"WE NEED GAMES FOR KIDS" Topic

The clubs need to bring in young blood as the hobby has grayed. Games masters need to run (and advertise) games for kids to get them involved. At Historicon on Sundays it was tradition for many years to run Princess Ryan's Space (then Star) Marine. 10 to 20 kids would laugh and scream their hearts out. My kids grew up on that game and had a blast. It helped to get them interested. I am bringing that tradition back to Hurricon with a Star Wars game for kids using a modified version of TSATF. It will be Sunday at 9 am. I ask game masters to try to run modified versions of their games for kids to attract them to the hobby. Make the version simple and fun. They will come.

I applaud what you are doing, and I try to run 54mm kid friendly games when I can. That said, I have been reading about the myth of the graying of the hobby for decades, yet I see more kids, girls, spouses and significant others playing games at cons and stores than ever before.

Yeah, I think the "graying" is much more urban myth than reality…

See here:
skullncrown.com/store

The HAWKs will be continuing their Historicon tradition of having a table entirely devoted to kids games all day Saturday. Including our annual Armies For Kids game, in which this year 6 lucky kids will walk away with complete opposing 28mm Naopleonic Armies, and a bunch of terrain and other gaming material.

link

I suggest zombie games, post-apocalyptic car races of doom (axles and alloys), orky barroom brawl (teens and up), James Bond 007 style games, and Steve Jackson Munchkin Games, vampire games, bunnies and burrows, pirate games, Star Wars games and Hello Kitty with weapons.

Don't forget dinosaurs and cowboys (possibly in the same scenario).

Nazis and dinosaurs could excite the young folks. Anything and dinosaurs?

Can't speak to the world, but here in central and northern California, the graying of the hobby is pronounced. Or, maybe the younger folks are avoiding us crusty old curmudgeons! : ) Stay tuned for a report post Labor Day.

Dear Peterx, I do not really think Nazi based games to be the best way to introduce young people to the hobby, at least not in Europe.

Ran games for kids for years at Historicon (back in
90's, early 2000's) and it was always a great time.

Old 30mm Napoleonics with very simple rules. Usually
had 12-16 kids/game. No adults, kids 'aged out' at
13.

Here in Florida our cons have not attracted a lot of kids under 13. At Rapier there were 4 or 5, and 1 was my granddaughter. At Hurricon and Recon I haven't seen that many. I have noticed more women playing, which is great. But here in Florida the graying is not a myth. If you are basing your theory on Historicon, that's not a good laboratory to work in as it is one of the largest shows. You need to check out the smaller shows. We may have more people 20 + playing, but not enough. Everything starts with the kids. Keep the dialogue flowing. These have been great responses.

As GlenGarry5 pointed out, our friend's Wooden Wars games are usually fully populated with kids
TMP link
TMP link

& the wooden figures are so easy to assemble & paint/color, they get the kids interested in that part of the hobby too.

Unlike the southern U.S. border, kids do not show up at gaming conventions unescorted. You have to give one or both parents a reason to attend. At some point, some adults will start to bring their kids along to play.

The pattern that I have watched over the years goes as follows: guy grows up playing games; guy gets married and has kids; guy drops out of the hobby until the kids are about 6-7 years old and then slowly starts to get back into convention gaming. If the kids take an interest in painting or playing, the family attends conventions on a regular basis as the kids get older. By the time they are teenagers, the kids are either hooked on the hobby and stay until adulthood or drop out. The parent, usually a Dad, then returns to the hobby full time.

I have run plenty of games and always welcome younger players. Here are some tricks to making sure they have a good time and don't hinder the game for the older players:

1) If they are accompanied by a parent, ask them whether they want to play on the same side as Mom or Dad or whether they want to play against them. You would be surprised how many kids want to go after their parents.

2) Younger players are often better off on defense. Tell them that they have to hold the fort or give them a machine gun and let them roll plenty of dice. The fewer decisions they have to make (what to move, where to move, etc.), the faster the game goes for everyone.

3) If kids want to attack, give them a clear objective (take the bridge, etc.). Simple plans and orders work best. As Wellington said before he was a Duke, the kids can learn what not to do by watching the older players.

4) Although some non-historical games, such as Gnome Wars, were designed with kids and parent/child teams in mind, there are plenty of historical periods and scenarios that are suitable for children. I especially like French and Indian Wars for kids. I always give the kids the Native Americans to command. Hand to hand combat and burning things down appeal to most 7-12 year olds. It's like mixing healthy foods in with their smoothies: they'll pick up some history without even realizing it.

Lastly, I recall passing by one of Ed's Nap. games for kids years ago. He was about to explain the rules for taking prisoners when one of the kids said "we're not taking any prisoners."

How quickly some of them grow up.

Enjoy the games.

The local gaming convention (Carnage) I attend has had a strong 'kid' (teenage and younger) presence for quite some number of years. We do have some kid-focused events, but the kids end up in all sorts of games. I'm not sure we're experiencing an aging crisis at all. But I agree that running games aimed at kids can't hurt, so keep it up!

-Will

Our local gaming group (Colbys) started an event a few years ago specifically designed to attract young people to the hobby. We are fortunate enough to have a great historic site available to us for this purpose. (WWW.fortmeigs.org) On the first Saturday in November we run historical miniatures games right next to Zombies and giant monsters smashing cities. It seems to work well in getting kids interested not only gaming but learning a little about history. Anything we can do to get kids thinking and having a good time without electronics is a win in my book.

Games for kids (of any age) is pretty much what I'm all about.

Respectfully,

Walt