Good RTS for 6year old?

Engine101

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Any ideas of a good RTS game i could play with my 6yo nephew? His parents aren't doing a good job getting him into computers (that scares the crap outta me), so i thought i would try what workder for me, games. So, i'm trying to think of a good strategy game he and i could play together/against? Old C&C maybe? I dont' have kids, so i'm not sure what he's capable of grasping at that age, and especially since he's not all that comfortable with computers yet.

Ideas? Experiences?
 
I think that a RTS is a bit too advanced. There are plenty more kid-oriented games out there that you should start out with first. Unfortunately, I can't really name any of them, because it's been a while since there was a 6 year old in my house...
 
i he is really focused... age of empire 2 can be pretty good

but do not give him one if he cant focus for more than 3 minutes...
 
I use to play the orginal C&C at age 7-8. But what type of stuff is he interested in? Because if he is interested in Knights and stuff I would get him Age of Empires 2 like someone else suggested. Fun and some what educational :D
 
The Lord of the Ring's games might be good for him to play with you. They're pretty simplistic, but still fun.
 
He is very smart and focused(he loves sudoku). He does love knights and stuff right now, so maybe i should look at AE.
 
RTS might work but if you're trying to get him into computer gaming your goal should be to avoid frustrating him, so I'd probably look for something easier to play for a long time.

Thinking back, I played games like tank wars, you can find a pretty good clone of scorched earth here: ( http://www.charreddirt.com/ )



Maybe Armagetron ( http://www.armagetronad.net/ ) ?

Oh, and another thing that I think a smart focused kid might like is garry's mod ( http://www.steampowered.com/v/index.php?area=game&AppId=4000& ). It's like legos in a computer.
 
Any game where he can build a bunch of towers to hole himself in and then build up a pretty huge force to easily wipe out the enemy. Age of Empires II comes to mind, as does starcraft. Another thing to keep in mind is making some scenarios for him and making it a bit one sided in his favor (at least until he starts to get how to micro manage)
 
FalseGod said:
The Lord of the Ring's games might be good for him to play with you. They're pretty simplistic, but still fun.

I agree, the singleplayer campaign is very similar to the movie and on easy it shouldn't be too hard as long as dear ol' dad shows him the ropes. I'm sure he'll get a kick out of watching his Rohirum(sp?) trample over an army of orcs.
 
Ask him what he's into first, for example, dinosaurs, Knights, Westerns, Power rangers, futuristic etc

Then find a game that matches it, getting a kids attention for more than 10 minutes is going to be hard unelss its something they're inherently interested in to begin with.
 
eggrock said:
Hide & seek

rofl ... cloaking device FTW. :D

I remember playing Dune 2 at age seven ... I was hooked. Haven't stopped using computers since. :rolleyes:
 
You may try Perimeter. It's pretty unusual. There's one level that takes place on a pizza.
 
I know I'll probably be exiled from the Temple of Geek for this, but the best RTS for a 6 year old is playing outside. Not enough of that going on with the younger crowd these days. They'll have plenty of time to get into computers later. Now's the time to use their imagination, not a game designer's imagination.
 
shadowfax said:
I know I'll probably be exiled from the Temple of Geek for this, but the best RTS for a 6 year old is playing outside. Not enough of that going on with the younger crowd these days. They'll have plenty of time to get into computers later. Now's the time to use their imagination, not a game designer's imagination.

I'm gonna have to go ahead and agree here. I don't see any immediate need for a 6 year old kid to have games forced on him. He'll get enough of it at friend's houses and such if he's not getting it in his own home. If he wants them, then it becomes his parents' decision on what their kid can and cannot have. I know my parents would have beat the crap out of my uncle if he bought me games like that when I was in first grade.
 
shadowfax said:
I know I'll probably be exiled from the Temple of Geek for this, but the best RTS for a 6 year old is playing outside.
OUTSIDE?! Dude there's bears outside.

Meh, I can forgive a kid that doesn't like going outside in the colder months. Messing around in the snow is nice and all, but the minute the kid gets a cold it's not so much fun.

To get away from the war theme, I recommend a game like 1701AD. A simple supply&demand model, city building, trading, and not so much split-second reactions needed. It has 4-player multiplay too, so people can play together and build nice little empires in a passive environment. Or go to war with each other. Or gang up on the AI. Whatever.
 
SuperSubZero said:
OUTSIDE?! Dude there's bears outside.

Meh, I can forgive a kid that doesn't like going outside in the colder months. Messing around in the snow is nice and all, but the minute the kid gets a cold it's not so much fun.

To get away from the war theme, I recommend a game like 1701AD. A simple supply&demand model, city building, trading, and not so much split-second reactions needed. It has 4-player multiplay too, so people can play together and build nice little empires in a passive environment. Or go to war with each other. Or gang up on the AI. Whatever.

I heard their periods attract bears...

Hey what about rollercoaster tycoon? Its kinda complex but its a blast and totally appropriate for a young kid.
 
shadowfax said:
I know I'll probably be exiled from the Temple of Geek for this, but the best RTS for a 6 year old is playing outside. Not enough of that going on with the younger crowd these days. They'll have plenty of time to get into computers later. Now's the time to use their imagination, not a game designer's imagination.

qft
 
Outside ftw at 6 years old. Thats a little too early, in my opinion. If you do want to give him a game though, try to find a copy of one of the Commander Keen games, old, but simple. I played them when I was around that age.
 
SuperSubZero said:
OUTSIDE?! Dude there's bears outside.
You owe me a keyboard :D



Meh, I can forgive a kid that doesn't like going outside in the colder months. Messing around in the snow is nice and all, but the minute the kid gets a cold it's not so much fun.
You will not get a cold from being outside in the cold. Your core temperature will not drop assuming you're wearing proper outside clothing (and if the kid's not, what RTS to get him is the last concern that should be on someone's list). The kid will come inside LONG before his temperature would ever drop enough to have any health effects.
 
I would get the latest Sim City or Roller Coaster Tycoon. Sim City got me into games, and RCT was very addicting.
 
just get him some of the older classic games. the ones for $10 at walmart or whatever but get a variety not just rts because you dont know what he'll be into really.. you can get generals, quake, half life, simcity 4 for like $10-20 a piece and that way he'll find something he'll likely be able to grasp.
 
Try Sim Safari... its more geared toward kids and you can play in free roam mode or a scenario mode. Plus kids tend to like animals and building things.

Hell any of the Kids sims would be good, I mean they touch on the RTS part but aren't so complicated.
 
How about, instead of putting the child in front of a screen, play a boardgame with him, or with toy cars or legos....

You know....child stuff.
 
Engine101 said:
Any ideas of a good RTS game i could play with my 6yo nephew? His parents aren't doing a good job getting him into computers (that scares the crap outta me), so i thought i would try what workder for me, games. So, i'm trying to think of a good strategy game he and i could play together/against? Old C&C maybe? I dont' have kids, so i'm not sure what he's capable of grasping at that age, and especially since he's not all that comfortable with computers yet.

Ideas? Experiences?
I would go with Sim City 4, Zoo Tycoon, or the Roller Coaster Tycoon series. My daughter is 7 and enjoys the zoo and RC games.
 
forget RTS.. just get him a copy of Learn Programming in 21 Days and put him in front of a Linux box.. grown your own Bill Gates.. :D
 
ZeroH said:
forget RTS.. just get him a copy of Learn Programming in 21 Days and put him in front of a Linux box.. grown your own Bill Gates.. :D

wouldn't that be if the kid bought some other kid's code?
 
Speaking out of experince C&C games are the best for that age group or any age group for that matter. C&C TD, RA1, RA2 etc

Relativley easy resource managment and still one of the best RTS series IMO. AOE is a little to far i would say. I remeber when i was a kid i just blitzed on C&C all the time. Man i love those games and i still play them. Actually C&C is what got me into history. I found interest in the the whole Stalin, Hitler thing and my interest just kept growing.
 
I would recommend Rise of Nations. My son was about six when he started messing around with it. It's easy enough for a new gamer to grasp the basics quickly, and has enough custom game modes to be as deep as they want it to be.


 
fodder0 said:
Get him warcraft 1, 2, 3.

He has to beat them in order though.

I second this motion. The controls are simple, the graphics cartoonish. Although wc3 might be a bit above his age, warcraft 2 is definitely where it's at. :)

On the other hand, in your shoes i would get ahold of a super nintendo for your boy. There were some superb RPG's on it. And they would be more consistent in controls, for him to pick up. Alternatively, you may find an snes emulator to suit your needs, but i'm not sure that i can discuss that here.

ActRaiser is a fairly short rpg with side scrolling component. Fun and not too tough.
The Secret of Mana - Absolutely an AWESOME .........

You know, there are some times when going off on tangents is so easy, like thinking about RTS and fun older games, that you (read "me") start mixing up your thoughts with RPG's. (Very tasty brown ale helps). However, to erase the post at this point would be a true waste - you owe it to your 6 year old to introduce him to some classic / legacy games. Perhaps, even some legacy games that are RTS's ;)
 
simcity 2000 was my computer game of choice way back when. then age of empires 1.
 
ScYcS said:
How about, instead of putting the child in front of a screen, play a boardgame with him, or with toy cars or legos....

You know....child stuff.

Non themed Legos, Lincoln Logs, simple card games. Too bad Erector Sets is no longer being sold.
 
digitalman said:
Non themed Legos, Lincoln Logs, simple card games. Too bad Erector Sets is no longer being sold.
back when the lego technic sets wer awesome. knex used to be good too before they got all themed
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