A Christmas Question for an Eight Year Old Boy

[wberdan]

Hi all,
I would like to send my girlfriends son a bundle of either a PS2 or a Gamecube.

I was wondering- Which do you think would be better for an eight year old, and which 5 games for each system are mandatory (as in super fun) for an eight year old boy? (They already have a dvd player- so lets not think about that PS2 advantage)

Normally, I would know this stuff- but I have been out of the loop for a while, and I really want to get this kid something that will surprise him (I'm not telling his mom before hand either.. it will probably arrive by mail "from santa")



Thanks for any help or suggestions- I would really, really appreciate it!


willie

[DeputyMoniker]

For an 8 year old...the GC would be the better decision. Considering his mother doesn't know you're purchasing it for him, you wouldn't want to buy him something that will require a whole lot of parental attention.
As for the games, I dont have a GC but my nephew does. He digs Star Wars Battlefront 2 and Mario Kart. He may have been playing SWBF2 on his PS2 though...

[Bratwurst]

Ditto on the Gamecube, I recently just acquired one and have some suggestions. They're really no brainers but if you truly don't have a clue here goes:

Luigi's Mansion
Metroid Prime (Might be too serious/violent, I don't think so though)
Pikmin
Sonic Heroes
Super Mario Sunshine
Super Monkey Ball
Wario World
Zelda: Wind Waker

Most of these are Players Choice titles which should make them very affordable.

Some titles to avoid since we're talking about an 8 year old here:

The Resident Evil games (too gory and violent)
Viewtiful Joe (Maybe.. cartoony violence but rated Teen)

[wberdan]

yeah cool- his mom is somewhat leniant on the game front, and he has used a ps2 before- good ideas though- i havn't bought a gamecube game myself in what seems like three years now.. so i didn't know if there were any new kid must haves

thanks, and any further suggestions on kid 'cube games would be appreciated too


willie

[Pantechnicon]

thanks, and any further suggestions on kid 'cube games would be appreciated too

Animal Crossing. An absolute must. My son started playing it when he was 8 and still plays the hell out of it at just over 9. Plus if your girlfriend's not familiar with the game it will score major mom points with her the game is zero violent and infinitely cute.

[drwily008]

I agree with the Gamecube suggestion. Some of the best games for all ages are listed below (I own or will own most of these):

-Animal Crossing
-Mario Kart Double Dash
-Super Smash Bros. Melee
-F-Zero
-Harvest Moon (these are ones I suggest in my store all of the time- I actually had a little girl tell me she cried when her cow got sick)
-Crash Bandicoot
-Mario Party 4,5,6,or,7 (there is a reason they made SIX sequels)
-Mario Golf
-Mario Tennis
-Wario Ware (you will find yourself playing this with him!)
-Super Mario Sunshine

Well those are some of the best. Nothing else is jumping to mind right now. I know it's alot of Mario games, but they are usually instant classics.

I would also use his disposition to decide which to buy, if you think that he will think those are "baby games"....maybe a PS2 would be best. Hope this helps!

[dbiersdorf]

GameCube for sure! Five games? Hmm, that's difficult.

- Super Mario Sunshine
- Pokemon Colosseum/XD/Channel
- The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
- Pikmin 2
- Rayman 3