1. a phone game (e.g. Angry Birds)
2. an "active" game (e.g. Wii Sports or Guitar Hero)
3. a lego game (e.g. Lego Star Wars 2)
4. a simple racer (e.g. Mario Kart)
5. a 2D platformer (e.g. Rayman Origins)
They should all be games that someone can pick up and play a few minutes of. For someone who is completely new to video gaming, it seems insane to force them to invest hours in something straight off. For someone who has never played
any video game before, a phone game seems perfect. The good ones have simple objectives, clear instructions, and a level can take less than a minute to complete.
In general, new games (with their better graphics and music) seem more likely to win someone over than retro titles. (They aren't a gamer, so they're not going to feel any nostalgia for pixels.) But the two most important factors are:
a) The game matches the individual's personal taste in media (e.g. low violence if they don't like violent films, or suitably "macho" if they have a strong aversion to anything "kiddy" or "girly").
b) The game makes as few assumptions as possible about the existing knowledge of the player.
Viva Pinata is a game my sister took to like a duck to water, despite having only played one other video game before (The Sims). It has a fully voiced tutorial and labels all tasks with the button on the Xbox360 control pad that needs to be pressed.
The_Lost_King said:
Dragon Age: Origins : I chose this one because it is one of my favorite games ever. Great story, great characters and s/he hasn't played videogames they won't feel the combat is bland(I don't feel it is bland but some might)
Mass Effect: Yes another Bioware game. This one has great combat, a maginificent story and the best characters ever(Garrus > Allistair and Leliana == Liara). I love these games and have been thinking about playing them again. I actually got one of my friends into the series. It is also pretty easy to learn. All you have to do is point your gun and shoot at things and maybe use some powers if you are a biotic/techie.
From my experience with friends and family members, games that focus heavily on story are a
bad idea. People who are new to video games are too distracted by the gameplay aspects to pay any attention to dialogue and cutscenes. When introduced to
Devil May Cry 4, my brother worried that he needed to understand everything that was said in the cutscenes in order to play the game.
