The new forums will be named Coin Return (based on the most recent vote)! You can check on the status and timeline of the transition to the new forums here.
The Guiding Principles and New Rules document is now in effect.
A Game Recommendation
Wonfis
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Hi guys, I wonder if you could help me with a game recommendation. I'll give you a little context:
The game is for my father. He's mid-sixties and about 13 years ago, when I was 11, he suffered a stroke that left his entire left side paralysed. After a couple of years he and my mother separated (amicably) and we moved away. Since then my sister and I have been visiting regularly, but we've been finding increasingly less to share with him and the time between trips is growing.
He lives in a small village and knows a lot of people, but all the activities that held his interest (cricket, golf, carpentry) are now only available to him vicariously. He can't travel easily and relies on the family for financial support. He spends most of his days in front of the TV, nodding off, and when we visit it's starting to consist of much the same, plus one of us in the corner reading a book or checking e-mails. It feels like a chore now; I loathe this feeling, but I cannot help it.
He owns a very old PC running Windows 2000, which he uses to run AOL (for his e-mail) and play Solitaire. I've been tempted to buy him a new machine, but why? His current set-up suits him perfectly. This got me thinking.
I spend a decent amount of time gaming. A lot of my good friends are gamers and if you let me I will extol the virtues of the pastime for many hours. I can't help but feel that introducing him to a game would help me reconnect with my father and get him more mentally active, a little more engaged with the larger world. It's just the medium to fit his state.
So what I'm looking for is a noob-friendly PC game you can play with one hand. I know there are some quality games out there with simple interfaces. Don't worry about the hardware; I'll take my laptop up to gauge interest first. Ideally, I want something that I can play with him but that he can also explore on his own, too.
Got any ideas?
The game is for my father. He's mid-sixties and about 13 years ago, when I was 11, he suffered a stroke that left his entire left side paralysed. After a couple of years he and my mother separated (amicably) and we moved away. Since then my sister and I have been visiting regularly, but we've been finding increasingly less to share with him and the time between trips is growing.
He lives in a small village and knows a lot of people, but all the activities that held his interest (cricket, golf, carpentry) are now only available to him vicariously. He can't travel easily and relies on the family for financial support. He spends most of his days in front of the TV, nodding off, and when we visit it's starting to consist of much the same, plus one of us in the corner reading a book or checking e-mails. It feels like a chore now; I loathe this feeling, but I cannot help it.
He owns a very old PC running Windows 2000, which he uses to run AOL (for his e-mail) and play Solitaire. I've been tempted to buy him a new machine, but why? His current set-up suits him perfectly. This got me thinking.
I spend a decent amount of time gaming. A lot of my good friends are gamers and if you let me I will extol the virtues of the pastime for many hours. I can't help but feel that introducing him to a game would help me reconnect with my father and get him more mentally active, a little more engaged with the larger world. It's just the medium to fit his state.
So what I'm looking for is a noob-friendly PC game you can play with one hand. I know there are some quality games out there with simple interfaces. Don't worry about the hardware; I'll take my laptop up to gauge interest first. Ideally, I want something that I can play with him but that he can also explore on his own, too.
Got any ideas?
0
Posts
This article indicates Links 2003 was highly regarded.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1420221-ranking-the-sickest-golf-video-games-ever/page/10
Honestly, trying to get an older person who doesn't game into "gamer" type games like RPGs might be a waste of time. They often don't see the appeal.
A tablet would be great. You can get them pretty cheap and there are bunches of simple games you can get in the app stores.
Words with Friends may help you reconnect, or at least stay in touch when you're not visiting, and if you can get him on facebook...
You may want to get a stand so the tablet will prop itself up as well.
Would getting him a used Wii be out of bounds? I think you can even play Wii Golf 1 handed. I'm sure there are plenty of games you could find on the Wii that would keep his interest. Other than that, I second point and click adventure games. Maybe something like Puzzle Agent.
PSN Hypacia
Xbox HypaciaMinnow
Discord Hypacia#0391
You also could use something like the stinkyboard to supplement the lack of being able to use WASD
http://www.stinkyboard.com/
You could macro whatever you wanted to it and daisychain two of them together if you needed more binds.
I found that most RTS games were perfectly playable - maybe not 'competitively', but certainly playable enough to be fun - the standard RTS stuff, and also stuff like the Paradox games (Crusader Kings, etc) although those might be a bit complex. Turn based strategy would definitely be playable - games like Civ, etc.
Pretty much any browser type game, and a lot of indie games (lots of Humble Bundle stuff, FTL, etc) can be played with just a mouse.
I'd just recommend bringing over a tablet loaded with a half dozen different games and see if there is anything he's interested in.
Maybe Audio Surf.
Also any number of those point-and-click adventure games like Longest Journey or Scratches.
Also chess.
But he probably already has that on his computer.
Even if there isn't a tablet version, it would run on a pretty cheap machine at this point.
Also consider, if you get him a tablet, board game ports like Ticket to Ride. I've successfully gotten my mother and aunt hooked on that one, and they were pretty anti-gaming.
since he's interested in traditional games like Solitaire, maybe some stuff like backgammon or chess or checkers with an AI would be fun? I play the shit out of backgammon on my touch screen phone, and the gestures are incredibly simple.
Uncanny Magazine!
The Mad Writers Union