The Game of Babies or how to procreate and still maintain some life gaming

mts

So there comes a time in your life that you might spawn a new gamer. A common question in the steam thread is something like this:

"HALP. I have a new baby and I need to hold them but I still want to game. WASD is too complicated for my kid and they are using the space bar for a teething toy"

So at one point I had made a huge list, but I can't find it. However I had always wanted to start a post like this so people could contribute and make an evolving list.



Alternatively, invest in one of these:


Look how content that baby is. Just put that baby within range of your foot and you can rock them to sleep and have two hands free. at least until they poop or spit up all over themselves you need to pause.

Ok, so you actually need to hold you child.
Try one of these games. They can mostly be played with just the mouse or will require a mouse with programmable buttons to map basic functions to.

I will add to this list as I think of stuff or people post suggestions.
Total War Games. I played a ton of Shogun 2
Civilization
Endless Legend
Endless Space
Dawn of War Stuff
Dungeon of the endless *
You probably would need a mouse with buttons but you could make due since you can cue things up with pause
FtL
Wasteland* haven't actually played it but it seems like it should
Point and click adventure games - aka Monkey Island
hexcells (plus, infinite also) bonus of soft music to help get baby to sleep)
Telltale games though you would likely need to switch between the mouse and keyboard for the quicktime events so it could be hard.
Hearthstone - not a steam game but pure mouse
Defense Grid
Defenders Quest
Plants and Zombies
Manager Games (football etc)
Shadow Run Returns and Dragonfall
Spacechem though you will likely feel dumb enough due to lack of sleep
X-Com
Banner Saga
Ace Patrol
Magical Diary
Long Live the queen
Loren amazon princess and the space one
Atom Zombie Smasher
Puzzle agents
Reus
Skulls of the shogun
neo scavenger
silent storm
xenonauts
Fallen Encahntress
Leviathan Warships
Cogs
Ai:war
Kings Bounty
Prime World Defenders
Space Truckers though i havent played yet
Crusader Kings
Supreme Commanders
Tropico

This is going through my games of ones i have experienced or played to know.

So lets make this list grow. Eventually I will sort this and add stuff that gets added. At the least when people search baby or one handed gaming this should come up.

hey, the original list was found!
http://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/comment/27347121/#Comment_27347121

most of the same but some i missed, will eventually combine them. but at least the list is here

mts

saved for future

cooljammer00

Also sometimes you want to eat a sandwich and game at the same time.

Houn

Back when my youngin's were wee little babes, I was playing Consoles more than PC. Get yerself into a real good slouch, put that babby on your chest, and once they fall asleep, both hands should be free enough to use a controller. If you still need a hand to support the babby and keep them from sliding off, you're not slouching hard enough. You're a god damned parent now, that child needs you, so quit half-assing shit and slouch with everything you got!

mts

cooljammer00 wrote: »

Also sometimes you want to eat a sandwich and game at the same time.

That is very true

Iolo

Great list. Civ V is so great for this because it's so easy to drive everything from the mouse and because there is never a moment in the game you can't get up and attend to a child (or a spouse) and not be able to come back to that precise moment.

Lyne is a good one for the list.

Sproggiwood can easily be played one handed, although that one hand might do better on the keyboard than on the mouse. I suspect a lot of turn-based roguelikes fall into this category.

urahonky

Peggle should be added since it's one handed and has some pretty soothing music.

see317

Maybe toss Master of Orion 1 and 2 on the list. Galactic Civilization as well.
Really, most 4x games can be played mouse only. They also tend to be turn based which is great if you need to get away from the PC to change a diaper or other baby related emergency.

Dungeon Keeper 1 and 2 can be played mouse only, so long as you don't use the possess monster spell.

cooljammer00

Also in terms of QTEs in TellTale games, as long as you avoid the more modern, licensed stuff, you should be fine. Not too many QTEs I can remember in say, the 3 Sam and Max seasons. I played them all laying down in bed with just a mouse.

Lindsay Lohan

It's funny, I actually got more gaming in when Lucas was little than I do now. Once he was sleeping in a swing I was able to game a lot, in fact it was the only time I ever played WoW because I was trying to save money by not buying new games so that was a cheap alternative.

At the time, my PC and his crib were in the same room (long story, but let's just say the quickest fix to years of fertility visits and treatments is simply to move into a tiny apartment).

My favorite mostly mouse games that are super easy to drop and pick up when a kid cries and needs you were the Sims, Rollercoaster Tycoon, and Theme Hospital. The Sims is especially nice since they'll take care of themselves for short stints if you forget to pause. More important than mouse for me were games where sound wasn't vital to the experience.

Creamstout

Thanks for the list, expecting dad here. Been hooked on Hearthstone lately, planning on picking up a Tablet so I can have some portable gaming options.

RainbowDespair

Desktop Dungeons is a really good game and is very doable with just the mouse.

Lindsay Lohan

I wish they had tablets and cheap smartphones when we had Lucas. That would have been awesome - games, books, magazines, comics - all on one device ready to go for sitting in waiting rooms and hospital stays. My wife was considered high risk so we bought GBA SPs for the downtime which worked out nicely as well.

When the kids get older, gaming can actually be more of a challenge. Bedtimes get later, homework needs more adult help, there are sports practices and meets, and in general life gets busier as you manage more obligations. Then the question shifts from "What games can I play with one hand" to "What games can be played in one hour bursts".

GnomeTank

The first point I always tell expectant gaming fathers: Learn to make time for yourself, PERIOD. Making time for yourself, to game, or read book, or just take a bath, is just as important for daddy as mommy, and it's important for both. A lot of science these days tells us that letting a baby and kids take over your life so completely that you lose all personal time is actually unhealthy for you, and not that beneficial for baby.

Now that my daughter is six it's easier, since she's a little video game maven herself. She'd rather sit inside and play Skylander's than do much else, so I get quite a bit of game time. In fact, I have to force her to go outside and play more than she has to drag me to some function.

urahonky

I have another child due in March so I'm pretty nervous about losing all of my personal time (my daughter is 18 months old right now).

Iolo

Lindsay Lohan wrote: »

I wish they had tablets and cheap smartphones when we had Lucas. That would have been awesome - games, books, magazines, comics - all on one device ready to go for sitting in waiting rooms and hospital stays. My wife was considered high risk so we bought GBA SPs for the downtime which worked out nicely as well.

When the kids get older, gaming can actually be more of a challenge. Bedtimes get later, homework needs more adult help, there are sports practices and meets, and in general life gets busier as you manage more obligations. Then the question shifts from "What games can I play with one hand" to "What games can be played in one hour bursts".

Hi-5 GBA SP! My first child was colicky, so I spent a lot of time with him upright on my chest while playing Rebelstar Tactical Command one-handed on a GBA SP. It was not ideal. Inventory management in particular required me to sort of balance the GBA on my thigh and reach around to the far shoulder buttons. Still, a satisfying way to pass a sleepless stint.

Hardtarget

I have a 4 and a half month old baby boy who is awesome but maaaaaaaaaaaaaaan do I barely game now.

Houn wrote: »

Back when my youngin's were wee little babes, I was playing Consoles more than PC. Get yerself into a real good slouch, put that babby on your chest, and once they fall asleep, both hands should be free enough to use a controller. If you still need a hand to support the babby and keep them from sliding off, you're not slouching hard enough. You're a god damned parent now, that child needs you, so quit half-assing shit and slouch with everything you got!

you are very lucky. My baby was the kind that would cry for hours unless he was being held upright while you walked around. don't even think about sitting down but continuing to hold them int he same way/pat them in the same way.

they know

Things are better now, he like sleeps in his crib and stuff, but ya barely any gaming to be had at my house

urahonky

My daughter is pretty great at sleeping (not lately, however). She can lay down at around 6:30pm and wakes up around 6:15am. Gives me a few hours after she lays down to game.

However when she's up she's all over the place. She barely stays in a room longer than 10-15 minutes. And when she's ready to move on she'll go up to you and grab your hand and move you to the next room so we have absolutely no time to relax and/or unwind.

Houn

urahonky wrote: »

My daughter is pretty great at sleeping (not lately, however). She can lay down at around 6:30pm and wakes up around 6:15am. Gives me a few hours after she lays down to game.

However when she's up she's all over the place. She barely stays in a room longer than 10-15 minutes. And when she's ready to move on she'll go up to you and grab your hand and move you to the next room so we have absolutely no time to relax and/or unwind.

And we have our first nominee for the "D'awww Award for Most Adorable Post of 2015".

urahonky

Yeah I just realized I sounded pretty selfish about it. :P

Figgy

13-day old baby boy. Right now I'm on a stretch of saved vacation time so have more free time, surprisingly, than before he was born. I take the "night shift" and get him to sleep for a couple hours at a time, wherein I can play some games.

The one-hand strategies will come in handy (ha!) for when he's a bit older I imagine.

mts

urahonky wrote: »

My daughter is pretty great at sleeping (not lately, however). She can lay down at around 6:30pm and wakes up around 6:15am. Gives me a few hours after she lays down to game.

However when she's up she's all over the place. She barely stays in a room longer than 10-15 minutes. And when she's ready to move on she'll go up to you and grab your hand and move you to the next room so we have absolutely no time to relax and/or unwind.

they actually do regress with their sleeping around that age, its pretty normal

TheKoolEagle

My wife and I are expecting early February, its our first so I am starting to get a bit nervous about the lifestyle change, especially because my wife has requested I do not play games while the baby is awake. I can see the logic behind that, but I also am assuming that at nighttime I'm going to want to be sleeping as much as possible. I'm sure everything will work out, but this is a handy thread for games to play while baby is sleeping on my watch!

Idx86

I like this thread. With my first baby, I could hold him in a way that would also allow me to hold a 360 controller. His body weight counter acted my natural twitchiness in COD and resulted in a higher K:D ratio. With this new baby, I can only really play Hearthstone decently because he likes to be jostled.

Houn

urahonky wrote: »

Yeah I just realized I sounded pretty selfish about it. :P

Nah, I totally get it, man. ;-)

Shadowfire

GnomeTank wrote: »

The first point I always tell expectant gaming fathers: Learn to make time for yourself, PERIOD. Making time for yourself, to game, or read book, or just take a bath, is just as important for daddy as mommy, and it's important for both. A lot of science these days tells us that letting a baby and kids take over your life so completely that you lose all personal time is actually unhealthy for you, and not that beneficial for baby.

Now that my daughter is six it's easier, since she's a little video game maven herself. She'd rather sit inside and play Skylander's than do much else, so I get quite a bit of game time. In fact, I have to force her to go outside and play more than she has to drag me to some function.

My wife is very pissy reading this. ;-)

Also, we are expecting in May. I have many turn-based games to help with my gaming needs. Old Heroes of Might & Magic games? Civ? Divinity? King's Bounty? Mmmmmm yes.

TeeMan

I can see myself watching a lot more Twitch with a baby around the house, even if its just on a tablet I have for myself

eelektrik

My gaming time has gone down considerably since moving in with my girlfriend, who has a 3 year old son(Who has been playing more than I have, mostly Mario Kart 8 and Super Mario 3D Land). However I see it going down further come June when she gives birth to my first kid.

What gaming time I have will likely be taken up with things like more Age of Wonders 3 and Hearthstone.

bloodatonement

Probably the biggest changes in my gaming since becoming a parent are that I don't marathon into the wee hours of the morning, and that I hardly touch the consoles since the TV isn't mine anymore.

Jazz

bloodatonement wrote: »

Probably the biggest changes in my gaming since becoming a parent are that I don't marathon into the wee hours of the morning, and that I hardly touch the consoles since the TV isn't mine anymore.

A good friend of mine, who has a 4-and-a-half-year-old and a 3-year-old, and who's 90% a console gamer, counteracted this very same phenomenon by having two TVs in his living room. And very often playing with subtitles and no sound on.

Not quite the topic, but when I was married, we fostered for a while. Foster kids always each come with their own unique set of issues, of course (well, as do people in general) but often they've only been able to rely on themselves. I discovered that co-op games are the most fantastic team-building exercises. When we had two unrelated girls in their mid-teens, they absolutely loved playing Left 4 Dead split-screen on the 360, and that's a game where you absolutely have to rely on your partner to help you out. It was almost like watching lightbulbs illuminating over their heads, it was pretty awesome.