This post is sponsored by Best Buy
When our kids were little, their holiday wish lists made sense because they were made up of things we understood but as they get older, items on their lists can suddenly feel like a foreign language. In the blink of an eye, Legos, Star Wars, ponies, and princesses seem are replaced with things that our kids can talk about endlessly but leave our heads spinning as we try to make sense of what they are and why they’re so important.
If you feel this way about video games, you’re not alone. Gaming has the ability to bond kids because of shared interest but tends to leave most parents feeling left out especially as they talk about new games featuring familiar characters even if they’re set in unknown worlds.
“If you don’t play games yourself, it can be intimidating to have a child who is into video games” writes Ben Kuchera in Raising a Healthy Gamer: Seven Tips for Parents. “You don’t understand the hardware. The controller looks complicated. You don’t get the games.” Instead of viewing gaming as a huge divide between generations, Ben advises parents to take an active role when it comes to gaming.
How to Not Feel Left Out When Your Kids Play Video Games
Learn the Lingo
There’s so much to learn and if your resident gamer is impatient with your request to become proficient in all things gaming, there’s always the internet. Do your homework and conduct some research and I bet they’ll be impressed that you took the time to learn on your own. Here are some things to look into:
- Different gaming platforms– Xbox, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Windows 10…What do you have and why does your child prefer one platform over the other?
- What kinds of games your kids love to play– Do they gravitate toward driving games, role playing games, survival games, or shooter games? You can find an entire list of video game genres on Wikipedia.
- The games they wish they could play– What is on their wish list and why?
- How to play video games they love– There are no shortage of videos with tips on how to play video games on YouTube and if you’re wondering about the secrets to the controllers, you can find those on there too!
- How games are rated– The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) assigns age and content ratings for video games and apps indicating the appropriate age group and content that is in the game. The ESRB enforces video game advertising guidelines and helps ensure responsible privacy practices for the video game industry so take a look at what games you have in your house. Is what your kids playing really appropriate given their age? You can double check on Common Sense Media and if you have concerns, talk to your child about them.
Ask to Play Video Games with Your Kid
Photo by JESHOOTS.COM on Unsplash
Put your ego aside and ask your resident gamer to play video games with you when they’re not with their friends. Yes, they will be better than you but time spent learning and having them beat you is better than no time at all. And you might just surprise them with knowledge gained by watching those YouTube videos!
Familiarize Yourself with the Accessories
You’ve mastered the lingo and your game play is improving and time spent bonding with your young gamer might lead to them telling you that game play can be improved with the right accessories. Now that you’ve waded into the gaming waters, take a trip to your local Best Buy to check out accessories like mechanical keyboards, elite controllers, driving wheels, hard drives, and gaming headsets like Turtle Beach Stealth 700 for Xbox One.
Made by Turtle Beach, the Stealth 700 isn’t just any gaming headset. Your gamer will be impressed when they realize it’s the first premium wireless surround sound gaming headset that connects directly to the Xbox One family of devices, including the new Xbox One X they covet. The wireless technology connects the headset directly to the console in the same way the controllers work, eliminating the need for USB transmitter, base station, and wires.
Active Noise-Cancellation helps keeps gamers focused on game play by filtering out environmental noise while Bluetooth connectivity allows them to take calls and listen to their favorite Spotify playlists during game play. Even when using Active Noise-Cancelling and Bluetooth functions, the battery in the Stealth 700 should last 10 hours and can be extended to 15 hours when these features are turned off.
The Turtle Beach Audio Hub app (free on Google Play or iTunes) allows gamers to control settings from for iOS and Android device and is a way they can keep their headset up to date with the latest software and firmware so it will always be at peak performance.
In addition to all these great features, Stealth 700 are optimized for comfortable game play. Leather wrapped ear-cushions are lightweight. They also feature Turtle Beach’s unique ProSpecs™ glasses friendly design.
It isn’t unusual for premium wireless gaming headsets with these features to be well over $200 but Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Wireless Surround Sound Gaming Headset for Xbox One is currently available at Best Buy for $119.99. Any gamer will tell you that this is a great value for what you get in terms of quality audio, comfort and features and would love to unwrap these this holiday season.
Whether or not you go home with the Stealth 700s or a new game that you both agree on, you’ve inserted yourself into your kid’s world by learning about the games they love. Keep the lines of communication open by continuing to play and learn and one day you’ll find that you don’t feel so left out.
The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.
