I’m a huge advocate for introducing
newcomers to various aspects of the adventure gaming hobby. Most of
us engaging in this crusade focus our efforts on fellow adults, but
some face the added challenge of drawing in younger players without
the wealth of knowledge, experience, and patience more mature players
possess. Conventions serve as natural venues to attract and teach new
players; as gamers mature and have families, the hobby more often
sees younger kids at conventions...and they want to play their
parents’ games!
 |
| Tempted by cool Martian game.... |
But crafting a successful convention
game with kids in mind takes some time and planning to accommodate
their youthful whims and engage them enough to create a positive play
experience. Too often kids (and even some adults like myself) become
overwhelmed with the complexities of established rules, tire of turns
that seemingly take forever, and become bored or frustrated...none of
which contribute to an encouraging game session.
In this missive I’m glossing over
board and card games; aside from the suggested age range, these tend
to have obvious traits making them appropriate or unacceptable for
kids. Nobody’s going to try to teach a seven year-old how to play
Diplomacy or Axis & Allies – aside from the
complexities, they’re not going to sit still for half a day to play
– but such fare as Roll for It, Dino Hunt Dice, Robot
Turtles, Otters, Godzilla Stomp, even King of Tokyo, as
well as most Gamewright titles
remain both interesting and playable in their basic form. Most
of my discussion below remains applicable to roleplaying games and
miniature wargames, frequent offerings at the small, regional
conventions I frequent.
I don’t always run convention games
for kids – they’re a formidable challenge – but I have enough
experience teaching games to adults and playing games with children
to offer a few constructive strategies when preparing a convention
game one might label “kid friendly.” I’m drawing primarily on
two personal experiences: my work on the introductory children’s
tank miniatures game Panzer Kids (including
playtesting and convention games with the target audience);
and my endeavors introducing my preschooler, the infamous
Little Guy, to various aspects of gaming.
Subject Matter
Subject matter plays a greater role in
drawing kids than game systems, though the latter can seriously
cripple a play experience regardless of one’s enthusiasm for the
genre. Offering a game with a theme that excites young players not
only draws them to the table but keeps them engaged. This sometimes
results in a disparity between what a gamemaster wants to run and
what children want to play; it requires a willful choice to run a
game geared toward general convention attendees or one specifically
tailored for kids.
At a regional wargaming convention I
recently attended I noticed a host of young players gravitate toward
a colorful Gnome Wars game and a skirmish game with what
looked like pirate ships...all despite more historical offerings of
“kid friendly” games at those times. The issue also pertains to
gaming with kids at home. The Little Guy wanted to try Daddy’s
airplane game (the World War I flavor of Wings of Glory), and
I stripped it down for him, but after one game he wanted to go back
to playing the X-wing miniatures game with the quick-start rules
because, you know, Star Wars.
To illustrate the opposite end of the
spectrum, I’ve seen excellent demos and full games of both the
X-wing and Star Trek miniatures games where the gamemaster
deploys ships on the starfield playing surface, with the
corresponding ship and upgrade cards (with appropriate counters)
arranged along each side for potential players to read. Just the
simple visual appeal of the ships on the starfield helps draw players
familiar with those franchises regardless of age. When I run Panzer
Kids demos at conventions I make the battlefield as visually
appealing as possible, with tanks in their starting positions,
mountains, oases, and minefields on the board, and signage with rules
summaries and tank stats around the table edge so prospective players
can take a closer look if they like. Popular kids games at wargaming
conventions often incorporate fantastic elements like jungle temples,
floating islands, or Martian tripods.
I’m not saying every convention game
for kids should have a blatantly silly or child-like theme; but the
presentation (both in the event description and at the table itself)
should attract children and make clear the game’s appropriate for
and interesting to them.
Strip Down Rules
I’ve discussed cutting down rules to their bare essentials for kid-friendly play before. I dislike few
things in life more than catering to the lowest common denominator,
but I make an exception when it comes to teaching kids games.
Gamemasters can address this challenge by approaching the game as a
completely new player. What are the absolutely most basic rules
essential for a meaningful and positive play experience? This
strategy runs the danger of simplifying rules to an existing game so
much that it becomes a different game altogether, without the
possibility for players to move on to the full rules later. As long
as the stripped down rules contain the base elements for the complete
game, participants can take the first step on their journey to
understanding the complete rules, assuming they sustain any interest;
but to throw all or most of the rules at a complete newcomer –
child or otherwise – risks overwhelming and confusing them beyond
their willingness to learn.
The X-wing Miniatures Game
offers a fine example of this technique. The quick-start version of
the game focuses on the movement and combat phases, setting aside for
the moment the complexities of actions (taken after movement),
upgrades, and special pilot abilities, all of which contribute to the
diverse gameplay of the full version. It’s not always possible to
distill core rules down to something kids can easily learn and play,
especially if you’re working in the realm of roleplaying games and
wargames which, by their nature, have a great degree of depth.
Gamemasters should choose between running a game in its intended form
or running something suitable for kids; finding a workable middle
road is rarely easy or successful.
Handouts
Gameplay-aid handouts serve several
purposes in kid-friendly games. Set out on the table beforehand they
can function as a tempting sample of what players can expect (much
like the X-wing and Star Trek miniatures game card set-up I
mentioned in “Subject Matter” above). Handouts can quickly
summarize key rules for quick reference during play. Print out enough
and kids can take home a fun souvenir of their experience; a website
address can help them find more information about the game if they
choose to pursue it on their own.
Roleplaying game handouts generally
consist of some kind of character sheet, though I’ve offered brief
summaries of how core rules operate or overviews of the setting.
Player maps always help, too. For wargames brief summaries of the
turn sequence along with movement and combat rules for individual
units provide ready reference at the table.
When running Panzer Kids games I
have two flyers prominently displayed at the table, even before the
game begins: a rundown of the turn sequence with summaries of the
movement and combat rules, and a diagram showing what different
numbers on the tank stat cards mean. Each tank deployed on the
battlefield gets its own stat card players keep afterward...each with
a promotional blurb and website address for the game on the other
side.
I’m slowly preparing to run a few
skirmishes for All Quiet on the Martian Front
with my wife and the Little Guy, both of whom love the concept of
early 20th century forces battling Martian tripods but don’t really
get into the complexities of miniature wargames. Aside from learning
the rules and assembling and painting all the units, I also plan on
creating a card for each unit detailing its game stats and
summarizing special ability rules for easy reference at the game
table. This might serve me well if I ever decide to run kid-friendly
games at conventions.
Keep It Short
 |
| Distracted by PRETZEL! |
Kids (and some adults) have limited
attention spans, especially at conventions with various dealers,
games, and other activities to tempt them. Plan events for short
periods and allow for players to come and go. Quick demo games give
newcomers the freedom to try the rules quickly, then move on to
something else or continue playing. Longer games might run a maximum
of two hours, but don’t be surprised if some younger players wander
off or get bored once they realize what kind of game commitment
they’ve made. In a way running a convention game takes on aspects
of a public performance, including the ego of the principle actor.
Don’t get discouraged or distracted by kids who don’t maintain
interest or wander off to try something else.
When we have a family game night with
the Little Guy we keep things short. Rarely do we run past an hour of
gameplay, though depending on the game we might get in a few
sessions. Having a game day with adult guests inevitably means the
Little Guy comes and goes; he plays in some games, then wanders off
to his toys during others (though he often watches and wants to play
in the more advanced game fare we offer).
Bear in mind that not all kids of a
certain age are ready for a particular game. Everyone, even adults,
have different attention, comprehension, and adaptability levels that
makes them more inclined toward certain games and less inclined
toward others. Generally, though, kids from 5-11 years old might play
with the active participation of an adult, with those 12 years and
older able to play well-planned, kid-friendly games on their own (all
depending on their maturity level).
Looking back over past Hobby Games
Recce missives I realize I’ve talked a great deal about gaming with
kids; these might offer additional ideas for introducing gaming to
children at home and at conventions: “Children’s Programming at Conventions” discusses kids at cons in a general sense, with a
short bit on gaming; “Teach Your Kids to Game Week” briefly
covers a few strategies for introducing games to children (some
expanded upon in the bulk of the current article); “Roleplaying Games for Kids” and “Crafting A Roleplaying Experience for Kids”
offer specific suggestions for this particular field of the adventure
gaming hobby.
Comments....
Have any additional tips, techniques,
or experiences in preparing and running convention games for kids?
Want to offer feedback? Start a civilized discussion? Share a link to
this blog entry on Google+ and tag me (+Peter Schweighofer) to
comment.
