Games to get friends into gaming

[hermes]

- Journey is pretty good. A moving story with fairly simple controls and mechanics.
- Portal 2 is a good choice too since the difficulty ramps up great. Also, unlike Portal 1, there are no puzzles that require fast movement and tight timing.
- In a more casual way, Plants vs Zombies is a good game and a masterpiece in terms of pacing and introducing new elements constantly without overwhelming the player.

 

[viranimus]

Hrm...

Honestly? The first thing I would do is likely go Magic the gathering in physical format. You teach them relatively simple gameplay mechanics and concepts that transcend into MANY arenas of gaming, while keeping it in a friendly face to face social gaming experience. Relatively cheap to get started up and easy to teach. Plus the face to face social aspect will drive them if they enjoy the game, to get others into it as well.

Something a little less involved I would say Fat princess. Honestly I have YET to encounter a female personally who did not adore the game (usually when they realize one objective can be to make another girl fat) But that aside, the gameplay is very simple, and easy to get into. Hell, I even got my own mother to play and her first match (offline of course) she won.

Theres seemingly plenty of other choices from others, so ill only offer 2, because number 3 is obviously Dark Souls

 

[Hylke Langhout]

The answer is always Psychonauts. It has a great difficulty curve and brilliant writing along with an appealing art style. It's also not expensive on Steam or GOG.com.

A lot of the simpler point and click games like Phoenix Wright or Professor Layton could work as well. Of course Pokémon is an excellent introduction to gaming.

I'm gonna chime in with the people saying the LEGO games, especially Star Wars and Indiana Jones. Not difficult and still not boring.

 

[MindFragged]

I've got a few friends, mostly female, who have expressed a desire to get into gaming and I imagine a lot of you have too.

Ha, what? You imagine I have friends? Friends who are women?!

You're adorable.

OT: Why not just tell them about as many games as you can think of that might appeal to them, and let them decide whether they like the sound of something? Tell them where they can download game demos, let them try things for themselves. I don't think picking a game for them is a good idea, because you're basically saying "I expect you to enjoy this, it is tailored to you", and then if they don't enjoy it I imagine it could have a negative effect on their perception. "If that's the game he thought was best for me," they'll think, "and I didn't like it, that must mean I don't really like games"

Stranger things have happened

I get your point, but that's why I added I was going the cerebral route, as I know those are the kind of games the friends in question would enjoy.

I don't know why, but Dragon Age Origins seems to be the magic game for my friends.

Interesting. Wouldn't have thought to suggest an RPG, but fair play!

That said, I would, perhaps add Assassin's Creed and Shadow of the Colossus to the mix. If you have a PS3, Flower is also fantastic.

Regrettably, I have no PS3. If I did, I would show SOTC off so much

 

[SonicWaffle]

I've got a few friends, mostly female, who have expressed a desire to get into gaming and I imagine a lot of you have too.

Ha, what? You imagine I have friends? Friends who are women?!

You're adorable.

OT: Why not just tell them about as many games as you can think of that might appeal to them, and let them decide whether they like the sound of something? Tell them where they can download game demos, let them try things for themselves. I don't think picking a game for them is a good idea, because you're basically saying "I expect you to enjoy this, it is tailored to you", and then if they don't enjoy it I imagine it could have a negative effect on their perception. "If that's the game he thought was best for me," they'll think, "and I didn't like it, that must mean I don't really like games"

Stranger things have happened

I can't think of many!

I get your point, but that's why I added I was going the cerebral route, as I know those are the kind of games the friends in question would enjoy.

How do you know, though? There isn't really much to base it on. Perhaps they like slow, ponderous contemplations on human nature when it comes to books or movies, but there's no way of knowing whether that will translate into video games. They might prefer a game that's wholly unlike their preferences in other media; you think they'll like cerebral games based on what you know they like, but maybe if you put a controller in their hand all they're going to want to do is play Madden or run around farting on people in Saints Row.

I say again, in my opinion the best thing to do would be to present them with a whole range of options and let them discover their own tastes. Guide them towards things you think they'll enjoy, certainly, but don't railroad them into games based on what you imagine they will want to play. That way might just end up with them resenting you, feeling like they have to play a game even if they don't like it, because you told them it was perfect for them.

 

[Baralak]

That said, I would, perhaps add Assassin's Creed and Shadow of the Colossus to the mix. If you have a PS3, Flower is also fantastic.

Regrettably, I have no PS3. If I did, I would show SOTC off so much

Shadow of the Colossus is also on PS2, and can be found for under $10.

 

[Fluffythepoo]

Assuming theyd have no console and bad computers:
1. Super Meat Boy
Runs well on a potato and has all of 3 game mechanics.
2. Torchlight or Diablo 2
Can run on 10 year old potato and easy to learn clicky clicky fun. The choice of which would be based on their tastes.
3. Call of Duty
Id rather portal, but it wouldnt run on a facebook machine and cod is a good introduction to fps games

If they had a relatively new mac or something along those lines:
1. Portal
Quick, farly easy, and obscenely funny.
2. Darksiders
Pretty much a faster-paced more adult version of zelda. Perfect balance of combat and problem solving, plus it looks great.
3. Halo
A simple fps with a great story, a nice way intodice someone to fps games


id just give them my copies of those games (or dl them off my steam) so itd cost 0$