What My Six Year Old Has Learned From CoX
By
2Negative,
Posted on: 2008-02-19 08:05 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
Being this cute should be against the law.
Also, this thread makes me want to play controllers again. I was always a better controller than I ever was a scrapper or blaster.
My 3 1/2 yr old son, often looks over my shoulder when I'm playing. He prefers my fire tank, and often reminds me that "Fire Hot". He's not quite ready to join in, but he loves to give advice. "That one daddy"..."No, that one"
[ QUOTE ]
Extremely cute, and a good example of why parents should get involved with their kid's gaming. Or vice versa... 
*takes a deep breath to start a rant about how the gaming industry should do things, but is tackled by his characters, and dragged away. Delilah stays to explain*
"We generally keep him from acting too stupid, but he snuck out this morning."
[/ QUOTE ]
Hey, I am a big fan of being involved with your kids in all that they do.
You don't blame the networks for what they air; you watch tv with your kids and ask them about what they saw.
You wouldn't let you children wander around a strange street by themselves, so stick with them when they are surfing the net and such. Same goes with the games they play.
Before Flame got involved with CoX, I soloed alot and I'll tell you... it was pretty boring. There is just something about having someone in the same room playing CoX with you.
One more Flame story for you: Inspirations.
I've been slowly teaching Flame the value of inspirations. She kind of understands the Red means more damage, Yellow makes you hit better and Green heals you. Most of the others go over her head, but there is one color she understands very well:
Light blue... Wakies.
I dunno if it all the early face plants she took or what, but she tends to hoard them. As we play, she'll tell me that she is using up some Greenies to make room for more Light Blues. I glance over and see she has 6 "wakies" in her 8 slots.
One time, we were in a large group of 8 and faced a total wipe. Before anyone could say anything, Flame starts handing out wakies. Everyoen says thanks and good planning. One female made this comment:
"Wow! Are you a mind reader or can you see the future?" she asks.
I type this reply from Flame: "No. I just know that teams I am on die a lot, so I keep lots of wakies."
You can imagine her excitement when I told her you could _buy_ wakies from contact. Guess where all her Influence goes? I think her battle cry should be "Omw. Stopping to buy wakies."
*** Story Off ***
I am enjoying this time now with Flame. Remember, once they hit the teenage years, they will want nothing to do with you. I can see it now...
Teeny Bopper Hero 1: Whose that?
Flame: Oh geez. It's my dad....
Wyll: Hey? Can I get an invite? We can farm in PI for phat loot! I'm down with it.
Flame: *contemplates /ignore*
The Elementals - Brother Frost and Sister Flame
Who Is Sister Flame?
Arc 118690 - Sibling Rivalry (Sister Flame) Tweaked 09/15/09
My niece has seen me play CoH, but no playing for her yet; her father tends to tightly regulate TV and games (before you criticize, he IS her father, so I'm not arguing that one).
I admit to some amusement, and a genuine warm-and-fuzzy at Hero 1's response. I was inwardly dreading some soulless redname response of 'You do know this game is rated T for teen' or something to that effect. My apologies to the devs for misjudging them.
Oh, and if Sister Flame swings by Virtue, drop me a global buzz; I'll be happy to team with someone competent. 
"Let your plans be dark and as impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt." --Sun Tzu, The Art of War
What a wonderful post. I truly had a sorry @ss day today and this really has lifted my spirits tremendously.
Rock ON Sister Flame! 
[ QUOTE ]
My niece has seen me play CoH, but no playing for her yet; her father tends to tightly regulate TV and games (before you criticize, he IS her father, so I'm not arguing that one).
I admit to some amusement, and a genuine warm-and-fuzzy at Hero 1's response. I was inwardly dreading some soulless redname response of 'You do know this game is rated T for teen' or something to that effect. My apologies to the devs for misjudging them.
Oh, and if Sister Flame swings by Virtue, drop me a global buzz; I'll be happy to team with someone competent.
[/ QUOTE ]
Oh, I am a big fan of ratings. I am very pleased by the rednames response and others so far. You always wait to hear "omg you let a kid watch pg movies or play T games!".
CoX is rated T for Teen, but I find it an good experience for Flame as long as I am with her . My daughters love movies like "Hellboy", "Indiana Jones" and the like, so I know what will and will not bother them.
I even have my own checklist before I let my daughters near things. Let's take CoX for example:
Blood and Gore? None. Just cartoon/superhero violence which I am good with.
Scary or Shocking? Not for my girls. Some little ones may be afraid by some of of the mobs, but Flame just groans at the "puking zombies" cause they dish out some nasty damage and she finds the Freaks funny.
Offensive Language? Well, she can't read yet so that's good, but CoX has a profanity filter and the ToS prohibits bad words. Still, Flame sounded out some phonetically nasty words at times (under her breath). She tells me immediately and I show her how to use /ignore. (Again, play together with your children).
Friendly Community? CoX is pretty friendly and very noob nice in my opinion. I doubt I'd let Flame near many other MMOPGs (I've betaed and played many of them) just because of their communities.
What's The Universe Like? CoX can be a little scary and dark at times, but its not like playing something EmoWorld or Blood Letting 5 million. Plus, there are lots of bright spots in CoX that I think have a positive influence on Flame.
Flame still can't see all this fuss is about. She feels she is just another kid playing a game much like we played hopscotch or kick the can in our youth. Plus, she love superheroes.
That reminds me. She wants to go Frostfire... again. She likes the slides. You think doing a 3+ hour taskforce is rough? Trying sliding on the ice slides for 1/2 hour to entertain a six year old.
Ciao!
The Elementals - Brother Frost and Sister Flame
Who Is Sister Flame?
Arc 118690 - Sibling Rivalry (Sister Flame) Tweaked 09/15/09
I thought the Teen rating meant "watch over the shoulder for trouble/play it yourself first". You've done both. Good job.
[ QUOTE ]
"How come the Clockworks don't attack cars or make nasty cars to attack people?"
[/ QUOTE ]
Why DON'T they make evil cars to attack people?
Arc #41077 - The Men of State
Arc #48845 - Operation: Dirty Snowball
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
"Why do Skulls hang out in Perez Park?"
"How come the Clockworks don't attack cars or make nasty cars to attack people?"
"Why are Trolls green?"
"Where do the Outcasts get their power?"
[/ QUOTE ]
She should be lead dev for this game.
[/ QUOTE ]
That's Hero 1's job (the new story bible guy). He just had a baby, so he should be a sucker for these questions...
Okay, Hero 1 (if you do vanity searches for your name like the other Devs, you'll see this), would you please answer the child's questions? If you can't, then she can rightfully claim your job.
[/ QUOTE ]
Castle sent the link over all of us. War Witch, Positron and I are all laughing and enjoying the read. As many have said, it's nice to see stories like this come up. It also makes me glad I updated the profanity filter yesterday 
As far as answering her questions, I'd be more than happy to, but something tells me my answers would be no where as interesting as hers.
I'm sure someday Hero 2 will join the forces of justice and hopefully people like Sister Flame will be there to help him along.
Stay True
Hero 1
[/ QUOTE ]
I don't care about the answers. I just want Nasty Attack Cars in the game. I think I'd buy a whole game called Nasty Attack Cars for that matter.
[/ QUOTE ]
Its called Carmageddon. 1, 2 and I think 3. A game all about nasty attack cars. Not for the feint of heart and definatly not for kids, but loads of sadistic fun.
P.S. If you do unearth a copy of this game, (The latest is like 6-8 years old) It's a good idea not to drive for a good 30 minutes after playing...
"Where does he get those wonderful toys?" - The Joker
[ QUOTE ]
Those are Clockworks, but I like calling them Clickey Clacks." she replied quite happilly.
[/ QUOTE ]
Fantastic story. This in particular caught my eye.
My last girlfriend has a son who is now 10. We are all still very close. He was 8 when he started asking me about City of Heroes.
He loves games. He thinks an adult that plays video games is the coolest thing since sliced bread.
When he saw me playing, he wanted to play. When they came over for dinner at my place I would always let him play. This turned into me buying them an account of their own for Xmas the next year.....
...... And like your daughter, he didn't call Clockworks clockworks, he always called them 'Tinkerbots'. That always cracked me up and 'Clickity Clacks' cracks me up to.
So wonderous, the mind of a child.
Actual Location: Inside the system itself.
"When the most exciting thing about Mace is AceMace's avatar, then it's time to get realistic."
Shield Guide
The only thing anyone in this game is "supposed to be doing" is having fun. Everything else is negotiable. -Jet Boy
You know what would make little heroes like Flame really happy?
The Big Red Ball.
I can see little Flame with her little friends smiling and have a grand ol time kicking around the Big Red Ball.
"Kick it to me" They would say.
And poppa Positorn would kick the ball to the young heroes and all the darkness in the land would fade away.
Fluffy bunnies would decend from the heavens and give everyone a Small Red Ball for themselves.
Oh a magical place this land of The Big Red Ball would be.
Now they have to put it in. 
.
[ QUOTE ]
Awesomesauce! Thanks for posting this story, and tell Flame she's doing a great job. Sounds like she's a better player than some folks four or five times her age.
[/ QUOTE ]
QFT! I deal with people on triumph server who are adults and act worse than her
/em thumbsup
Very cute post
For what it's worth, I know there are younger kids running around. Every once in a while, I'll have a parent hop on and say "This character is being run by an (x) year old" - sometimes it's surprising who it is!
I have a couple pre-ten year olds in my friends list.
Their typing skills are poor but they play better than some (a lot ) of the people I've teamed with.
"I used to make diddly squat, but I've been with the company for 16 years and have had plenty of great raises. Now I just make squat" -- Me
Pediatric brain tumors are the #1 cause of cancer related deaths in children.
I know you didnt mention the server but I dont really think you should mention our daughters characters name. Im sorry, and I know I always get the "SOME people need to lighten up", but I dont think this is that smart.
This post has just made my day, a well as my mother's. I have a little brother who is seven and plays this game, he says and does similar things.
[ QUOTE ]
"How come the Clockworks don't attack cars or make nasty cars to attack people?"
[/ QUOTE ]
Its almost heartbreaking to think I will never get to play a game that is quite as good as the one your daughter currently plays.
[Guide to Defense] [Scrapper Secondaries Comparison] [Archetype Popularity Analysis]
In one little corner of the universe, there's nothing more irritating than a misfile...
(Please support the best webcomic about a cosmic universal realignment by impaired angelic interference resulting in identity crisis angst. Or I release the pigmy water thieves.)
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
8 foot tall neon green/red/purple/blue/yellow zombie catgirl archery blasters named rosabelle ftl. FTL!!
[/ QUOTE ]
This made me smile.
[/ QUOTE ]
Dude, you've been playing with MY 6-year old daughter, too?
Basically too many 50's to count, but I'm generally a brute/scrapper/tank kind of guy.
This is really awesome. You're the kind of dad kids everywhere wish they could have.
~Gabriel
[ QUOTE ]
You know what would make little heroes like Flame really happy?
The Big Red Ball.
[/ QUOTE ]
For the children!
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
"Why do Skulls hang out in Perez Park?"
"How come the Clockworks don't attack cars or make nasty cars to attack people?"
"Why are Trolls green?"
"Where do the Outcasts get their power?"
[/ QUOTE ]
She should be lead dev for this game.
[/ QUOTE ]
That's Hero 1's job (the new story bible guy). He just had a baby, so he should be a sucker for these questions...
Okay, Hero 1 (if you do vanity searches for your name like the other Devs, you'll see this), would you please answer the child's questions? If you can't, then she can rightfully claim your job.
[/ QUOTE ]
Castle sent the link over all of us. War Witch, Positron and I are all laughing and enjoying the read. As many have said, it's nice to see stories like this come up. It also makes me glad I updated the profanity filter yesterday
As far as answering her questions, I'd be more than happy to, but something tells me my answers would be no where as interesting as hers.
I'm sure someday Hero 2 will join the forces of justice and hopefully people like Sister Flame will be there to help him along.
Stay True
Hero 1
[/ QUOTE ]
What were the direct words that you added to the Profanity filter, might I ask?
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
"Why do Skulls hang out in Perez Park?"
"How come the Clockworks don't attack cars or make nasty cars to attack people?"
"Why are Trolls green?"
"Where do the Outcasts get their power?"
[/ QUOTE ]
She should be lead dev for this game.
[/ QUOTE ]
That's Hero 1's job (the new story bible guy). He just had a baby, so he should be a sucker for these questions...
Okay, Hero 1 (if you do vanity searches for your name like the other Devs, you'll see this), would you please answer the child's questions? If you can't, then she can rightfully claim your job.
[/ QUOTE ]
Castle sent the link over all of us. War Witch, Positron and I are all laughing and enjoying the read. As many have said, it's nice to see stories like this come up. It also makes me glad I updated the profanity filter yesterday
As far as answering her questions, I'd be more than happy to, but something tells me my answers would be no where as interesting as hers.
I'm sure someday Hero 2 will join the forces of justice and hopefully people like Sister Flame will be there to help him along.
Stay True
Hero 1
[/ QUOTE ]
What were the direct words that you added to the Profanity filter, might I ask?
[/ QUOTE ]
[censored], [censored], [censored], and [censored], I think, but I might be wrong.
Edit: No. Definitely correct.
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
You know what would make little heroes like Flame really happy?
The Big Red Ball.
[/ QUOTE ]
For the children!
[/ QUOTE ]
You know..for kids!
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
You know what would make little heroes like Flame really happy?
The Big Red Ball.
[/ QUOTE ]
For the children!
[/ QUOTE ]
You know..for kids!
[/ QUOTE ]
For Sparta!
@ShoRyu Kusanagi
The Unoffical Anime Junky of Justice
Great post!!
Maybe there should be a Take Your Child To Faultline Day.