Children’s video games | The best of 2022

The boundless videogame world is boundless and full of adventures to be faced at all ages; but if there is a perfect time to fall madly in love with this entertainment medium, it is when you are a child. They have existed since the dawn of time many games suitable for a younger gamer audienceand even today, it is possible to find on the market experiences made to perfection to make the little ones enjoy and explore in ever new and fun ways.

In our buying guide, we have decided to include video games suitable for children very different from each other, because even between different genres and adventures it is possible to find substantial differences. Between platformers, driving games or adventure games, even the youngest audience will be able to find their favorite games in which to get lost while playing video games. Furthermore, all the mascots that accompany them in new colorful worlds to be discovered are added to the genres. From Crash Bandicoot to all the iterations starring the characters of Super Mario, the choice even for a younger audience is vast and very rich in variety.

Best video games for kids

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

Best video games for kids

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is the latest chapter of the historic action / platform series by Insomniac Games. Released only a few months ago, Rift Apart is the perfect example of how to mix action, funny characters and a compelling story that knows how to bring a whole range of emotions and sensations to the fore. Added to this are high-quality cutscenes, which at times seem to have come straight out of a Pixar film. In addition to this recent chapter, on PlayStation 4 it is also possible to recover Ratcher & Clanka reinterpretation of the historic first episode of the much-loved series starring two iconic PlayStation mascots.

Click here to purchase Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
Click here to purchase Ratchet & Clank


Mario Kart

Best video games for kids

With the most recent Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit the younger audience can mix the love for video games with the passion for radio-controlled cars. The Nintendo title, in fact, not only sets itself the task of entertaining players with a full-fledged Mario Kart, but also packs everything they need to build their own tracks for home and a Super Mario-themed radio-controlled toy car. If, on the other hand, you prefer to play a more traditional Mario Kart, there is still the highly played Mario Kart 8 Deluxe which, after more than two generations, is one of the most loved and complete chapters of the saga ever.

Click here to buy Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit (Set Mario)
Click here to purchase Mario Kart 8 Deluxe


Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair

Best video games for kids

Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair is a colorful platform game developed by the guys from Team 17. The two protagonists, the chameleon Yooka and his little partner Laylee will have to solve various puzzles to continue their own adventure full of humor. In addition to this more recent chapter, there is also a three-dimensional Yooka-Laylee released two years earlier. If you have never encountered this video game saga before, it will turn out to be an excellent discovery, as well as a great way to start approaching this kind of experience from an early age.

Click here to purchase Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair
Click here to buy Yooka-Laylee


Crash Bandicoot

Best video games for kids

Crash Bandicoot needs no introduction, and with the recent Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time we were finally able to return to one of the most colorful and fun videogame worlds ever created. Activision and Toys For Bob, after the excellent N.Sane Trilogyhave carried on the historical saga with a fourth episode that there transports you back to the world of Crash Bandicoot best of ways. It is, in fact, a platform suitable for everyone, both for those who have never approached the genre, and for those who have loved this type of games for some time. In addition to this recent chapter, you can also find the remake of Crasg Team Racing, a kart game similar to Mario Kart but with the Crash characters and a series of differences that make it even more crackling.

Click here to buy Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time
Click here to purchase Crash Bandicoot N’Sane Trilogy
Click here to purchase Crash Team Racing Nitro Fueled


Splatoon 2

Best video games for kids

Born as a sort of experiment at Nintendo, Splatoon it quickly became one of the most loved shooters, especially among the youngest. Splatoon 2, despite its being an atypical competitive game, continues to be played very much today, also thanks to the announcement of Splatoon 3, which will arrive in 2022. Splatoon 2 is the perfect video game to spend hundreds of hours of fun in company, with many modes, aesthetic customizations and additional weapons. In addition to the online, there is also a single player mode in which to discover parts of the history of the world and its strange characters who inhabit it.

Click here to purchase Splatoon 2


Minecraft: Dungeons

Best video games for kids

If your child loved Minecrafthe will probably get passionate about it too without too much effort Minecraft: Dungeons, a very particular spin-off decidedly more adventurous in which to form teams with your friends and set out on an adventure, dedicating yourself to the exploration of huge dungeons in a context based on the universe of the Mojang series. Minecraft: Dungeons eliminates the creative component that characterizes the original game to offer a finished and more studied experience, playable in co-op for up to four players. If, on the other hand, you’ve never been close to classic Minecraft, well, give it a chance.

Click here to purchase Minecraft: Dungeons Hero Edition
Click here to buy Minecraft


Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle

Best video games for kids

It is very rare that the little ones do not like Super Mario, but with Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle, born from the collaboration between Nintendo and the Italian studio of Ubisoft Milan, could also fall in love with the very nice Rabbids. The game is a strategy game that blends the Mario series and characters with the super funny white bunnies from Rayman’s universe. Do not be fooled by the colorful aspect, however: in this case we are faced with a title a little more complex than expected, but which, if learned properly, is capable of giving enormous satisfaction and great fun.

Click here to purchase Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle
Click here to purchase Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle Gold Edition


Rayman Legends

Best video games for kids

Speaking of Rayman, it is impossible not to mention too Rayman Legends, undoubtedly one of the Ubisoft masterpieces of recent years, as well as a video game really suitable for everyone. The game is a colorful two-dimensional platform full of fun situations, and is developed with the splendid UbiArt Framework, which makes every moment of the game a real picture in motion. But not only that: it remains, even after several years, a very entertaining title, which has its greatest strength in accessibility, thanks to a difficulty that is also very suitable for children.

Click here to purchase Rayman Legends


Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury

Best video games for kids

We conclude with the master of platform games. Super Mario 3D World is a classic of the platform signed by Nintendo, originally released on Wii U and arrived on Nintendo Switch in the final version and enriched with a huge DLC, Bowser’s Fury, which represents a decidedly non-secondary part of the package. If Super Mario 3D World is, in fact, a three-dimensional reinterpretation of the classic two-dimensional Mario, this new Bowser’s Fury is instead a slightly more free and particular experience, a real novelty of the Switch version and that we strongly recommend to try to all lovers of the mustachioed plumber. Moreover, everything can also be played in a cooperative, up to four players.

Click here to purchase Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury


Great experiences even for the little ones

The world of video games is now so large and full of different experiences that every enthusiast can find their favorite games. Especially the little ones have always been able to draw on a very large choice of games. Many worlds made of funny and curious mascots, but also of settings of a thousand colors and full of a spirit of discovery always present around every corner.

Timeless classics

Some of the funniest games feature different characters who have rightfully entered the history of the video game. Crash Bandicoot, Ratchet & Clank and Super Mario they are a perfect trio capable of giving great fun in a variety of completely unique ways. These three sagas have both main chapters that are based mainly on the platform generation, but also a whole series of spin-off titles that result in driving games or party-games to be played even in the company of some friends.

To these historical brands are added many others, more recent or not. Among these it is impossible not to mention, and consequently to recommend, the beautiful Rayman Legends or the colorful Yooka & Layleetitle created by the authors of another historic brand such as Banjoo & Kazooie.

Immediacy as a key word

What all the titles in this buying guide have in common is the immediacy of experiences. Each game mentioned is capable of putting the youngest audience at ease with simple mechanics and very simple basic gameplay that can be deepened as you gain experience with the controls.

Pegi

Finally, if you were still unaware of this fundamental information, there is a way to understand whether or not a specific game is suitable for a smaller audience. This is the Pegi: the classification method valid on almost the whole European territory, which also in Italy is used to classify video games through five age categories and eight content descriptions. In short, just take a look at the stamp present on each case of a video game to instantly understand at what age that experience is addressed.