Any festive gamers out there?

[DanCarterIsMyOtherHusband]

Techno-phobe posting for some handheld console gaming help!

I have DS-will-be-8 and DS-will-be-nearly-5 and they've suddenly become very interested in 'video games'. Am thinking about a Nintendo but I'm not really sure what they are, what they do and whether they'd be age appropriate. They have seen the ads on tv, hence the interest.

Once you buy the console, do you just download games or do the games run off a card or similar?

If they had one each can they swap games between them or are they specific to each console?

Is there any risk of them buying stuff online - are there parental controls?

Will my younger DS be able to work it (he will be nearly 5 but believes he's the same age as his older brother and will be frustrated if he can't keep up).

Do the consoles link so they can play games together or are they completely independent?

There are 2D and 3D versions and I think an ergonomic version. Which would you suggest? I don't mind paying for longevity.

Thanks for any help on this

Hopeful bump!

The newest handheld nintendo consoles are the 2ds xl, if you had two of them they will be able to play together using local multiplayer, but they will both need separate copies of the software, so you'd have to buy two lots.

It might be easier to go for a nintendo switch, which has a handheld portable option and allows multiplay, but you'd only have to buy one copy of each game.

Do you mean a handheld DS or a TV screen based one like the Switch?
5 year olds will cope fine with both but on a 2 player game might keep on losing against his brother.

Thanks both. I think a handheld each is the way to go. Can they swap games between them to play independently?