Suggestions for Xbox 360 family games

[Brother Oni]

Rather than hijack the other thread, I figured I'd ask the question here.

A little impulse buying has gotten me a brand new Xbox360 in preparation for Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, however I've somewhat belatedly realised that watching me stick sharp pointy bits of metal into people isn't the most suitable thing for my children, therefore I need some suggestions on family games I can play with them.

About the only thing the shop had was Viva Pinata and I need some more ideas. I've been told that Lego Star Wars 2 has a dire control system, so I didn't pick that up.

Please no suggestions of 'buy a Wii' - buying another next gen console so soon is likely to get me lynched by the missus.

[tribble]

I can't remember, is there a version of Fusion Frenzy for the 360?

[warty goblin]

Not to pry, but how old are your kids? That makes a big difference in what I'd recommend.

I rather like Lego Harry Potter, and there's not gonna be anything objectionable in that. The controls are maybe a bit imprecise, but it's not like the game has any sort of meaningful penalty for dying, and the checkpoints are generous, so it really doesn't matter.

I have no idea if the 360 version is any good, but Supreme Commander 2 is pretty fantastic on the PC. There's a lot of explosions, but they're all robots. Mind you it's also not an easy or simple game*, but it's probably not inappropriate.


*Although I'm not sure this should really scare you away. The first game I ever played was Caeser III, and I absolutely loved it.

[Brother Oni]

I can't remember, is there a version of Fusion Frenzy for the 360?

According to wikipedia, there is. I'll have a look in the online shop once I've got everything hooked up.


Not to pry, but how old are your kids? That makes a big difference in what I'd recommend.

The oldest is 6 and she's the one who I'll likely be playing with. The other one is too small to do anything other than look at the pretty moving colours and stand in front of the TV while we're playing. :smallsigh:



I rather like Lego Harry Potter, and there's not gonna be anything objectionable in that. The controls are maybe a bit imprecise, but it's not like the game has any sort of meaningful penalty for dying, and the checkpoints are generous, so it really doesn't matter.


We've already played that on my sister's PS3, so while a Lego game is ideal, I'd like one that hasn't been played to death (90-ish% completion).



I have no idea if the 360 version is any good, but Supreme Commander 2 is pretty fantastic on the PC. There's a lot of explosions, but they're all robots. Mind you it's also not an easy or simple game*, but it's probably not inappropriate.

I've played the original SupCom on the PC, but unfortunately I've become too used to DoW/CoH mechanics and going back to economy focused RTS style gameplay was too much of a step back for me.

[Lhurgyof]

Red Dead Redemption.

[cdstephens]

My 9 year old brother plays Halo: Reach, but idk.

Lego Star Wars was a solid game imo. Kinect looks like it'll be family friendly as well.

[Brother Oni]

Red Dead Redemption.

I think you've got the wrong 360 recommendation thread.
I think filling people full of lead falls under the category of 'sticking sharp pointy bits of metal into people'. :smallamused:


My 9 year old brother plays Halo: Reach, but idk.

Lego Star Wars was a solid game imo. Kinect looks like it'll be family friendly as well.

Unfortunately, I can't play FPS games as I get motion sick.

I've heard mixed reviews about Lego Star Wars and I'd rather not splash out another 130 quid on a camera system at the moment (I can get a second hand Wii for that amount of money).

Thanks for the suggestions though - maybe there's a Lego game I've missed somewhere...

[Lhurgyof]

Ha, it was just a joke.

Try out Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts.

It's like Ren and Stimpy, but a little less surreal and violent.

[Airk]

All the LEGO games are fundamentally the same - I've played the demo for several of them, and they all have the same not-very-good control scheme and the like so just pick a franchise that appeals to you/your kids. I liked Indiana Jones, myself. If you liked one LEGO game, they're pretty much all like that.

Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE likes Plants vs Zombies, and while it's technically a "zombie game" and therefore can be, perhaps, a little creepy if you think about it too hard, it's cartoony and brilliant and fun and I would totally let my kids play it. Also now features coop and competitive modes.

I'd recommend Snoopy: Flying Ace, except if you get motion sick playing FPS games, I all but guarantee it will make you motion sick too.

Lucidity is fun but challenging, and a distinctly non-traditional gaming experience. Single player though, so more of a "fun to play while your kid watches" rather than "play with your kid".

Everyone should own Chime, and as a block placing puzzly sort of game with cool music aspects, there's nothing to worry about here either. Single player again though.

Geometry Wars 2 is a twinstick shooter, but it's glowy and abstract and involves nothing that's readily identifiable as more than a sparkly pixel, so it should be fine - co-op and competitive modes too.

The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom is a puzzler with a very interesting art style that, while technically single player, can be fun to cooperate with on the "What if you try going over there and doing that?" level.

That's what I've got off the top of my head. Lots of that stuff is Xbox Live Arcade stuff, which means you don't have to worry about finding a copy in a store, and you can play a demo to determine if it's worthwhile before you buy.

[Brother Oni]

Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE likes Plants vs Zombies, and while it's technically a "zombie game" and therefore can be, perhaps, a little creepy if you think about it too hard, it's cartoony and brilliant and fun and I would totally let my kids play it. Also now features coop and competitive modes.


If Plants vs Zombies now has a co-op mode, then I'm definitely getting it. :smallbiggrin:



I'd recommend Snoopy: Flying Ace, except if you get motion sick playing FPS games, I all but guarantee it will make you motion sick too.


I discovered an interesting thing last night: only PC based shooters make me motion sick.
I played Halo:Reach for over an hour last night with no effect whatsoever, so I reinstalled Halflife on my PC and it took less than 5 minutes of headcrab hunting with a crowbar before I had to go lie down.
I guess it's something to do with the speed of the camera and it being not so jerky using a control stick compared to using a mouse.



Geometry Wars 2 is a twinstick shooter, but it's glowy and abstract and involves nothing that's readily identifiable as more than a sparkly pixel, so it should be fine - co-op and competitive modes too.


This sounds familiar - was it previously released as a flash game?


Thanks for the excellent suggestions everybody. Hopefully this will be enough to stave off accusations of neglecting my children :smallbiggrin:

[Airk]

If Plants vs Zombies now has a co-op mode, then I'm definitely getting it. :smallbiggrin:

Yup. It's not super deep or anything; it's mostly two people working the same field, but there are a couple of quirks like double suns that can only be picked up if BOTH players go get them at the same time, and the ability for a player to "force butter" a zombie.




I discovered an interesting thing last night: only PC based shooters make me motion sick.
I played Halo:Reach for over an hour last night with no effect whatsoever, so I reinstalled Halflife on my PC and it took less than 5 minutes of headcrab hunting with a crowbar before I had to go lie down.
I guess it's something to do with the speed of the camera and it being not so jerky using a control stick compared to using a mouse.

Huh. Well, then you might like Snoopy: Flying Ace. It's not an FPS, but it's a surprisingly entertaining, if rather cartoony, flight combat sim. Might be a bit complex and challenging for a six year old though.




This sounds familiar - was it previously released as a flash game?

Don't...THINK so? I'm not super familiar with the history of the franchise, but it's not mentioned on the Wikipedia page.