Gaming For The Holidays!

by Randy


Happy Holidays!

The Growing Up Gamers crew is getting ready for Christmas! As usual, our gift giving is heavily influenced by our gaming hobby. Sadly, I'm not going to ruin any surprises for people on our list (but we'll post pictures after the holidays of some fun game-inspired projects we've been working on!). But I will say that I hope those of you reading are enhancing your holidays with games. For parents out there, you're probably on board already if you are reading this blog, but in case you do need some convincing, here's 10 Reasons to Game With Your Kids.

You're probably already giving someone some games, though. And even if you aren't, you still may be playing some games with family members. Maybe for the first time! Julian wrote a great post about teaching games to people. It's full of useful tips for getting people to the table and gaming, and making that experience fun.

If you're gaming with the kiddos, the above tips are great, but this article by Angie is where it's at. She gives some excellent advice and considerations for gaming with the little ones. We've been playing games with our kids for years, starting very early and Angie really has some great observations to share. Common sense + teaching experience = WIN.

And also, if you happen to be into Magic: The Gathering (like us!!!), and introducing that game to others in on your agenda, you should check out this other article by Julian about Do's and Don't's For Teaching Someone To Play Magic the Gathering. Magic can be a complex game, but it doesn't have to be. I'm of the opinion that one of the Duel Decks sets would make a great gift, but make sure you take a look at that article first. Supplementing that with a couple tailor-made simple training decks could really get them up and running before introducing them to the wonderful complexity of the game.

And I want to wrap things up with a shout-out to our pals at the Wired GeekDad blog. I recommend following them (as well as our friends at GeekMom). GeekDad Jonathan has 5 Gaming Tips for the Holidays you might want to check out. The GeekDads & GeekMoms always have some great & geeky stuff up, so pop over sometime.

I hope each and every one of you has a wonderful holiday season! Spend some great quality time with your family and friends. We encourage you to play some games while you're at it  (make it a new holiday tradition!) but whatever you do, have fun and be safe. And if you have some holiday gaming tips of your own, please share them with us!