So my 10 yo son currently has an xbox 360. He's asking for a Nintendo Switch for Christmas but I'm wondering if he really knows what it is or if he's just repeating what his friends have told him to ask for. I'm wondering if I should go ahead and get him that or an Xbox one or Playstation 4 instead. I'm old and not a gamer so i need some advice. Thoughts?
Should I get my son a Nintendo switch
- Thread starter OPButtrey
- Start date
Cyclonepride
Thought Police
I've heard really good things about it, though he's probably going to grow out of that type of game in 3-4 years, so it's a tough call.
I had the same scenario when I the original Wii came out. I was 12 and made sure mom and dad knew I wanted that for christmas. Ended up getting hardly any game time and got an xbox 360 the next year. I'd go with the xbox or ps4.
I would ask him what games he wants to play on the Switch. Nintendo always has kid appropriate games, but they do struggle in the Teen game section so Pride might be right about staying power.
A Switch is pretty expensive if he's going to grow out of it.
My 10 year old loves playing games on the PS4 and I know they will have games for that that he can play until he's well into his teens or older.
I think they do have some more Teen level games for the Switch, but it still seems gimmicky to me with the controller and the handheld portion.
I grew up on Mario (hated anything else) and got one on release day for my 6-year old and I. We’ve played it every night after dinne since.
Mario Odyssey is frickin awesome, Mario and Rabbids is surprisingly awesome but a little more violent than I like for our son, and of course Mario Cart is the best in the series (a high bar).
I’ve never liked 99% of games on consoles but this was worth every penny even if no other game ever came out on it, even though there are several already announced for early next year we’ve preordered.
Don’t overthink the different controls as we’ve only used the side controllers that detach twice, we always use the pro wireless ones.
As a major Mario franchise fan that doesn’t care for Halo, war simulation games, FPS, etc it’s a perfect option. I do think it’ll have a long shelf life and it’s selling like crazy so the game devs have heavily committed.
Mario Odyssey is frickin awesome, Mario and Rabbids is surprisingly awesome but a little more violent than I like for our son, and of course Mario Cart is the best in the series (a high bar).
I’ve never liked 99% of games on consoles but this was worth every penny even if no other game ever came out on it, even though there are several already announced for early next year we’ve preordered.
Don’t overthink the different controls as we’ve only used the side controllers that detach twice, we always use the pro wireless ones.
As a major Mario franchise fan that doesn’t care for Halo, war simulation games, FPS, etc it’s a perfect option. I do think it’ll have a long shelf life and it’s selling like crazy so the game devs have heavily committed.
I have never enjoyed video games. One of my boys loves them, one is tepid. They both enjoy the switch.
Game of the Year Contenders:
Breath of the Wild - only on Switch
Mario Odyssey - only on Switch
It's 100% worth it.
Breath of the Wild - only on Switch
Mario Odyssey - only on Switch
It's 100% worth it.
My 9yo has owned a WiiU for years and really loves the Mario games. He went on and on about wanting an xbox one for his birthday this year so I broke down and got one for him..... he still plays his WiiU more often than not. It really comes down to which games/characters he likes. I have heard good things about the switch though.
On the other hand, the xbox one turns out to be a pretty nice little tool for watching Netflix/Amazon, it has a blu-ray player app that is pretty useful, and I have finally figured out how to download all the arcade games from my youth (Ms. Pac-Man rocks). Guessing the switch probably does all that as well, but the moral of the story is that modern gaming systems can be useful in ways beyond just playing games.
I just bought a Switch and I'm balls deep in some Mario Odyssey and it's awesome. Zelda is next. I wouldn't want the Switch to be my only console but Nintendo does their first party games so well.
I say definitely it's worth it.
You should throw the 360 away, get him a snow shovel and push mower and make him earn it if he wants it.
The Switch is awesome. I use it as a handheld much more than I thought I would. It even gives the wife a chance to watch her shows while I play on the same couch. Needs more games though.
Seems perfect for a 10 year old. You can take it on car rides and road trips. Play it in a room without a TV. It's Awesome.
I don't have the switch, but it looks awesome. Also, Skyrim came to the switch; not that you need to get your kid skyrim, but I think that shows that there will be more games for teens and adults on it. And I thought I saw that there was a way to get an actually controller for it. So if the motion controls get too gimmicky you can always go with that
Seriously dude? You've got to be kidding me. You're also the person that hands out tooth brushes on Halloween aren't you?
It comes with an actual controller. JoyCons have a dock that lets you use them as a controller when the console is docked and projecting to a TV.
There is a more traditional wireless controller (looks like an xbox controller) for $60. The JoyCon+Dock is kind of small in the hands of an adult but should be comfortable for a 10 year old.
We have a wiiU and PS4. Outside of sports, I'm having more and more issues with finding age appropriate games for the PS4 for our kids (oldest is 10). It seems everything is shooting and violent games on the PS and XBox anymore. Nintendo seems to have a much better selection for kids. My only issue with getting our kids a switch is that they want mariokart and splatoon 2 which don't seem to be a huge upgrade over the wiiU versions.
My 10 year old doesn't play video games often, but loves the Switch. Mario Cart is a blast and Mario Odyssey is wrapped and ready for Xmas
Didn't have the internet/video games growing up. Had 15k Hog spaces to take care of.
I'm not sure what people are talking about in "growing out" of the Switch. This isn't a gimmick platform like the Wii was. The switch is an actual console releasing actual games (including 2 of the top 5? titles of 2017). Of course it will never have the power of an XBone or PS4. But it's easy to get the value out of a Switch.
Good for you buddy!
This is a thread for someone specifically asking about a console. If you want to start a thread about how kids should work on a farm instead of video games, go right ahead. You can use that 'Post New Thread' button.
