Lunchtime Discussion: Family Gaming

So it’s Easter this weekend, and I bet a lot of you are going home to get some chocolate and maybe see your wonderful (or not) family. I know I’m certainly shooting off sometime tomorrow morning, mostly because I get free food from someone who can actually cook. Also I love my family etc… Man I hope none of them have started reading TSA recently.

Anyway my mum has informed me that she has a board game planned to go along with lunch, and that got me thinking about playing games with your family. One of my earliest memories is playing the original Sonic with my dad, it was the starting point of my whole life’s gaming trajectory. Sadly my dad doesn’t really play games any more, I think they’ve gone a bit beyond what he can manage. He did used to play up until about half way through the PS1′s lifecycle, but he seems to have given up completely since then.

My mum, on the other hand, can’t stand video games. She has no problem with me playing them, but she can’t really get involved in anything that isn’t Pac-Man. Sure Pac-Man is awesome, but we’ve move on a little since then. I’d loved to get her involved in modern gaming, the same goes for my dad. Involving them in something I absolutely love would be great, in the same way that I’d love to get my girlfriend engaged in comic books. Sadly I haven’t found the magic formula in either case, although I can play pretty much any racing game with my step-dad.

So what about you? Do you game with your parents, or is it something you just share with family members closer your age? I know I’ve played a lot more Halo 3 with my brother than my total gaming time with my parents. If gaming is a communal activity for your family what do you play and what would you recommend?

I know I tease my family in this discussion, but I love each and every one of them.