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[Yodamaster]

I read all these suggestions and I'm like, "How can a 3 year old do that?"

I highly recommend the Spy Fox series. I had amazing fun with those as a kid and I think that you will too. Also, Pajama Sam. Both are awesome point & click adventures.

[Lap]

I'm in favor of giving them games that are well out of their age group in complexity. Having a few good educational games for their age group is all well and good, but I probably learned the most from hard adventure and simulation games. Let them screw around with the tycoon and sim games and learn some problem solving skills. They might not have any idea what an overall goal is (and some don't even have them), but that isn't the point. Bonus points for games without spoon fed tutorials.

More specifically I'd also recommend any sandbox game or physics sim (like Garry's Mod).

On a related note, most new games today have voice overs, which is kind of a problem here as it makes reading less of necessity. I learned how to read way ahead of my grade level just from playing adventure games and having to read all the text. Try turning on subtitles and taking away the speakers so that they are forced to read.

[Rakonas]

What Lap said. Let her play some stuff that's totally not meant for 3 year olds and if she enjoys it then the effect will be positive. She may be only starting to read, but if she enjoys a game which involves difficult reading she'll learn to read faster. I say definitely introduce her to strategy games in a few years though she probably won't be capable of enjoying most of them just yet.
Give her some mario games (preferably 64 or sunshine for spatial problem solving in a 3d environment) and rollercoaster/zoo tycoon I think, too.

[timferius]

I read all these suggestions and I'm like, "How can a 3 year old do that?"

I highly recommend the Spy Fox series. I had amazing fun with those as a kid and I think that you will too. Also, Pajama Sam. Both are awesome point & click adventures.

Haha, thanks. I don't think she'll be managing theme parks or blasting aliens any time soon. A point and click is a great idea, I can read any text for her, but she needs a lot of practice with the mouse yet.

[Empty]

I learned my english playing super nintendo games!

[Deon]

I suggest Superman 64. If your kid finishes it, he's going to be a great gamer.

I wait for my son to become 6 to show him how to play computer games and namely that gem.

[timferius]

I suggest Superman 64. If your kid finishes it, he's going to be a great gamer.

I wait for my son to become 6 to show him how to play computer games and namely that gem.

Sorry, I think I wasn't very clear, I'd like my kid to LIKE Video games...

[Dirg]

To be fair, as someone that owns an n64 and superman64 game, its not all that horrible, but not really a game for kids with all those glitches. So many wasted hours from trying to smack a boss only to hit a wall and get stuck...

[fenrif]

I'm in favor of giving them games that are well out of their age group in complexity. Having a few good educational games for their age group is all well and good, but I probably learned the most from hard adventure and simulation games. Let them screw around with the tycoon and sim games and learn some problem solving skills. They might not have any idea what an overall goal is (and some don't even have them), but that isn't the point. Bonus points for games without spoon fed tutorials.

More specifically I'd also recommend any sandbox game or physics sim (like Garry's Mod).

On a related note, most new games today have voice overs, which is kind of a problem here as it makes reading less of necessity. I learned how to read way ahead of my grade level just from playing adventure games and having to read all the text. Try turning on subtitles and taking away the speakers so that they are forced to read.

I would've thought the subtitles + speech would help someone learn to read more than just subtitles?

[Fniff]

Dwarf Fortress, Fallout: New Vegas and Hitman: Blood Money.

She needs to learn that the world isn't fair and that the good people die sometimes.

...

Wait, no, don't tell her that! NOOO!

[Lap]

I would've thought the subtitles + speech would help someone learn to read more than just subtitles?

I would agree with that if it was an educational game designed to teach them new words, but let's not forget that when there's the easy option of listening and the harder option of having to struggle to read, that they are going to mostly just listen. In most games the best the kid will get is some sort of subconscious, loose association...maybe. They might even tune out the subtitles all together. You might as well use computer time as more active learning time and leave subtitles + sound for when watching TV.

For a child to be able to benefit from a subtitles-without-sound situation we need to assume that a child has some basic knowledge of reading or at least the alphabet. With or without sound isn't going to matter much without a certain base level of knowledge. Getting them to the point where they can read some basic words ('cat', 'the', etc.) is probably needed first. It is also very important that to use games where the dialog can be slowed or wait for the player to hit a key. It is very frustrating to try to look and sound out words if they are flying away and disappearing.

Side note: Remember that you have a limited window in their childhood to get your own nostalgia fix. Pretty soon they'll end up seeing all the advanced graphics in today's modern games and there will be no way they'll want to play some of your old favorites from decades ago. It's even hard for me to go back to some of my own favorites after seeing how terrible their resolutions or interfaces are .

[Dirg]

The reader rabbit games aren't bad in the educational sense, I remember having fond memories of one where it was basicly a side scroller in a castle setting where you did math problems and such.

[fenrif]

I would've thought the subtitles + speech would help someone learn to read more than just subtitles?

I would agree with that if it was an educational game designed to teach them new words, but let's not forget that when there's the easy option of listening and the harder option of having to struggle to read, that they are going to mostly just listen. In most games the best the kid will get is some sort of subconscious, loose association...maybe. They might even tune out the subtitles all together. You might as well use computer time as more active learning time and leave subtitles + sound for when watching TV.

For a child to be able to benefit from a subtitles-without-sound situation we need to assume that a child has some basic knowledge of reading or at least the alphabet. With or without sound isn't going to matter much without a certain base level of knowledge. Getting them to the point where they can read some basic words ('cat', 'the', etc.) is probably needed first. It is also very important that to use games where the dialog can be slowed or wait for the player to hit a key. It is very frustrating to try to look and sound out words if they are flying away and disappearing.

Side note: Remember that you have a limited window in their childhood to get your own nostalgia fix. Pretty soon they'll end up seeing all the advanced graphics in today's modern games and there will be no way they'll want to play some of your old favorites from decades ago. It's even hard for me to go back to some of my own favorites after seeing how terrible their resolutions or interfaces are .

Yeah that's my point though. I don't think a 3 year old has a firm enough grasp of the written word to be able to just force themselves to learn without the speech as a guide. Also you're kinda painting all kids with broad strokes there. Some kids like to read.

[Neonivek]

I read all these suggestions and I'm like, "How can a 3 year old do that?"

I highly recommend the Spy Fox series. I had amazing fun with those as a kid and I think that you will too. Also, Pajama Sam. Both are awesome point & click adventures.

Honestly all the games by that company are fun.

Heck I even loved Puttputt (and I admit I have a little soft spot for him in my heart).

There is also Mixed up mother goose.

[Mech#4]

Having fun with a game doesn't need to equal being able to finish a game. I used to play "Hugo's House of Horrors" when I was 4-5 and some of the words and a specific quiz was far beyond what I knew at the time, but I had lots of fun exploring the world. I didn't know what the limits of the game world was, so anything could happen as far as I knew.

Games which I played growing up:
Hugo series of adventure games. I, II and III.
Pacman.
Bananoid. (Brick Breaker game. Bounce the ball)
Captain Comic. (Platformer. Hard, but a nice big world to explore. No saving.)
Monster Bash. (Platformer. A bit gory, but your rescuing pets from monsters armed with a slingshot)
Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure. (Platformer. You play as a green alien with suction cups for hands)
Wacky Wheels. (Like Mario Kart, but with animals. Hedgehogs are used as bullets)
Commander Keen.
Links: The Challenge of Golf. (Neat golf game. I had great fun whacking the ball everywhere but the hole.)