"You are in a maze of twisty little passages all alike..."

[delphipsmith]

Help!! I got a request from a friend regarding computer games for his kids (age 12 and 8) and am drawing a total blank, as everything Mr Psmith does is MMORPG or at least requires online access and it's been years since I played anything like this myself (xyzzy, anyone?).

He's looking for (and I quote) "WOW style game they can play (for PC or Wii) that doesn't have too much blood or naked fornicating Orcs, but does have a fantasy feel with some combat, interaction, quest for glory, etc. Multiplayer isn't really an option for us because our internet is spotty at the best of times."

Thoughts, suggestions, ideas?? Your input eagerly anticipated!

Comments

[inamac.livejournal.com]

No idea. But your subject line has made me all nostalgic!

[ladyoneill.livejournal.com]

I don't know if they still make them (I still have a super nintendo from the early 1990s!) but I always enjoyed the Legend of Zelda games. Questing but not bloody or sexy.

[queerlyobscure.livejournal.com]

Oooh, umm. By WoW-style do they mean they want an RPG or just that kind of world? Torchlight did immediately spring to mind, which *is* an RPG but has a different (simpler, really) play-style to WoW.

Skyrim isn't *especially* gory but I will admit that I kind of live for the cinemaic kills (which are a little more graphic) because, y'know. They're cool. It's a lot less dark-themes heavy than the previous installment, though.

Orcs Must Die is also great, and definitely a lot less gory and more cartoon-violence-y. It's also an RPG and closer in playing style to WoW.

Magicka might be another option but it's more like Torchlight, less like WoW.

My brother also likes Dungeons of Dredmor, which is a bit of an 80s-style dungeon crawler but with much better graphics. It plays a bit like Zelda (which is also a good option if they don't have it, come to think. And the only Wii game I can think of that actually performs well enough that I could recommend it).

If it doesn't have to be an RPG, Dungeon Defenders would be *great* for kids and also, it's a tower defence game so it teaches strategy. This is my excuse and I am sticking to it.

Overlord and Overlord II are also cute and not particularly gory, but the premise is kind of disturbing? I mean, not 'oh god I'm scarred for life' but, I mean, you are sending minions to their deaths. I guess it depends on the particular kid's sense of empathy, because I always feel bad when my minions die and I can imagine that wearing a lot on someone more invested in a fantasy world.

[pokeystar.livejournal.com]

Found a link:

http://www.factmonster.com/science/computers/best-video-games.html


Also? Kingdom Hearts maybe?

[arcanetrivia]

A hollow voice says, "Fool."