Okay moms/dads and teenagers.. gaming system question

We are looking for a good gaming system for the house, playstation 2, gamecube, wii, etc...
Wyatt is taking an intrest in getting one, and we don't really know what the best would be for the cheapest amount... I know the playstation 2 was the biggest bang for the buck rated by a lot of places... and prob all we need for a 6 year old...
I grew up on the first one ever the atari, and then nintindo... so I have no clue about this new stuff...

 

LOL remember atari?? lordy we is too grown up! LOL ..I went as far as playstation 2 for my tribe, and its still going strong as they move out...although mine are addicted to guitar hero also..but they bought that at their own appt ...goodluck!

 

The biggest bang for your buck, in my opinion, would be a Wii, though buying a used PS2 wouldn't be a bad buy, either. The WiI has a good selection of games for kids, and most of them include more activity than a normal game system has.
PS2 has a far huger selection of games, but because most PS2 games are no longer in production, it may become harder to find them.

 

I really like the Wii's they look really nice.. and they seem to get the users up and moving instead of sitting on their rumps...

 

WiI plays gamecube games so your getting two systems for one price. also you can download old nintendo and super nintendo games for it. If you get that, I suggest you get mario galaxy, my cousins have that game and its sooooo fun!

I have a gameboy advance, a game cube, and a super nintendo. I like my super nintendo best. It has good graphics(for the time they were state of the art) and you can buy the games for as little as a buck and as high as you want depending on the game. Ebay is your friend.

 

Yea, that's kind of why I don't want one. Really though, I think it's the best system for your kids. They'll have more fun with the games than the other systems and really won't care if they don't have the cutting edge of graphics and game size.. and you can get the craziest assortment of controllers.

I really like the Wii's they look really nice.. and they seem to get the users up and moving instead of sitting on their rumps...

 

I think we have about every system that hit the market.. we even had one with some kind of a hedge hog that zipped every where.. the system stunk but we had it anyway.. my son is a PS3 addict. but for me I'm diggin the wiI LOL. for a younger one I would go with the wii.

 

Another note: Rock Band and Guitar Hero are games that are pretty good for kids. They're releasing them for a wide range of systems. It's a bit expensive to get the equipment, but it requires more focus on hand-eye coordination than most video games, encourages activity (it's really hard to play the guitar sitting down. You've got to sit to play the drums, but the kick drum gives the calves a workout), and gets the kid interested in a wide range of music (Guitar Hero III has something like four decades' worth of rock in its repertoire). A friend's 8-year-old loves both games, and would rather play them over the sit-down games like Star Wars Lego.

 

IMO, WiI will be a good choice. A player can be active while playing rather than sitting down like a couch potato.

 

Yea, I love the new gaming system idea, if they had this about 10 years ago their would be a lot less obese kids ... Then again if the parents did like mine it would work out too.. I was aloud 1 hour after dark, after homework, after chores.... and the after dark made me still want to go out to play... (of coarse I still grew up in the generation when I was 14 we were climbing trees and riding bikes not dating and drinking)...

 

I have 3 teen-aged sons and I think we have owned all most every game system made in the past 15 years. I am NOT a big fan of video games at all. In fact, I generally hate them and think they are nothing but a big waste of time.

HOWEVER, I do love our Wii. The games are fun and encourage a little bit more physical activity from the players. They also seem to encourage inter-action in between those playing it more than any other system we've had. Even I'll sit down and play it with my guys, which I've never done with the other systems.

 

That's what I thought about the wii....
I have forbid gaming systems in my home... this is why I am looking at each one.. and if the wiI hadn't came out I prb wouldn't even consider it...

not only that.. I can get addicted to them as well easily!
just give me Zelda (that was my old addiction) and I will go w/o sleep for a month

 

Wii

All in all the WiI is my 1st choice for ANYONE that is not into the big graphically intense games,or the normal gaming type games IE..just using your thumbs.

The WiI is use ALOT in senior center to get the residence up and moving a bit,and it is use in physical therapy to help people regain some range movement.

Dance Dance Revolution for the WiI would also be a good game. That game will get your heart pumping and you'll be sweating like a pig before you can say DDR.
DDR might be a bit hard for a 6 year old but you never know. The game cost $70 as it comes with the game disk and a dance pad.

There is a game coming out tomorrow called WiI Fit. That will run you $90 but is has the game and a balance board. The game has some balance related games and you can do yoga,aerobics,and one more thing that I can think of now.

If you ANY question about the WiI or ANY game that you are thinking of getting just give me a PM if you want.

I hope all this info help you out.

 

This is a personal thing, but I think that forbidding a gaming system isn't necessarily the way to go (and you're looking at them, so that's good). Better to set ground rules. I was a bit older when I got my system, and I had to raise half of the funds for mine. It took me half a year to do. Then, I was told that I had a limited time on the system.
The friend I referred to has his own systems (because he got into video games as a kid), so his kids didn't need to work for it, but they need to work for the privilege to play the games. Any tantrums, hitting anyone, trouble at school, not doing homework, and they don't get to play. For every hour of playing video games, the kids do three or more hours of playing with each other or playing with the neighbor kids.
The other thing to do is to research the games your kids want to play. So many parents just buy a game *cough*GTA*cough*, ignoring the salesperson's warning that the game is not for kids, and then have the gall to complain that this game was made for kids. There are plenty of family-friendly games out there (the WiI has a larger percentage of them, but you still need to pay attention, there are a couple of games for Teen or Mature audiences). This won't be as much of an issue at age 6, but by age 10, your kid may be asking for Grand Theft Auto 6, or God of War 4, or some other inappropriate title.
A good resource for this is . It's a website written by parents who also are gamers (or maybe gamers who also are parents) for parents who aren't gamers. It's meant to help parents make informed decisions about games without having to buy and try games.

 

I have decided to stick to the rules that my parents set for me w/ the games, good grades on a report card got me a new game, keeping up w/ chores, homework equaled gametime.... then I got games on christmas and my birthday... (of coarse I can remember when my dad had his mining accident him being a night owl, I would wake up at 2am and my tv would be on, and low and behold my dad would be kicked back in my room playing tetris or zelda lol I was a sound sleeper then its amazing the memories I have of my dad right before he passed that was about 11 months before)

anyways I personally need the exersise myself using the wiI if I am going to play a video game... easier said than done I bet.. my treadmill has more dust on it than anything in my house... and I have considered getting rid of it to put a fish tank in its place... sad huh?
No actually my oldest last night had terrible leg pains from feild day, and I saw a huge need for him to get a regimin of treadmill on rainy days, outside running/walking and stretching and other exersise as well as his outside playing... I am going to be doing this along w/ him.
He starts football in about a month and I don't want him to kill over on the feild the first day of practice.... besides I need the exersise too.... (what I don't understand hes not overweight, hes skinny!)

 

This thread brought back a lot of memories for me. My first gaming system was the Colleco Vision that my parents bought for my sister and I back when I was two or three! I've had almost all of them and I still have each system that I bring out from time to time. Our AtarI 800XL is still my favorite!

The system I'd recommend for your kids would have to be the WiI even though I haven't played it. I don't know how your kids are(and I hope they aren't like this) but if they are the type that would just rather go onto the computer for hours on end talking to their friends on MSN messenger then the WiI would be a good choice because they would not only be playing video games but getting some exercise too. I think that's one of the reasons why the WiI is so popular because you are actually up and moving about while playing the games. I would certainly love to give this system a try if I had the chance!

 

I am probably never gonna get "mother of the year" LOL.. I only have the one kid.. he pretty much got what he wanted when he wanted it .. I never put limits on anything.. he always got good grades and always was and is a good kid so I guess we did ok raising him..

 

After Final Fantasy & Kingdom Hearts, that's my favorite series and I'd love to play Twilight Princess on the Wii.

not only that.. I can get addicted to them as well easily!
just give me Zelda (that was my old addiction) and I will go w/o sleep for a month

 

Twilight Princess was really, really, REALLY awesome. The title character is absolutely great.

 

WiI is the best bang for your buck. I have a PS3 and a Wii, I love them both equally, the PS3 is more of a single player system its not that great for multilayer, most of the games are just first person and IMO geared towards an older market. The WiI I find I only play it when I have people over and it doesn't matter who. Young old good with technology or still in the stone age everyone gets the games and they are just plain fun. They even have a WiI in the old folks homes so that they can still go lawn bowling.

 

For a 6 year old kid, your best bet would have to be the Wii. We have the PS3, XBOX360, and a Wii, and the only thing my daughter will play is the Wii. It also is the only system my wife will play with our daughter on. When on a rare occation she plays the XBOX 360 my wife won't play it.

 

I would say for video games get a game system. For working up a sweat and being active go outside. I don't think you need to mix the two. For a 6 year old I'm sure hes boundcing off the walls anyway. Get him a used PS2 or a used Xbox. There are some great games out there. if you look on ebay you can get either system with a whole bunch of games for less than just one of the new gen systems.

Just do it like your parents did. Give an alotted time per day that he can play. And be strict about it because I know I got more than I should have in video games. Now all I do is play basketball and baseball and go out.

 

Wyatt loves to be outdoors (I have to bring him and his brother in kicking and screaming).. there are days though when its impossible to let him go, and when those days are to get him exercise in the house and the video game he wants would be nice...

 

I would say for video games get a game system. For working up a sweat and being active go outside. I don't think you need to mix the two.

It's not a question of whether or not you need to mix the two (and I think that the state of America's youth would suggest that there is), but rather, is there a reason to not?
Aside from that, the best PS2 and especially the best XBox games are for teen or mature audiences. There are good kid games out there, but WiI is sinking the majority of its money into good family games, while Sony and Microsoft were (and still are) focusing on better games for lifetime gamers such as myself.

 

It's not a question of whether or not you need to mix the two (and I think that the state of America's youth would suggest that there is), but rather, is there a reason to not?
Aside from that, the best PS2 and especially the best XBox games are for teen or mature audiences. There are good kid games out there, but WiI is sinking the majority of its money into good family games, while Sony and Microsoft were (and still are) focusing on better games for lifetime gamers such as myself.

What sold me mostly on the wii,besides being more of an active game is being able to get the older nintendo games for it like super mario, zelda... the ones I know and grew up w/... I know then that they will not be the adult oriented games that playstation 2 has... I would much rather my child get into a good game of super mario and know what he is playing...

 

That's another awesome aspect of it. And not just nintendo games. They carry sega, turbografix, 3DO, and other systems' games, as well.
Just be careful when buying games at the store. The biggest thing a parent can do is just look at the rating of the game. If the rating is teen or mature, a parent probably wants to find out why before buying it for their kids. I wonder if some parents just think "it's a video game, there can't be anything really objectionable in it."

 

Wii's is a wonderful gaming system....It is halarious to watch how intense the gamers become....We also have X-box...The guitar hero game is cool but most of the other games for X-box seem to be "R" rated....

 

Wii's is a wonderful gaming system....It is halarious to watch how intense the gamers become....We also have X-box...The guitar hero game is cool but most of the other games for X-box seem to be "R" rated....

Yeah watching my daughter play tennis on the WiI is more fun then actually playing the game. She yells when she swings the controler, jumps off her bed. You would think she was actually playing tennis.

 

The bowling is a hoot!

 

With all of the games that I have bought for my Wii, the only one she plays is the WiI sports game that came with it. And on it she only plays the tennis and bowling.

 

Does she have the tennis racket controller?

With all of the games that I have bought for my Wii, the only one she plays is the WiI sports game that came with it. And on it she only plays the tennis and bowling.

 

The Manic Hedgehogs name was Sonic the Hedgehog
Carol

 

We have just about all of the systems out there (along with 4, 7, and 16 year old boys!) There is no question that I would recommend the WiI especially for your 6-year-old. Not only does it promote some activity, but it has brought lots of family time to our household. We can all get in to a good game of bowling or baseball and it has lots of games that all ages can play.

 

I have completly checked the systems out now... its a def go on the Wii... I love it... so that is what we will be buying.
Since its so expensive, it will be a save and buy..
but walmart has them for like 250 for just the system... so its not bad...
but we will be wanting to get all the controlers, and then I will be yelling for games, then my husband, and of coarse wyatt....
That will I am sure be another 200..... once we all get the games/controllers we want, that day...

and I'm putting off a fish tank for this people... big compromise here.... my 90g is being put off for this!

 

!! Talk about sacrifice!

and I'm putting off a fish tank for this people... big compromise here.... my 90g is being put off for this!

 

for a 6 year old, the wiI will be the best choice - a lot of kid friendly games even as the kid grows up. it's also the best system for getting the family together to play. ps3 and 360 will have the games that have violence, but you can worry about that in another 6 years.

 

I just played GTA 4 on ps3 and it was awesome!! but for the kid wii.

 

The WiI is also the cheapest of the new systems. The console, the controllers and the games are all cheaper because its not as focused towards high end graphics and super involved games. It could be a really good way to connect with ur little guy through doing an activity that he wants to do. Plus, its just another way to wear him out so that he will sleep well and he can get exercise when its raining.

Me and my other half are actually considering getting one ourselves. I really want the WiI fit system. It'll be my first game console ever and the first one for my bf since the super nintendo. One big tip with it tho is, Dont forget to wear the wrist straps!!!!! Controllers can, and do go flying, often towards the TV screen if you dont.

 

Wii/PS2/3

Sorry so late to reply - Just saw this. WiI is a good system that will grow with you. Since it is a newer system, it will be around longer. Newer costs more, but if you buy older systems, they end up phasing them out and you end up with no new games.
Have fun