So my friend wants to learn how to play games...

I have a really good friend of mine who is really interested in learning to play video games with me. Her brother plays a lot and so do I and she feels like it might be something that she can at least talk to her brother about and give them more of a connection. Not to mention that she's interested in some of the games I talk about.

She's about 40 and use to really love the SNES back when that was a thing. She's seen me play stuff like Shadow of Mordor, From the Depths, and Dead Rising 3 and she enjoys it. She loves watching movies all the time. Her favorite genre is sci-fi and she also really loves big explosion action movies.

I think that I'll have to start out with something that requires a more of a simple control setup, probably 2D. I think a co-op game would help her retain interest and not get too frustrated/bored as well.

I know that this question gets asked sort of often, but I figured this was specific enough and with enough extra information that it warranted a post.

I can't think of anything off the top of my head, but the mention of sci-fi and action stuff made me think of Mass Effect. That doesn't fit with the simpler control setup, though.

Maybe some dual joystick shooter might be a good way to get used to using the analog sticks? Something like Geometry Wars or Resogun? Seems like I remember some people saying that controlling the analog sticks is a big hurdle to someone that hasn't used them before.

Edit: Maybe Transistor? It's got the whole thing of pausing the game to setup your attacks, so it gives time to think about what to do and get used to the controller.

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Diablo 3?

Yeah, I'd agree with that one. I was trying to focus on sci-fi, so it slipped my mind. Diablo 3 is pretty easy(especially if you just leave it on the easiest difficulty), so it shouldn't be too much trouble trying to take the time to get used to the controller.

Sit her down one day and go through a bunch of games, Quick Look style. It's hard to know anyones preferences if you, or even themself, don't have anything to go on.

Data, data, data. You cannot make bricks without clay.

Edit: I would advice not to put any game past her though, fearing it would be too difficult. I've seen people fall in love with Dark Souls that shouldn't have any business even considering that game. Difficulty is part of the charm for some people.

There's a thread of people talking about games that make you better at playing games. There are a lot of suggestions there, but what I found more interesting is the variety of perspectives people have of what is good for beginners, so you might wanna consider reading through that.

As for suggestions, if you wanna do a 2d game, it doesn't get much better than Super Mario World. That game's pretty intuitive and has got a friendly difficulty-curve. When you go into 3d, I think Stanley Parable and Antichamber are good for learning spatial awareness and both encourage exploration and pushing limits. (Also sorry for the janky post, I'm on my phone)

Edit: Fixed the link now that I'm on my pc

@dudeglove: 100% agree on the controller part. This is why kids twist their hands when pushing thumbsticks in certain directions; they don't have the experience of understanding the correct application of pressure throughout their hands to keep the controller in place. One really does have to LEARN to play video games in terms of physically handling the controller; buttons are one thing, but thumbsticks are a-whole-nother ball game

Actually, Castle Crashers would probably be a good game to play together. It's fun, funny, and frustration-free (mostly).

Halo Combat Evolved is a great one for introducing people to first-person movement in a 3D space using a controller. However I agree with the idea of showing her a 2D game first. Every time I've tried to introduce/reintroduce someone to games the movement around a 3D space really messes with them.

Hybrid games that play in multiple genres are also a good idea. Mass Effect 2 and LA Noire went down well with my ex who had never played games when she was young. Both games are pretty easy, have a great narrative hook and hybridise a bunch divergent gameplay-styles into a single experience. Also they're not as off-putting as most AAA games out there can be to adult women who aren't accustomed to their specific brand of ultraviolence designed to appeal to people around my age.

Well, perhaps relaying the experiences of the two older women I know who got into gaming might help you in some way.

1. Some years ago, a friend of mine who was in her 40's, after watching me play some DOOM 3, decided she wanted to give gaming a shot. She wanted to play an FPS. Half-Life 2 sounded like a good place to start, since it's intro was just a lot of walking and looking around. I fired up HL2 for her, and what felt like hours of walking in circles while staring at the ground ensued. Many short gaming sessions ending in motion sickness later, she began making real progress and having a lot of fun. The motion sickness went away and eventually she got pretty good at the controls, and managed to finish HL2 on easy difficulty.

After that, she wanted to play it again on normal difficulty. She seemed to have the hang of things now and was able to get through the game much more quickly the second time around. After HL2 she moved on to DOOM 3, F.E.A.R., FarCry, Max Payne 2, Riddick, Tomb Raider: Legend, Condemned, and several more.

Therefor, I'd say it's entirely possible to be a 40 year old woman who has never played a video game before, and jump head first into the FPS genre.

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2. The other person would be my mom, who used to play a lot of Tetris, and only Tetris. On Gameboy, specifically. This was in her 40's, and she played Tetris for about a decade before dropping it. After her Tetris binge, there simply wasn't anything else she wanted to play. Many years later, I set up Steam on her computer and bought Plants vs. Zombies, I thought she might like it. I chose it because I know she gets motion sick easily. Like, easily enough that she looks away from movies any time the camera is panning or if there's a shot from inside a moving vehicle. So, Plants vs. Zombies sounded like a good choice.

She's played over 700 hours of PvZ on PC. She also has PvZ and PvZ 2 on her iPad and has most certainly put in more than 700 hours on those there. From this, we determined that she might like some more Tower Defense games. PixelJunk Monsters seemed like an okay game. A couple games in, she declared that she didn't like the PS3 controller and that she like Zombies better. A few months later she was telling me about how she had perfect rainbows on all of the stages and was trying to get all of the diamond rainbows in Hardcore mode.

Eventually she wanted to try out some other games and the downloading of lots of demos began. Since then she's mostly settled on whatever she can play on her iPad, like Two Dots, World of Goo and stuff like that. She gave Mortal Kombat 9, Orcs Must Die, Bayonetta and Tokyo Jungle a try and enjoyed them, despite her motion sickness. She actually completed both Orcs 1 and 2, playing co-op with one of her similarly-aged friends.

Therefor, even being 60 isn't too late for a motion sick mother to get into this sort of gaming nonsense. She fought the controller and won.

So, you don't have to start out simple or easy, just hand over the controller, and let them figure it out. Your job is to be encouraging and helpful. Perhaps just play some Dead Rising 3 with her.

As the above has said handling a controller is more important than people think. If you do play a FPS with her then make sure it’s of the ‘look at this light, that light’ (like Halo 1) start-ups as this will give a handle on what type of control she will need going forward.

Don't be condescending about it, let her tell you if a game is too much. Just bring her a variety of games and let her pick what to try. Your job is solely to give advice when asked, telling her which games she should try and how to play could just make it frustrating.

The science fiction part also made me think of Mass Effect. Just tell her to choose a soldier and play it on easy, so to mitigate any problem she may have with controls and mechanics.

I think another good game for starters is Portal (specifically, Portal 2). It is a game that rewards exploration, doesn't require fast eye-hand coordination and the progression is quite well designed...

A friend of mine recently got into video games by playing Tomb Raider and then Mass Effect on easy. That's the first Mass Effect I'm talking about. By the time she got to the third one, she was playing on Hardcore. So, like others have said before me, don't be condescending about it, especially when she needs any help (try to be helpful, but also encourage curiosity and experimentation, because that's half of the fun in games). Don't put it past people to really invest in something they are interested in, however difficult it may seem at first.

Another similar case is my best friend's girlfriend, who also started with Mass Effect on easy, and after finishing the series got really into Dark Souls. People are weird that way :P

I first learned how to use a controller playing horse with Tony Hawk 2. First thing I learned was the bottom button is always accept in the menus and jump in the game, the top button is always grind, which makes for an easy win if your competition bails out.

I'd suggest starting with the very easy mode of Uncharted 2. They made a very easy mode for a reason and this is it.

2d Beat em ups. Anyone can learn them as a start (I know this from experience). Whether it's old like Streets of Rage or modern like Castle Crashers, she'll be fine.

Super Metroid. :3

It's a nice atmospheric sci fi game where you can move at your own pace, mainly based on exploration and it teaches a whole lot of concepts that are universally used in all genres.

Using a controller needs to become second nature to her. If too much concentration is placed on trying to move a character from point A to point B, then playing games becomes a chore. Maybe play a game that will get her familiar with the button layout of a controller (like Rock Band, but for a controller...I have no idea if such a game exists). Analogue sticks will be the biggest hurdle. FPS games aren't terribly complex, so one of those on the easiest setting might do.

Turn-based RPGs may be a good option. Menu systems will be complex, but button input won't be.

To be honest I actually will go as far as to suggest Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. I'm not talking about jumping right into multiplayer, i think playing the campaign at an easier difficulty is a phenomenal ice breaker into modern gaming. Also the controls of that game are so often imitated not only in FPS games, but in many 3rd person games that she should have a firm grasp how to play a majority of today's games without much of a problem.

Plus, those campaigns are basically like playing gamified Rambo movies.

If my dad is any indicator the hardest hurdle you'll have to help her over is the two-stick control scheme. I'd start her out with something that doesn't have a ton of combat in it - Portal would be a great place to start.

If she would prefer something more simple controls-wise how about one of the Lego games like Lego Lord of the Rings or Star Wars, some of the best co-op games.

If you are going towards an FPS how about one of the Borderlands? again, a great co-op game so you can play with her with that constant draw of loot and a (sort of) sci-fi setting.

Also both of the above are couch co-op so could be useful for teaching controls etc

I think Portal is a very good starting point for an older person to start gaming. Maybe Portal 2 just for the co-op factor.

I could be wrong, but that's what I'm going with.

Co-oping in Borderlands 1 was what got me to understand FPS KBAM controls, so I'd suggest that.

Gunstar Heroes 2 player co-op. Make everything explode! When you get into 3D games Gears of war, especially 3 is a ton of fun in co-op, and pretty easy for newcomers. The A.I even babysits you and would go out of its way to revive people that get downed a bunch.

I've been, uh, training my girlfriend to play video games the last year. My tips might be stupid/too specific to her but honestly your friend sounds like she's in the same "experience" ballpark as my gf. Except your friend isn't a soulless monster who hates sci fi :(

• Co Op 2D games are the world's easiest intro to games. Guacamelee! was my choice, but there are tons.
• Consider also trading off in games that have high death count for new players, like Mega Man. This seems weird at first but by watching you play then getting to go right away, people can memorize and learn much much faster than usual, giving a great sense of progress
• If you want to start down the 3D path there is only one answer. ARCADE RACING GAMES. They introduce just the smallest amount of camera control and also really let you get to grips with the sensitivity of an analog stick. Usually they *barely* have any buttons. Gas. Brake.

Other than that just remember the basic principles of teaching

• try not to tell them what to do / what they are doing is wrong. Suggest possibilities. Encourage a playstyle different than your own
• practice patience at their failure, no matter what
• Be The Bigger Man (gender neutral) - now and then, you need to lose the race, fight, whatever. Sometimes, a white lie can do wonders for people's confidence. And when people are confident playing games, they have fun. Also, vice versa. You don't need to outright give in. But stack the odds against you via handicaps, either in game or self imposed ("I won't use my super/ultras in Street Fighter, just regular attacks").

Them's my thoughts. Have fun!

Dark Souls comes to mind. Also, she should enjoy the classics, like Ninja Gaiden Black.

Seriously though, you might actually want to have her start off with a game that grabs her attention instead of searching for one that is easiest to play. The Last of Us on easy is an experience, and not hard, but still very much a real game. Similarly, if her favorite genre is sci-fi, you might want to give Mass Effect a shot. It's relatively easy when you set it to easy and it is slow paced. Conversations, universe... definitely a game that would grab her attention.

I suggest an RPG or a family game like the LEGO games.