THOSE HAND HELD GAMES...Gameboy/Nintendo/???

[ggeorgiagirl]

I am hoping that someone knowledgeable can help me. My DS(5) wants one of those game things that you hold in your hand. Can someone give me advice on purchasing one? Which are the best? He loves "Driving/Racing" games...the ones where you drive the car.

HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!

TIA

Beth

 

[Eeyore's Girl]

I wouldn't consider myself knowledgable about the various options. The only input I have is that DD7 asked specifically for a NintendoDS for her 7th birthday. By far, she has enjoyed it more than most anything else she's ever had, except maybe her baby dolls.

Can you do a comparison using something like Consumers Report? Maybe get some advise from someone in the electronics dept. at Target, or wherever you might do a comparison.

 

[squirrlygirl]

I wouldn't spend the money for a DS for a 5-yr. old. It will get dropped too often, lost on occasion, and the advanced features will be lost on someone that age. I'd start with a gameboy advance that flips shut, which is much cheaper. When he's a bit older you can get him the DS and he'll still be able to play the gameboy advance games on it.

DD (5) has the old gameboy advance and took a marker to it. The screen is completely scratched up, the battery cover is missing, and the rechareable holder falls off. DS (6) has the newer flip-shut (now with backlit screen!) GBA and it's still working but is quite beat up. He's dropped it many many times. DS (11) has the DS and uses it mostly (95% of the time) just for playing games, which the GBA's can do.

 

[LuvOrlando]

When my kids were really young I bought them the older Game boy model that was on its way out for $35 at Wal-mart on Black Friday. Then I learned that many games require decent reading skills to navigate so they had to grow into most games. They got a ton of use and I didn't worry too much about them losing them because they weren't too $$$.

These days it seems the hot new systems change as often as I change my shower curtain We have both the PSP and DS. It seems the DS is the new fav among kids. Nerf makes a DS cover that seems impenetrable, which we have. DS is a bit expensive but the games can be rented from Blockbuster so you can try them before buying them, or just keep renting. 2 favorites among kids are "Nintendogs" and "Mario Kart".

 

[tl_swift]

Do you have a Funcoland in your area? I would buy him a used refurbished system. I have purchased them for my boys and they work just fine for quite a bit less. He would probably do just fine with a Gameboy Advance and you don't have to worry about the hinges getting broke like on an SP. JMHO

 

[cissy]

I, too, am getting a Gameboy Advances for my two DD's (5 and 6) for Xmas. I asked a bunch of my friends' older kids and they all said that the Nintendo DS was really too advanced. It has a lot of features my kids won't appreciate or use.

Add to that the cost and the Gameboy seems best for us. I just can't justify spending ~250.00 on games for kids that age. And that is just the devices, not even the games added in. YIKES! And by the time my girls are old enough to play the more advanced systems, there will be something better out there.

Good luck!!

 

[ggeorgiagirl]

!!!$250!!! Are you serious??!! I thought that they were $150! WOW Even $150 was toooo much for me!

So, the thing I need is called a regular Nintendo Gameboy?

He only wants a racing/driving game.
right now anyway!

 

[tl_swift]

$79.00 here with free shipping!!!

http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Nint...33772/catOid/-14201/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do

 

[kelliebelly]

Another vote here for Gameboy Advance. My son got one this year for his
5th birthday and he loves it. I looked at the DS, because it does have better graphics, but it was too advanced for him and he would lose the stylus in a matter of minutes! The Gameboy only has a few buttons and they seem to work well for smaller hands. There are lots of games too and they aren't too badly priced.

 

[ggeorgiagirl]

I LOOOOOVE YOU ALL!

Gameboy it is...especially at Circuit City!

 

[Not so Dumbo]

I was hoping for a thread like this.
I too was wondering which was the "in" hand held system. However, the price difference between the DS and the advance sp was the deciding factor being the GBA SP was half the price of the DS. My DS8 has never had a hand held system and I'll bet he won't even know that he doesn't have the one with the most gagets.
My problem had been finding one. Most online stores are sold out as well as 3 others that we looked at. I finally found one last night at Walmart and made DH chase after it at 10:30p.
Also, just a heads up for anyone shopping for GB advance games.... there are going to be qiute a few stores having black friday sales on them. KB toys- BOGO, Circuit City- $5, Kohls-2/$15

 

[laxcdn]

Depends on the kids age, you could look at the PSP too. I bought one for my 8 yo and he loves it. He can play games, I have downloaded stuff from Youtube to it and it can play movies and show pictures. If you have access to wireless it can connect to the internet too. Really versatile for the money. It will be great for the plane trip. Not sure of the price in the US but in Canada it was $229 with a game, memory stick and Family Guy tv show (which you store away or trade).

 

[mnasmom3]

We went through this last year. We settled on the nintendo ds for our 7 yr old. My 5 yr old plays it with no trouble. There are plenty of games that aren't too advanced for the younger kids. The stylus is rarely neccessary, so I swiped it before it could get lost. You can use your finger as a stylus for the most part. The reason we settled on the DS instead of the GBA was that the new games that will be coming out will likely be DS games and I figured the GBA would be obsolete soon. Didn't want to have to turn around and buy another game system in a couple of years simply because the new/good games coming out weren't compatible with the GBA. The DS plays both game system games, so we went with that. The only drawback is that it's not as sturdy as I'd like it to be. The hinges are just begging to be snapped. If you have a child that's rough with toys, I'd skip nintendo DS and go for something a little more sturdy.

 

[LilGMom]

We have the Gameboy, Nintendo DS and the PSP (it is actually my PSP but my DS6 gets to play it occaisionally) and I would vote for the DS. The Gameboy games can be played on the DS and the games that utilize the touch-screen are really neat and fun. The Ratatouille game is absolutely adorable, especially the cooking part where you have to blow on the food if it starts getting too hot. My DS6 loves the Nintendo Dogs game which is another that uses the touch-screen. The DS is one that will grow with a child that is five for longer than the Gameboy and like I said earlier the Gameboy games can be played in the DS which is a plus when you find used Gameboy games for $10.

The PSP is a ton of fun too but it seems to have more games geared towards slightly older kids and gamer-type adults.

 

[hsmamato2]

been there, done that with kids growing through systems... a gameboy advance sp is a great first platform(believe me,there'll be more) it's virtually indestructible,as are the games- ours have been washed and dried,and still work the gameboy has been dropped tossed,lost,found,played with and still keeps going. plus, you can still use advance games for the ds,when he gets older and wants that.
A ds is less tough, better for older kids,the games are so much cooler,but your 5 year old should be very happy with the sp.
Mine used to play chip and Dale racing a lot, you can find lots of used disney games on ebay

 

[scrappin]

The good thing about Nintendo is that they usually make it so you can always play the older games on the new system. I agree with the other posters, the Gameboy Advance is sturdier. My DD (11) cracked the hinge of her DS - cost $50 to have it fixed.

Mario Kart is a good game. My son liked most of the mario and donkeykong games when he was younger. Now that they are older and can read - they love Animal Crossing.

 

[ggeorgiagirl]

My son is rough on EVERYTHING! We go through those movie players in the car...like hot cakes! At least a new one every year (or sooner!!!).

 

[tl_swift]

My son is rough on EVERYTHING! We go through those movie players in the car...like hot cakes! At least a new one every year (or sooner!!!).

Oh my goodness!!! By your picture in your signature your boy looks like he is still old enough to be in a car seat. How is he getting to the car movie player? I would be putting a stop to that real quick!!

 

[ggeorgiagirl]

Yes...he is in a car seat. He'll be in it until he is 75 lbs!!!! He messes with it while I am putting his sister in the seat or while we are stopped at places (i.e. church parking lot, dad in the grocery store, etc). He learned his lesson with this one...he broke his dvd-player-part around February and has had to watch his sister's movies all year (she is 2). We had one of those dual screen things that were on sale last year!