RPGs for Kids

[Sean aka Calithena]

I want to see more of them. Roleplaying is easy. I'm convinced that rpgs, maybe not called that, with straightforward mechanics, very cool art, etc., marketed directly to children's stores, are a potentially big moneymaker, as well as serving other functions (broadening roleplaying, shedding the 'D&D consciousness' monkey, etc.)

I just read about a game Tony Irwin is designing called Pony Hello that might fit the bill for this. I still think Trollbabe could be rewritten for a 'tweener' female audience with its current mechanics more or less intact.

Any of you working on games for kids? How are you going to go about selling/marketing them if so?

[Shreyas Sampat]

Frankly, I don't think that anyone needs to write games "for kids."

Kids are really damn smart, and have attention spans you dare not plumb the depths of! You know it's true!

The problem with making games for kids is that if the games aren't fun the kids won't play them, unlike adults who are all habit-bound and socially-obligated and otherwise tempted to do things they don't wholeheartedly enjoy.

[xenopulse]

Kids are excellent freeform gamers. I tried D&D with them, but they want to do so much more, have more input, have directorial powers.

Just give it to them.

If you want some mechanics, just introduce some basic conflict resolution, and off you go. Let them make up whatever, and sometimes, you'll say "Okay, roll a die. If it's odd, this happens. If it's even, that happens." Or give them two stakes and two dice and let them choose if they only score one success. It's simple, effective, and gets the kids on a wonderful track :)

[Danny_K]

I've been thinking about running Cat or Night Time Animals Save the World for my 8 year old.  He's already had some primitive experience with Dungeons and Dragons from a friend at school, and he's been playing Pokemon on the Gameboy for a few months now.

Hmm, I think I'll start a Pokemon thread now.

[komradebob]

I'm sort of working on something like this right now. I'm a big miniatures junkie, and I'd like to see minis make a comeback in rpgs, in a less wargamey sense ( not meaning without conflict, just not so battlefield re-enactment oriented!).

Currently, I've been inspired by HG Wells Floor Games. My consideration is sort of a thought experiment on what our modern games would be like if it had been Floor Games rather than Little Wars had been the primary inspiration for games with miniatures.

Rather than mechanics for task resolution, I'm more interested in rules for player interaction. I plan to frankly steal and mutate some of the ideas in Universalis and in Christian's ( Xenopulse) Power/Evil game.

I'm actually working on a post/essay on the topic right now, but it is becoming sort of lengthy, so editing to prevent eyestrain is becoming necessary. Hopefully it should be up in a day or two in Theory.

[Ben Lehman]

Y'know, I was playing D&D at 4 years old.

I just saw it as entirely seperate from my make-believe play.  It was more like a board game that was ten times as awesome.

I continue to do both... until this day.  Although they have grown together a little, starting at adolescence.

I think this whole "you will taint their sacred make-believe with your nasty rules" thing is a little... overcautious.

yrs--
--Ben

[Tony Irwin]

I'd love to see more games you can play while having kids at the table with you. Facilitated by an adult but something children can participate very fully in. I can't really imagine how a game just for children would work. They seem to roleplay among themselves pretty well with out needing to sell them books on it.

I think Sean's right to point out Trollbabe, I also suggest Adventures of Baron Munchausen, and perhaps Universalis.