Being a mom to kids that play video games is different than being a mom to kids that are super into sports, or music or just about anything else. I don’t spend my time after work (or before sometimes) running kids around to various activities. I don’t have to coordinate schedules around sporting events or concerts or academic type things. Which is why we have a family video game night instead of a movie night or something else.
What I do have to do is coordinate video game time, online interactions, and monitor screen time. I have to kick them outside to play for a little bit each day and have to research games and consoles to make sure that they are not playing anything too inappropriate. I don’t spend my time trying to entertain them when we are all home, because we have two different game systems and they have tablets that they play on too.
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Family Video Game Night
Something that I found to be helpful in getting them to spend time with each other and us is to make family video game night. We have one or two nights a week where we all play video games together.
The littlest one and I usually just watch the older two play Minecraft with their dad, because it’s just easier. Every once in a while I will join in on my laptop because one of the cool things about Minecraft is that it is cross-platform.
This means that dad and the middle one can play on the Xbox One in the living room, the oldest can play on the PS4 in the bedroom and I can join in from my phone.
You do have to have copies of the game for each console, but you can pick them up easily at Game Stop.
If you are not familiar with the game (where have you been?) it is an open world-building game. It can be played on or offline and people spend hours or days creating elaborate worlds within the game.
Even though this is our go-to game, there are others that are great for families to play together (or against). Most allow two players, but there are some that can have more. You can always swap out the controller between players for different areas or levels of the game.
Here are some of the other games that we have played and the age groups that they are most appropriate for.
Games for younger kids
- Scribblenauts
- Lego games
- Rayman
- Sonic
- Spyro
Games for tween and up
- Kingdom Hearts
- Subnautica
- Plants vs. Zombies
- Sea of Thieves
- Gears of War
Related Reading: Why video games are good for kids or Gamer Gift Guide
Xbox One only games
- Halo Series
- Sea of Thieves
- Gears of War
PS4 only games
- Knack
- Grand Turismo Sport
- Street Fighter
Nintendo Switch
- Super Mario Kart
- Mario Party
- Super Smash Bros.
The controller for the Xbox One is larger and harder for smaller kids to use, but the PS4 controller has a slimmer design so it would be better for younger kids that have smaller hands. The Nintendo Switch has flatter controllers that are better for smaller kids and a lot of their games are a little more kid friendlier than the other consoles.
It really doesn’t matter which game console or game that you choose if you do a family game night. The only thing that really matters is that it is a good fit for your family and the games are right for your kids.
One of the reasons that we love family game night in our house is because we talk about the game as we play, suggest ideas, and help each other out. For us, this is a great bonding experience that we can have over something that everyone enjoys.
Final Thoughts on Why You Need a Family Video Game Night
What do you think about the idea of a family video game night? Let me know in the comments!
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