentially a boardgame with minigames; you can play with others (the best way), against the computer or a mixture of both. Very fun to play - there is another MP game for the Switch, but the Superstars one would be the one to go with and is generally reckoned to be the best (or one of them) in the series.

Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics is also a really great one.

In the Switch one, I mentioned some games and accessories worth considering.

Re: controller - that dongle would be a good option for a PS4 controller. Any online round-up of Switch controllers would give a very decent overview. Although the Pro controller is the best one, there are a lot of very good options including cheaper ones; Power A is a particularly reliable and affordable brand.