Are there still consoles or options for kids if we don't want them exposed to the advertising and psychology of modern consoles?

[GoStormPlays]

2 minutes ago, whispous said:

Are you currently raising or have you raised children in the last decade?

Just because that's an older way of thinking doesn't mean that there's not anything to learn from his statement.

 

I, for one, would agree that screens should be kept to a minimum in younger years. I wouldn't go as far as to say no electronics, but very limited use of them isn't harmful. 

 

1 hour ago, da na said:

-Inexpensive

-Ad-free

-Minutes of fun

 

-Inexpensive (until your six-year-old boy falls off a tree and you have to pay medical bills)

-Ad-free (until you go on the roads)

-Minutes of fun (UNTIL LITTLE JOHNNY STARTS PUNCHING HIS SISTER LUCY BECAUSE LUCY WOULDN'T GIVE HIM A TURN WITH THE STICK THAT LOOKS LIKE A SWORD)

[wONKEyeYEs]

44 minutes ago, whispous said:

Are you currently raising or have you raised children in the last decade?

No, it's been a bit more than a decade, but my nieces and nephews are currently doing this and I support their decision.

47 minutes ago, whispous said:

And what are we thinking with "early ages", what age range is that?

From birth till, up to you, I can't make all your decisions for you. 

 

 

[whispous]

Interesting that it was immediately a defensive stance.

[Mark Kaine]

On 3/15/2024 at 4:29 PM, SpookyCitrus said:

Lol ok, then no modern console will fit your needs

they didn't say modern tho, also what is modern?

 

does a ps3 count? a ps4? an xbox 360?

because all those can be played offline, ps5 etc probably too... no popups, no ads... no gatchas...

 

 

that's besides there's a gazillion like retro style consoles that are top notch and probably don't even have online either. 

 

IF op is asking for a modern console to play online pew pew games without ads and season passes then this question makes no sense because that simply doesn't exist. 

 

but YES, semi modern consoles without ads etc do exist (just not necessarily current gen, which op did *not* specify as far i understand ,unless you just keep them offline i guess... )

[Mark Kaine]

14 hours ago, GoStormPlays said:

, for one, would agree that screens should be kept to a minimum in younger years. I wouldn't go as far as to say no electronics, but very limited use of them isn't harmful

i agree... no electronics would be bad cause they wouldn't be familiarized with, but limit screen time for sure - its actually super unhealthy,  not just for kids, but especially for kids.

 

i dunno back in the old days our parents didn't let us watch tv or play "atari" as much we wanted either...

 

most people nowadays should actually indeed touch grass more than just saying it as a meme - the truth is they're probably hella scared of actual nature ... its not something they can control like their smartphones and other gadgets,  so its probably better to stay away!  >.>

[Mark Kaine]

On 3/15/2024 at 4:13 PM, Elarion said:

The Switch, PS5, Xbox, and modern gaming PC are all clearly aimed at adults...tons of advertising no matter where you look, gambling mechanics, and just a consistent communication that no matter what you already have, you need to have more.

 

I very much prefer the older style of consoles, like the N64, SNES, Gamecube, original Xbox and Playstation. The only advertising that I was exposed to was whatever happened to be on TV or in a magazine. I didn't really have either of those. A single Mario game with garbage graphics was able to entertain my sister and I for months on end. We even had these little "VG Pocket" handhelds that were complete trash as well, but we thought they were the greatest thing ever as kids.

 

As we start to have kids, I don't want the big constant pop-ups all over their screens for the games, battlepasses, lootboxes, and subscriptions that they don't have. These are present on every modern console, no matter what you change the settings to. I can prevent them from buying them willy-nilly, but not from wanting/obsessing over them. Is the only option to seek out used ancient consoles? They get expensive fast, and aren't super reliable at this point.

 

Unless there's other options, we might just become a board game family. It's a shame, because gaming was very impactful for me, but I don't think it can be healthy for kids now that it's so heavily aimed at the psychological manipulation of adults.

you dont actually play vidoegames or do you? cause as i already said there's a gazillion of options,  even modern ones - what you're describing is more of a game choice problem than a "console" problem. 

 

Get a xbox, for example, dont let your kids go online, problem solved (has many retro emulator games too)

 

the real problem,  i think,  is you need to set it up, and actually control what your kids do - these consoles give parents all the options to not have ads and predatory battlepasses etc, you just need to actually do it.

 

[Mihle]

If you only give your kid old retro consoles/games, they will complain regularly if they have friends that game.

If you give them access to games that are newer, but doesn't have online features, lootboxes or battlepasses, they will most likely complain much less.

[Mark Kaine]

39 minutes ago, Mihle said:

If you live your kid old retro consoles/games, they will complain regularly if they have friends that game.

If you give them access to games that are newer, but doesn't have online features, lootboxes or battlepasses, they will most likely complain much less.

i mean yeah, kids probably *want* to play online shooters and stuff, i get that,  but as said if the parents don't want that there are options built-in (parental controls) to avoid almost all of this stuff. of course the kids will try to find workarounds,  that's why parents need to actually supervise this, have strong passwords, etc.

 

and honestly nothing wrong with kids playing video games,  but certain types like fortnite, cod, fifa... the predatory ones, they really shouldn't play them, even though they're mostly targeted at them... sure something like cod / other online shooters,  are also marketed as mature,  but that's exactly what draws kids in, and its on purpose. or fortnite with its cutsy artstyle... definitely made to make parents think its "probably harmless"... the gameplay might actually be, but not the predatory nature of it which is indeed all about milking the playerbase as much as possible.  

 

no, its not easy for parents,  but its certainly possible,  especially when a screen time limit is introduced *and* controlled. 

[SpookyCitrus]

10 hours ago, Mark Kaine said:

they didn't say modern tho, also what is modern?

 

does a ps3 count? a ps4? an xbox 360?

because all those can be played offline, ps5 etc probably too... no popups, no ads... no gatchas...

 

 

that's besides there's a gazillion like retro style consoles that are top notch and probably don't even have online either. 

 

IF op is asking for a modern console to play online pew pew games without ads and season passes then this question makes no sense because that simply doesn't exist. 

 

but YES, semi modern consoles without ads etc do exist (just not necessarily current gen, which op did *not* specify as far i understand ,unless you just keep them offline i guess... )

Read the title of OP's post?

[Beerzerker]

11 hours ago, Mark Kaine said:

they didn't say modern tho, also what is modern?

 

does a ps3 count? a ps4? an xbox 360?

because all those can be played offline, ps5 etc probably too... no popups, no ads... no gatchas...

 

 

that's besides there's a gazillion like retro style consoles that are top notch and probably don't even have online either. 

 

IF op is asking for a modern console to play online pew pew games without ads and season passes then this question makes no sense because that simply doesn't exist. 

 

but YES, semi modern consoles without ads etc do exist (just not necessarily current gen, which op did *not* specify as far i understand ,unless you just keep them offline i guess... )

I agree with this for the most part because for example, I have a PS3 and none of the things the OP is concerned about with it. What I use it for is 100% offline but in truth, that's expected with the age of the games and console itself since it seems about everything for it isn't able to go online anymore - I could be wrong about that but do consider the age of the console itself and games made for it.

With that it has no internet connection to it and it's Wi-Fi is disabled with no router password having ever been entered into the system.
I have some games for it too, enough that there is no shortage of "Something" to play and that's just for the PS3 itself.

I also have an NES, SNES, original X-Box and even a working Dreamcast system here so I'm set on consoles and plenty of games to go with all these collectively.
And I even have a "Nice" 27' CRT TV for these as well.

My PC games are all ones that have no online requirement just to play for good reason and that's the way I wanted it.

One source or "Root" of the problem has to do with things being "Online" these days.

No question that opens up and exposes the player to whatever is out there and ports it all directly to you, the gamer/user. I recall back when things like Valve and Steam were just getting started and I already knew being tethered to the web just to play a game would be trouble and that's why I never went that route. Instead I started leaning more towards consoles and games that didn't have a requirement to be connected to the web just to play them.

Of course these days the vast majority are all online and that's why I'm not a big gamer like I had been before, if I can't have the full version of a game to play and not be on the web just to play it, that one is just "Out" for me so I don't bother with it.

The games selected will be important and just keep in mind if it's something you may enjoy, that doesn't mean the kid(s) will like that one themselves so be open, yet discriminate about what is selected and played.
Just watch for things that might amount to requirements for being online to access "All features" of a game, that means to fully play it (If it can be played offline at all) you will have to connect it to the web at some point or even just to play it.

However the absolute best way to deal with it is really simple - Introduce them to other activities besides gaming.

There are still plenty of things that can be done without the worries of web exposure such as outdoor activities for example. Sports-related or just about anything to get them out of the house period will help to alleviate this problem and expose them to the world itself because, like it or not it's out there and they will have to learn how to deal with it sooner or later, preferrably sooner of course.

Just note this is my own take of it and these are only some suggestions about it - The OP can do or not do whatever they please since it is their choice after all.

 

[Mark Kaine]

1 hour ago, Beerzerker said:

I agree with this for the most part because for example, I have a PS3 and none of the things the OP is concerned about with it. What I use it for is 100% offline but in truth, that's expected with the age of the games and console itself since it seems about everything for it isn't able to go online anymore - I could be wrong about that but do consider the age of the console itself and games made for it.

With that it has no internet connection to it and it's Wi-Fi is disabled with no router password having ever been entered into the system.
I have some games for it too, enough that there is no shortage of "Something" to play and that's just for the PS3 itself.

I also have an NES, SNES, original X-Box and even a working Dreamcast system here so I'm set on consoles and plenty of games to go with all these collectively.
And I even have a "Nice" 27' CRT TV for these as well.

My PC games are all ones that have no online requirement just to play for good reason and that's the way I wanted it.

One source or "Root" of the problem has to do with things being "Online" these days.

No question that opens up and exposes the player to whatever is out there and ports it all directly to you, the gamer/user. I recall back when things like Valve and Steam were just getting started and I already knew being tethered to the web just to play a game would be trouble and that's why I never went that route. Instead I started leaning more towards consoles and games that didn't have a requirement to be connected to the web just to play them.

Of course these days the vast majority are all online and that's why I'm not a big gamer like I had been before, if I can't have the full version of a game to play and not be on the web just to play it, that one is just "Out" for me so I don't bother with it.

The games selected will be important and just keep in mind if it's something you may enjoy, that doesn't mean the kid(s) will like that one themselves so be open, yet discriminate about what is selected and played.
Just watch for things that might amount to requirements for being online to access "All features" of a game, that means to fully play it (If it can be played offline at all) you will have to connect it to the web at some point or even just to play it.

However the absolute best way to deal with it is really simple - Introduce them to other activities besides gaming.

There are still plenty of things that can be done without the worries of web exposure such as outdoor activities for example. Sports-related or just about anything to get them out of the house period will help to alleviate this problem and expose them to the world itself because, like it or not it's out there and they will have to learn how to deal with it sooner or later, preferrably sooner of course.

Just note this is my own take of it and these are only some suggestions about it - The OP can do or not do whatever they please since it is their choice after all.

 

you can still play some ps3 games online (officially) btw (Tekken 6 for example, and guess what there's no paid dlc, gatchas, etc) 

 

but yes, as said this generally seems to be a certain type of games issue and not a console one. 

[Mark Kaine]

1 hour ago, Beerzerker said:

Of course these days the vast majority are all online and that's why I'm not a big gamer like I had been before,

i wouldn't say so, probably more like 50/50, there's still tons of games that can be played offline just fine, or only have online for stuff like stats,  maybe some dlc, but still those can typically be played fully offline just fine too.

 

 

[Caroline]

PC with singleplayer/local coop games or emulators. You don't need another computer (a Pi) to do this.

No phone or a basic one that has the ability to install new software locked or behind a password, if that's even possible.

If you're in the US I know most schools hand out chromebooks to kids, while I find that sickening it's up to you to teach them to either use one or stay away from them, you can be sure I'll teach my kids to stay away from anything google, there are ways to learn how to properly operate a computer (with directory trees!!) that don't involve ads, political propaganda disguised as educative content, or paying for Adobe.