The average age of a video gamer these days is 37, and 58 percent of them are male. That means the odds are pretty good that this Father's Day the man in the household will be getting video games on June 17 from their wives and kids. That's where this comes in.
Even though gamer households are getting more and more common, there's still a lot of well-meaning significant others out there that are going to go frogsticking without a light into a GameStop trying to pick up the perfect gift. This is a handy little guide designed you help you avoid some really common pitfalls.
This is the most common mistake, and you shouldn't feel bad about getting trapped because licensed games are designed to be traps from the get go. These are usually tie-ins for hit movies and TV shows like the Harry Potter series, or the Avengers. Most of the time they're highly rushed in order to get them onto shelves as part of the main vehicles merchandising, and that approach shows in the final product.
Not always. There have been a handful of stellar licensed releases such as Goldeneye, Ghostbusters, and more than half of the Stars Wars games ever made. The difference is, those games were made without any kind of massive Hollywood deadline looming over them, and allowed the designers to tweak and perfect them into hits.
But usually, yeah, licensed games are put on shelves to trick parents and significant others into buying what they think is the game version of the intended recipient's favorite film that week. Don't fall for it.
Dedicated video game stores, even the big chains, are one of the few places in the world you can still get excellent, personal service. I've never, ever gone into a GameStop and found a disinterested, uninformed employee. They love games, play games, and in general know what they're talking about.
So look through the games he has, write them down, and ask the folks behind the counter for a suggestion. I've done this for my wife on numerous occasions. She's addicted to old school, turn-based RPGs on the DS, and when she ran out of Final Fantasy games the clerk suggested I buy her Nostalgia. Likewise, when I ran out of God of War titles, my wife asked a clerk what to get next, and he suggested Dante's Inferno and Shadow of the Colossus.
Granted, they're not always right. Nobody is, which is why you should...
