Ask the EFG Staff

Stephen

I’m an elder millennial (1980) so I was around for some of the first online games. Our family computer wasn’t very powerful, so I was limited to text based games. The first online game I played for any length of time was Dragonrealms. Its a text-based MUD (that is still up and running) operated by a company called Simutronics. Since it was all text it was very focused on the roleplay and I loved every minute of it. 

Mike

Dragonrealms. A text based multiplayer RPG, I learned how to type *reaally* fast because of that game and it was my first exposure to reading and writing computer code through computer scripts. Never really got beyond entry level content, but it was my first roleplay experience outside my immediate friends and family.

John

Word Of Warcraft,  I apparently don’t know how to ease into anything as a rule.  This applies to running obstacle course races, taking up new hobbies or jumping into one of the largest MMORPGs ever.

Jonathan

DOOM because when it came out my friends and I mowed the lawn for this guy that had his house wired for gaming and we had voice chat and everything.

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• Video Games for kids on Xbox One
• Video Games for kids on PS4
• Video Games for kids on Nintendo Switch
• Board Games for kids

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Stephen

The very first thing I do when I get stuck in a game is search for a walk through on YouTube. The information is plentiful and can often help me find the answer to even the stupidest questions. (I get stuck on weird stuff on account of being hilariously bad at video games.

Mike

The pause button is your friend, both literal and figurative. You put the controller or keyboard down and you walk away. Nine times out of ten, the reason you are stuck is because of something that is completely beyond your control or something that is readily fixed. Drink some water. Have a snack. Look it up on your phone. Try again. And if it is already night time, consider sleeping on it and trying again the next day.

John

As a father with busy kids and a full time job I frankly don’t have a lot of time to be stuck in games, specifically video games.  If I am stuck for more than 30 minutes in one spot  I am not averse to lowering difficulty ratings if that is the problem or using the magic that is the internet to look up the solution to a puzzle.  I play games to relax and have fun, not pull my hair out.

Linda

With board games there are so many more options these days.  When I am stuck and do not understand a rule or step, my first move is to go back to the rules, and reread.  When we are able to play with our game group, there are two people who are excellent at deciphering rules. Sometimes if it is a small thing as a game group we make a call about how to proceed and just keep playing.  

Another tool that we use with more complicated games, are Youtube videos.  There is a huge library of videos teaching how to play a huge range of games.

Jonathan

If it’s because of needing to level up i’ll go back and grind. If I can’t find a key I turn to youtube a lot now as I have grown too old and tired…#facts

Mike Melkonian

There was a time when consulting a game guide felt shameful to me, but now I go straight to a walkthrough if I have trouble with a game! Time is limited when you have a family and full time job, so I’m content to merely imagine what being frustrated at a puzzle or boss fight would feel like. Of course, I’m going to tell the kid to figure it out on his own! No reason they should have it any easier than we did back in the day.

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• Video Games for kids on Xbox One
• Video Games for kids on PS4
• Video Games for kids on Nintendo Switch
• Board Games for kids

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Stephen

See my review for Turbo: Super Stunt Squad.

Mike

There is an adage that there are no bad games, only bad experiences. A lot of fun times can be had with some definitively bad games. When I owned my very own PS2, I went to the electronics cabinet of the local game store bristling with birthday money. I had narrowed down to two choices: Devil May Cry…. and Eve of Extinction (E.O.E.)

You do not remember EoE? That is fine. Neither do I. I just know that I spent full retail on a forgettable action/brawler with frustrating quick time events, instead of quite possibly one of my favorite PS2 games of that year.

John

Starfox 2, go figure that it never got published in real life.  The Switch made me glad that I never plunked down real money for this game as an individual.  It is confusing, awkward and has no business being in any game lineup.

Jonathan 

I have zero love for 99% of the Atari games. They are so rudimentary now that other than missile command or pong I can care less.

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• Video Games for kids on Xbox One
• Video Games for kids on PS4
• Video Games for kids on Nintendo Switch
• Board Games for kids

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Introduce us to your favorite character that you made for a game?

Stephen

I spent a few years playing Dragonrealms, a text based MUD run by Simutronics. I played a dwarven paladin named Deutz Anadeuz (I don’t really know where the name came from.) Over time he turned into a bit of a nerd. He tried to learn skills that didn’t make a lot of sense for him to learn from a power perspective just for the sake of knowing them. Eventually he even began to worship the god of libraries, Lemicus. It was a lot of get into his head and figure out how to would respond to the different things that happened in the game. This is especially true because of how different he was than the rest of the paladins in the game.

Mike

Sometimes, the short lived games create the most memorable characters. I played a D&D single day adventure where everyone swapped roles from the usual game we were playing at the time. Instead of the Swordmage Private Investigator…. I was a halfling professional wrestler dressed in crocodile hides. It was Ebberon, it makes sense for the setting.

John

My LARP elven adept Shenk, because sometimes you need to not think about the details and just kill necromancers.

Linda

My favorite character hands down is my elven healer from LARP Tianna. She is/ was a character that I played for about a decade. Should I have the opportunity to play again, she may yet be played again.

Tianna is a wild elf who has faced a dark force that threatened to destroy the world.  She was given a feather artifact that allowed her unique powers, and eternal life, and entrusted to be its bearer. Tianna is the foster mother to a dragon, and with the power of the feather was able to keep him safe until his hatching.

Jonathan

Well My LARP character is known as Jaques Battleforge and has been nicknamed Happy Dwarf. Weird cause how can you see a smile under a beard….

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Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get Your Family Game On!

The EFG Essentials

• Video Games for kids on Xbox One
• Video Games for kids on PS4
• Video Games for kids on Nintendo Switch
• Board Games for kids

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Stephen

I love Street Fighter. I’m terrible at it, but I love it. I really fell in love with the game when I started playing Street Fighter II: World Warrior on the SNES with my next door neighbors. We would play for hours. I still remember how excited I was when I was finally able to to a fireball as Ryu. I worked at it for a long time, and when it clicked I was hooked.

Mike

Street Fighter. There is something so satisfying with a well paced, but on the slower side, 2D fighting game. The Street fighter series has always been a very approachable fighting game for me, and my brother will forever be my opponent.

A nod also goes to the Super Smash Bros. Brawl as a Two Player (Plus) Fighting game where all my nerd dreams came true.

John

Looking back, my favorite two player game of all time has to be Contra.  My brother and I spent countless hours playing this game to the point that we both could play it start to finish without losing a life.

Linda

My favorite two player game is Fox in the Forest.  I rarely play games that are only for two players, but this one has a style that brings lots of nostalgia. Fox in the Forest is a trick taking game, and that mechanic is a family favorite. The extended family are huge fans of the card game Setback, which is also trick taking. The familiarity of the mechanic as well as the beautiful storybook artwork makes it an easy favorite.

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Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get

Your Family Game On!

The EFG Essentials

• Video Games for kids on Xbox One
• Video Games for kids on PS4
• Video Games for kids on Nintendo Switch
• Board Games for kids

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Stephen

My favorite game to watch is Street Fighter V (or any other game in the series for that matter). There is just something about watching high level competitive Street Fighter tournaments that I find exciting. I especially like to watch the matches when they take place in front of a loud audience (like at EVO). That produced moments like the one in the video below. Nothing can really top that for me.

Mike

Overwatch. I love the game design and the intricacies of group composition and communication, but I am terrible with shooters involving other players.

Linda

Hands down my favorite game to watch was Horizon Zero Dawn. I generally do not play console games, and a game like Horizon is well beyond my skill (as well as beyond what I am interested in delving into). The story told in Horizon Zero Dawn is captivating and has twists and turns that kept me checking in. The visuals of the game were also gorgeous and made it a pleasure to watch.

Jonathan

Games like Celeste and Shovel Knight. I just stink at them even if I buy them. I need to try Hollow Knight again.

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What do you think? Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts!

Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get Your Family Game On!

The EFG Essentials

• Video Games for kids on Xbox One
• Video Games for kids on PS4
• Video Games for kids on Nintendo Switch
• Board Games for kids

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What is your desert island game and why?

Stephen

I thought about this one for a long time, and I have to go with World of Warcraft. Yes. My desert island has good internet. It is my favorite game of all time, and I can ALWAYS find something to do. There is just something awesome about a never ending list of tasks to complete.

If you’re a stick in the mud and don’t think WoW is an acceptable answer, then my backup answer is Tetris. It’s a perfect puzzle game that I can play to relax and I don’t have to worry about the story getting stale.

Mike

Can we talk about Chrono Trigger? We should talk about Chrono Trigger. This game is about a story that asks “What it is to be a hero?” and explores the tragedies and victories  of that question with one of the best art styles and musical scores of all time. Best overall character roster, elegant game play, an early adopter of new game plus content. And it bears repeating that one of the best video game scores of all time was produced in 1996 with a 16 bit processor.

John

Skyrim, why, because.  Seriously though it is playable for hundreds and hundreds of hours in various ways.  The free form method of leveling and crafting allow for you to entertain yourself in any way that you want.

Linda

My desert island game would have to be Seikatsu. This game is beautiful to look at, as well as a peaceful game to play.  The tokens are heavy and would be less likely to blow away in the breeze. It is one I have played multiple times and it feels fresh each time. Not one that would be dull after a few plays.

Jonathan 

Tetris any one of them but Tetris Effect if I was able to choose. They are the most solid game ever created and even while it’s simple and NOTHING has changed it finds new challenges every day.

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What about you?

Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts!

Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get Your Family Game On!

The EFG Essentials

• Video Games for kids on Xbox One
• Video Games for kids on PS4
• Video Games for kids on Nintendo Switch
• Board Games for kids

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