Whether a gamer is 8 or 48 years old, there are more than enough titles like Zelda or Super Mario to start off a gaming journey with.
Just because they’re new to the field doesn’t mean they need to be treated with kid gloves. Some players get into the game later than others, and that’s okay. What’s not okay is assuming new players don’t at least want some form of a challenge when they pick up a controller.
Whether a gamer is 8 or 48 years old, there are more than enough titles and games to go around. Games for young kids are great for their intended audience, but that doesn’t mean all new gamers should start there. From arcade classics to modern marvels of the industry, there’s something to appeal to every taste, genre, or level of experience. After all, it’s more fun if everyone can play.
Sometimes, the best thing to do is start at the very beginning. While modern players might have been swept across galaxies, driven down Rainbow Road, or embarked on an odyssey with a talking hat, it never hurts to go back to the original Mushroom Kingdom for one more adventure to save the princess.
What makes the Super Mario Bros. series so successful is that he was always marketed to anyone who wanted to pick up a controller. Although his modern titles are more directed at kids nowadays, gamers of any age can still play his classic titles for an easy-to-learn yet hard-to-master experience.
While the title might be a mouthful, tournament fighters have always been a prominent fixture in gaming, and Street Fighter is one of the best in the business. While some might shy away from the T rating, those wanting to dip their toe in the genre might want to consider trying this remastered and remixed classic.
Street Fighter II is arguably where the series truly found its footing. With a variety of characters, fighting venues, and styles of combat, the game offers quite the selection to cater to different players’ tastes. Whether they’re looking to test their strength against a computer opponent or looking to punish their partner in some multiplayer on the couch, a fighting game is a great way to do it.
If Mario has started to run a little flat, the LittleBigPlanet games are a set of eccentric puzzle-platformers with more personality than the basic kid’s games. As their own customizable sack-boy, players can transverse a series of colorful and imaginative worlds with a large cast of quirky characters.
The game not only allows players to enjoy creative realms, but create their own worlds with different odds and ends they collect across their adventures as well. It’s definitely a unique and eclectic twist on the typical platformer formula that any gamer can stop and appreciate.
Don’t let those cartoon graphics mislead. Spelunky and its sequel are a pair of deceptively difficult puzzle platformers with elements from the Metroidvania genre as well. In the games, players control a spelunker and descend into the labyrinthine depths of tunnels and ruins. Collecting treasure and avoiding danger at every turn, players might find the title easy to get into but even easier to get lost.
Exploration is the name of the game in this addictive arcadey adventure, and players will soon learn to unleash their inner Indiana Jones the further they dive. Easy enough for new gamers to enjoy, but with enough challenge for older ones to keep coming back for more.
RPGs are a massive genre in the gaming industry, but sometimes it can be exceedingly difficult to pick out where to start. Fortunately, Dragon Quest is as classic as they come. A long-time figurehead of the genre, the series help shape and perfect many hard-hitters fans enjoy today. The eleventh core entry is a return to form for the series, and a perfect jumping point for those new to the genre to begin their quests.
As with most traditional JRPGs, players will lead a team of adventurers on a magical quest to save the world, fighting monsters and exploring dungeons along the way. If they’re looking to sate their need for fiction and fantasy away from the DM screen, a game like this is certainly a great option.
If players are looking for something less turn-based and more hack-and-slash, the Torchlight games are a solid choice. Especially if they’re not experienced, or old enough, to take a dive into Diablo’s dungeons. Like with most dungeon-crawlers, players make their choice of hero and class, then send them off into the dungeons in search of weapons and loot.
With tons of monsters, minions, and bosses to battle, players won’t find themselves bored on this quest. With three games available in the series, II being arguably the fan-favorite, anyone looking for an introductory course in dungeon-crawling can have their pick of adventures.
Tetris has to be the most accessible game out there, and it wouldn’t be wrong in assuming most people have encountered some form or deviation of the game. But if players truly want to up the ante from the standard puzzle game, they definitely will want to try their luck at Tetris 99.
A typical game with falling Tetrominos is a challenge all its own, but when that same game is given a multiplayer element with 99 players in a battle royale, it’s a whole new ballgame.
There are tons of classic beat-em-up games available, and every gamer worth their salt should have at least one, but when it comes to that pure, action-packed, arcade experience, Scott Pilgrim has fought his way to the top with the best of them. Anyone with an appreciation for action titles, regardless of experience, will want to give this one a play.
Some video games based on movies carry a certain stigma, but this 16-bit gem is a rare and glorious exception to the rule. Following the plot of the movie and comics of the same name, players can step into the role of Scott, Ramona, or their companions to bash and brawl their way through Ramona’s Army of Evil Exes. With a blending of classic gaming elements, there’s plenty for all players to enjoy.
It never hurts to get back to the fundamentals, and Pac-Man is a prime example of one of gaming’s cornerstones. Predating games like Super Mario for almost half a decade, the big, yellow, ghost-gobbler has been a popular icon of the industry since the arcade days, and no gamer should avoid it.
As easy to play as it is absurdly addictive, running the mazes and gobbling up fruits, dots, and ghosts has been a time-honored gaming tradition for decades, and with Pac-Man games on home consoles like Championship Edition and Pac-Man 99, Pac-Man has clearly demonstrated he knows how to keep with the times and new generations of players.
The Zelda series is an iconic selection across the board. From the top-down dungeon crawlers to the exploratory adventure titles, journeying through the magical land of Hyrule has been a classic gaming experience time and time again. That all being said, there is perhaps no entry as deep or ambitious as Breath of the Wild.
Every traditional Zelda element has been expanded and improved upon, along with the introduction of new elements and mechanics to give it its own identity. There is so much to see, do, and explore, that saving the princess from the clutches of Ganon might end up low on most gamers’ to-do lists.
Zach Gass is a writer from East Tennessee with a love for all things Disney, Star Wars, and Marvel. When not writing for Screen Rant, Zach is an active member of his community theatre, enjoys a variety of authors including Neil Gaiman, C.S. Lewis, and J.R.R. Tolkein, and is a proud and active retro-gamer.
