Can a 5 year old Wii ?

[dizietsma]

I'm a dedicated PC gamer myself so not often in this part forum. The last console I had was an Atari which I played Missile Command, Defender and Asteroids on so am a bit rusty.

My 4 year old daughter has a birthday in May and to get her off my PC I was thinking of buying the family a Wii console as they seem to cater more towards action and fun than fancy graphics and ultimate challenge ( pardon if I am wrong here, I do not want to tread on toes!) . The game it comes with and a couple of others, including rabid rabbit and monkey rolling ball game, seem ideal but one concern I have is whether she will be good enough for the controller.

For instance, if she was playing tennis, will she be just missing the ball all the time or is it quite easy ? I would not want her to get bored because she cannot do it. Has anyone got experience of younger game players using the controllers and how did they get on ?

Many thanks in advance for replying.

 

[Nesh]

I hope someone confirms she can

 

[Firewarrior]

Next time add no pun intended.

I was a bit shocked there.

Hopefully she can if she doesn't swing the Wiimote like a lunatic.

 

[archangelmorph]

Can a 5 year old Wii ?

I'm sure a 5 yr old can provided they can climb up onto the seat..

No but seriously..

If my friend's 96 yr old relative can Wii (much better than my friend apparently) then I'm sure your daughter will excell!

 

[Shifty Geezer]

For instance, if she was playing tennis, will she be just missing the ball all the time or is it quite easy ? I would not want her to get bored because she cannot do it. Has anyone got experience of younger game players using the controllers and how did they get on ?

I'd say that's a definite yes as long as the games aren't too taxing. In the case of Wii Tennis, the characters move to the right place automatically, so it's just a matter of swinging the Wiimote at the right time. However, I'd say the Wiisports games are too hard for the average 5 year old. I don't know how other games compare. Something like Warioware:Smooth Moves or Wii Play is far better for little uns.

Has it got to be a Wii because you want one of those for yourself or to grow with the players, or is this purchase just for the 5 year old for a couple of years? If the latter, I suggest you give serious consderation to a PS2+EyeToy. It's a lot cheaper and seeing themselves on TV while playing is a big hit.

 

[digitalwanderer]

My son was learning how to use the keyboard/mouse in FPS at age 5.

 

[Tagrineth]

My son was learning how to use the keyboard/mouse in FPS at age 5.

I saw an adorable ~7-10 ish year old girl at a local hobby shop owning her dad at CS:S and UT'04...

It was quite awesome, if a little worrying, I must say. But hey, at least at that age, they can't slouch over the keyboard like most of us do!

 

[digitalwanderer]

My son is freaking SCARY at F.E.A.R. in multiplayer now. He wasn't just owning me, he was holding his own with the top killers just fine on a clan server where I was just getting my ass handed to me.

He's nine.

 

[DeadlyNinja]

I think your kid will be able to handle the Wii quite well. Check out the video below. The girl in the video's probably 3 years old and she plays like a pro. Just beware of this: in a few years, your kid's going to be kicking your behind left and right, just be prepare for the endless humiliation you'll be facing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9Ao7Wbi338&NR

 

[JISHELL]

Im wondering though..other than enjoyment,do games offer anything else?
Ive gamed since 2600&intellivision to the odyssy(and current).I dont know whether im treading into territory we all heard our parents gripe about"go outside and play ball or something"!Did gaming spark my wild imagination??or was that just me and genetics?My daughter loves halo 2(and shes pretty good)I dont see violence being an issue..but after all these years of gaming...I had to pick up something...right??Sorry kind of a whole other subject,but ive watched my daughter pick up the 360 controller,which is way to big for her hands but manipulate the controls like a gaming master(like daddy hehe)so your daughter will be fine.

 

[dizietsma]

Thanks guys for the input. She already does FPS buit prefers to blow the windows out with shotguns rather than play normally, besides I'm not sure I like her blasting people, biting ok, blasting no !

I shall check out the PS2 + EyeToy as well, the Wii certainly seems to be hard to find in the shops at the moment if you do not want to pay 150% the standard price.

 

[Acert93]

If you can find a Wii I would say jump in. Nintendo has a loooong history of family friendly games, and a large library of such. With the virtual arcade and the GCN backwards compatibility you have instant access to hundreds of really good, family friendly games. Nintendo is also focusing Wii at the casual market which is ideal for your daughter; likewise "party" games definately seem to be in their sights and these work great with families. And it won't hurt that you are getting her a "hip" and trendy gift that all her friends will be dieing to play with her. And just all the little touches, like her Mii and child friendly online features, make the Wii the standout choice for a family/children console imo.

May is a while out, so availability should improve a bit.

 

[DeadlyNinja]

I shall check out the PS2 + EyeToy as well, the Wii certainly seems to be hard to find in the shops at the moment if you do not want to pay 150% the standard price.

I don't know if investing in an Eye Toy is such a good idea. It is a mere add-on not a something built from ground up. I don't know how much support Sony will continue put behind this product. Wii is built from ground up and is a specialized console, so you know you're going to get your money's worth when it comes to games. Unless Nintendo suddenly bankrupts and goes out of business (we're talking about a company that's literaly printing money right now), then you're Wii will last quite a few years.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

I don't know if investing in an Eye Toy is such a good idea. It is a mere add-on not a something built from ground up. I don't know how much support Sony will continue put behind this product. Wii is built from ground up and is a specialized console, so you know you're going to get your money's worth when it comes to games. Unless Nintendo suddenly bankrupts and goes out of business (we're talking about a company that's literaly printing money right now), then you're Wii will last quite a few years.

The demands of his child as a gamer are likely to change over a few years. For an early entry into active gaming, EyeToy has a nice enough library already to keep the kids amused. If she out-grows it in 2 years (and there's still a library of other games too), a Wii can be bought then, for no more net more cost than buying a Wii now!

Both machines have their differences and merits, and I think both are good choices. I'd definitely say it's worth dizietsma checking out the EyeToy and see how it fits in with their longer term interests+budget though. There's a big buzz around Wii, yet a lot of what people are enjoying did come in a slightly different form with EyeToy, and I think it's getting unfairly forgotten. There are 'non-gamers' who enjoyed EyeToy, just as they enjoy Wii (and at the time, remember EyeToy was being called a new paradigm in gaming too ). The original Play's Kung-Fu game was still one of the best spectator games to come out on any platform IMO! Simple, intuitive, active and great fun, just like Wii.

 

[standing ovation]

I've only run into two so far, and I've shown the Wii now to about 30 non-gamers. It's universally adored, except by two kinds of people:

1. The easily embarrassed. The fact that they have to act goofy in front of people - and the fact that it's competitive - make this person a pile of giggling idiocy or an very frustrated person who snaps at people when the miss that Spare. This kind of person also gets upset when beaten by my 6-year old daughter. The opposite of this person is "GAME!" they want to try it, they experiment, and they're fascinated - not frustrated - with the compromises Nintendo had to take and the illusion of control the game maintains well.
   
   
2. The unrealistic. This person expects the Wii to be 100% perfect. They learn to really hate Boxing because they don't understand that the game rewards speed (little kids do well because they can wail so fast) and if punchs collide, or if you get hit before your punch lands, the GAME discounts that punch (to simulate the idea that your punch would lose power or miss if you were hit in real-life). This person grumbles during Bowling that "I did it the same way last time and got a Strike!!! Why'd I get a split now?!?" The opposite, again, is fascinated with these compromises and understands that this is new and exciting technology and instead of holding it to standards of reality, it must instead be compared to the past.

It almost seems like the above two people are the type who lack an inner child.

SOURCE: Gamer Dad

 

[Ozymandis]

If my almost-4-year-old son can play Gears of War with some competence, I'm sure the Wii is playable by a 5 year old

 

[Crayon]

At age five, kids can glue macaroni to paper plates and be entrusted with milk money. They can fake being sick to stay home, and they can count to 100.

A five year old can play Wii just fine.

At age thirteen, kids can decide you're a total asshole and are ruining their lives. They can make prank phone calls, and spraypaint public property. They can huff glue.

A thirteen year old can still play Wii just fine.

At age nineteen, kids can smoke a pack a day and sleep around. Etc, etc, etc... And still play Wii.

 

[Hardknock]

Just a bit of warning but the wrist straps have been recalled for the Wii controllers because they break to easily. Make sure to thoroughly test it out before giving it to her. Especially if you have an expensive HDTV

 

[Arwin]

The demands of his child as a gamer are likely to change over a few years. For an early entry into active gaming, EyeToy has a nice enough library already to keep the kids amused. If she out-grows it in 2 years (and there's still a library of other games too), a Wii can be bought then, for no more net more cost than buying a Wii now!

Next to the EyeToy, you also have SingStar which is a big hit with the five year old I know, and DDR is also a huge success.

The PS2 also plays Point Blank 3 for the PSX, by the way, which is superb, especially if you pick up two GunCon45s somewhere (if you can find them, they are practically free). The latter can only be used with a standard SD TV though, AFAIK. But if you have one for the 'game room', then this is superb fun. And you can pick it up yourself for some Time Crisis.