There’s a time in every modern parent’s life when a switch flips for their kids. It’s different for each kid but all of a sudden the floodgates open.

I run an esports team but I actually don’t play video games as much as you’d expect and my kids would only ask to play every now and again.

This last month was different. Christmas comes and my youngest asked the big guy 🎅 for Pokémon Violet and my boys each got their own controller. From there, it snowballed to also include playing and asking for Minecraft and Smash Bros, too.

What’s great is that I can play along with them and they want me to join in. Plus, they also love some of the classics (NBA Jam, Paperboy, Pac-Man, Sonic), so it’s stuff that I know and love.

Minecraft has hit them the hardest though - both boys have gotten books from the library and study them intensely or read stories set in the Minecraft universe. They imagine and talk about what they’re going to build/do in the game more than they actually play the game 😄 . There are a lot worse alternatives and we set up parental controls.

RECONNECTING WITH MY CHILDHOOD

Pokémon is a game for all ages. It’s a pretty simple concept - you explore a world where there are Pokémon you can capture and then battle other Pokémon with.

The latest version, Scarlet & Violet, is a ton of fun and catching Pokémon is a blast. It may amaze you to know there are 1025 now, not just the 150 you grew up with! But never fear, those OG ones are still super popular so they appear in the new games!

What’s been kind of cool is also having my 5 year old work on his reading while playing. Pokémon has a lot of text, and a lot of it is repetitive so it helps him practice. Win win!

After playing with them, I got a bit of Poké-nostalgia so I busted out my old games. Then I found out you can transfer Pokémon from those games over to the newest games through Pokémon Home (and a pretty convoluted process) which acts as kind of a cloud storage for your Pokémon.

Needless to say, this ate up an evening or two as I went through old Pokémon I caught. But most of my time was spent on finally capturing an extremely rare and hard to catch Pokémon that had eluded me since 2008!

• Took the kids to see Sonic 3 (Good but not as great as Sonic 1 or 2). However, there were so many trailers that my boys want to see - is 2025 the year of Kids Movies 🍿 ?

  • You have Dog Man, Looney Tunes, Minecraft, Lilo & Stitch, another Pixar movie, How to Train Your Dragon, Bad Guys 2, Zootopia 2, Gabby’s Dollhouse, and another SpongeBob. And the list goes on. Time for MoviePass?

• Viral TikTok from pediatric eye doctor says no screentime until age two and only 1 hour a week up to age 5. World Health Organization agrees.

• The internet is on fire 🔥 with Nintendo Switch 2 rumors. And this morning the launch trailer for the Switch 2 debuted. It looks glorious. The Switch is the best family console so the next iteration is likely a must-have.

Marvel Rivals

A free-to-play, team-based PvP hero shooter developed by NetEase Games that is currently quite popular. Set in the Marvel universe, players choose from a large roster of Marvel heroes and villains, including characters from the Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, X-Men, and more. It features 6v6 matches with a third-person camera view and several game modes across a variety of maps inspired by the Marvel multiverse.

The Basics:

Released: December 6, 2024,

Platforms: PS5 / Xbox Series X|S / PC

Pricing: Free to Play

Whether you’re watching your favorite streamer or family member play, or you’ve been thinking about trying it out, here’s what you’ll be seeing on screen:

1. Objective - See what you have to do next to win the game

2. Gameplay Overview - The timer on the top is how long you have to complete the objective by getting your convoy escorted to the next checkpoint, then the time increases. The blue is the progress your team has made in escorting it. You need to get it to each checkmark or the other team can push it backwards. The symbol is where the convoy is.

3. The white health bar is your teammates, then there are stats around the game itself (like FPS, etc), and then the convoy you are escorting is the chariot.

4. YOU - Here you are the Scarlet Witch, the white symbols to the right are her ammo for her right click attack that recharges over time.

5. ENEMY - You are being attacked by Wolverine! Enemies are in red and you can tell you are being attacked because of the red around the edge of the screen.

6. Your Info - Here is your character portrait and your basic attack. As a magic wielder you have infinite ammo but other characters who use weapons will have to reload and you’ll see how much ammo you have here.

7. Your Health - This is your health bar, don’t let it get to 0!

8. Your Abilities - These are different per hero/villain but they mirror the superpowers they are known for. The golden one is your ultimate ability that charges up from zero. Unleash it to drop a major attack!

One of the more unique aspects of Marvel Rivals is the ability to ‘Team Up’ with other superheroes for unique attacks that tie together the Marvel lore.

Hope your 2025 is off to a great start! If there’s anything you want to see covered in the new year, let me know!

GLHF,

Chris