Minecraft turns children weird doesn't it?

[nevercackle]

Half term dilemma. DS2 (7) is back to banging on about playing on minecraft and I'm reluctant because as far as i can see children want to spend hours and hours and hours playing on it and become completely obsessed.

"But it's just like building lego" - So go play with your lego.
"But they even play it at school" - Well that will be why you don't know your times tables.
"But the gymnast Louis Smith plays computer games and he hasn't given up sport because of it" - Yeah, well i think you'll find he's twatting around on tv instead of doing any gymnastics these days.

And besides if they are on the computer, I can't be on mumsent

AIBU?

I don't think ds's Minecraft obsession has made him any more weird, than his natural weirdness.

Although he does have a charming fondness for potatoes......

My DS is 13 and loves Minecraft. I object to it less than I do to some other computer games, however I hate the bickering it causes when he plays online with his friends. As far as can understand players can destroy things others have spent hours building.

No wierdness here (girls) but they do love it. They get about 30m three times a week.

Minecraft is fine, as long as you can find ways to avoid your children talking to you about it. Yawn.

My brother is a 27 year old man child still living at my grandmothers house. All of his 'friends' are 'people' he has met on line in games like these.

When he gets in from work he sits at his pc till he goes bed. When he is not in work he will sit for 14 straight hours at it.

He is an anti social twat.

My 5 year old would love a creeper hoodie - where from?!

Quote from ds1, as he emerged blinking into the sunlight, after a mammoth minecraft session, 'well, at least real life doesn't lag'.

From ds2, on a clear day 'it is like minecraft with the clouds switched off. But with a round sun'

I objected to minecraft, until they started on goat simulator...

It does seem to be more obsession-inducing than other popular games! Although I'd guess the aggressive merchandising helps with that (just like why One Direction are even more popular than other better similar bands) :o

People keep telling me I should get my DCs (5/7) to play it, and I have considered it, but they've not asked. They aren't bothered that loads of their friends are into it (I'm hoping this is a good sign for all the peer pressure that will occur over the next ten years or more, but I shouldn't kid myself really!) so although I was tempted by all the talk about it being good for maths etc. I can see how it's great for older children/teens and it's got to be miles better than violent FPS games!

If they ask to play it then I'll let them but they don't get much screen time so I don't think they'd manage to build anything really. I imagine they will play it when they're bigger but for now they still play with toys or just run around mostly and don't sit still for anything ()

ATM they are obsessed enough with lego - we have actually had to take it away from DD a couple of times when she has got angry over having to do something else. She has done the same over iPad time, whereas DS is pretty chilled about all of that - I do think it's largely personality that determines that. It's the reason we had to impose time limits for screens - DS doesn't really need it but DD does, she can't self regulate.

My 8 year old has been into it for 2 years. He now has a healthy interest in ICT and does computer coding after school. I'm hoping he will be the next Bill Gates ;)

Frumpy
I got DSs creeper hoodie from New York
but
www.amazon.co.uk/Official-Licensed-Minecraft-Creeper-Hoodie/dp/B00J7A3Y7A
not cheap, but they ARE good quality

PS
all those stressing about outcomes

my cousin is in Cloud strategy for Microsoft
none of which existed when he was doing Maths at Cambridge

our kids will have jobs that have not been invented yet : help keep their options open

So long as they mainly do Other Things (preferably involving real life social interaction, and/or also preferably also involving all four limbs) then I don't see a problem with age-appropriate computer games.

I find my kids are self-limiting - they come and sheepishly hand me the tablet if they find themselves getting grumpy.

The only thing I object to are World Of Tanks cheat/commentary videos. These truly are by idiots for idiots.

Interestingly we let DS buy GTA5 when he was 13 (long story .... communal room ... lots of rationalising)

he played it obsessively for several months

then we were in a real car crash not our fault - rear ended at a junction he stopped playing it for several months

Games are escapism
same as hobby horses were

DH was certainly born and more or less started university before the technology he did his masters on and makes a living on properly existed.

Who knows where Mine Craft will lead your DCs.

Sims meanwhile, certainly makes them weird.

It's been a brilliant leveller in my DS's school - he was the 'weird' clever non-footie-playing kid and was being bullied a bit, but once they all started getting into Minecraft he suddenly had lots in common with the other boys and a common language in which to talk about utterly incomprehensible things like Redstone, and he's much happier and has more friends at school as a result. It also got him reading - he never voluntarily picked up a book until the Minecraft handbooks came out but he now cheers if it's raining in the morning because it means he can take a book in to read at wet play. He's drifted away from it a bit now and back to his oh-so-tedious truck driving simulator ('Dinner's ready!' 'I'll be there in a minute - I just have to deliver these breeze blocks to Hull') but it's definitely done more good than harm in his case.

Oh, and his creeper hoodie had a nigh-on miraculous effect on his attitude to school - the first time he wore it in he came out at hometime and said 'Mummy, I've had the best day ever and it's all because of this hoodie'. He was the first kid in the school to have one and he'd never been so popular

spiderlight
so utterly true :
we got DSs sent over from the US 18 months before they were available here
we went to an event in Brighton and DS was over the moon at other kids jaw dropping at it
cool does not even come close

wholeofspook why say no to a seven year old?
What would you say to my 3 year old minecraft and stumpy fan?
Where's the harm in it?

I definitely did not know what obsidian and ocelots were at 8. They'll all turn out g&t, mark my words.

I don't think Minecraft per se turns them weird. Sure as hell they don't like leaving pc when told but that applies to any activity they really like.
My 5 year old can watch Stampylongnose videos on youtube for hours and hours. He doesnt (because i wont let him!) and occassionally he kicks off but then gets sent to his room for time out...
I have watched Stampy with him and must say i actually rather like the guy as he is child-friendly, doesnt swear and is goofy which my son likes (he sometimes has fits of laughter watching those videos, not sure what that's all about but they seem to get up to silly things with L for Leeee that tickle my son!).
I think that in moderation Minecraft is good for creativity as my son has created some things (a train track) on the limited version that we have and has done it totally on his own without my/DP's help whatsoever. Not bad in my opinion... I hasten to add we dont have Xbox so there isnt interaction with other players, that bit would worry me at 5y/o.

And you'd be right to worry Approaching after the comments I read from another player over my son's shoulder tonight. Fucking vile toerags writing about 'licking your
mother out'

Interesting article here I guess it's all about balance, like with anything. As long as they're doing other non-screen based stuff. DS is 10 and loves Minecraft and Terraria, and Plants vs Zombies but also loves going out on his bike, reading, drawing, playing with his Lego... There was a documentary on a little while ago about the new generation of architects coming through and they were saying that the current batch were "lego kids" but that in the future, they'd be "Minecraft kids". DS has decided he wants to be an architect...

Yes, zero interaction online. Despite several talks from us and cyber safety lessons at school DS (8) still is unable to grasp the concept that someone might not be who they say they are online. I don't know how to hammer the point home any other way!

My 9yo DS loves Minecraft. At least the music and noises are quite soft and don't drive me too nuts . However I cannot BEAR the Stampy videos, DS loves watching those on the iPad and his voice sends me over the edge, I make DS use earphones!
I've not noticed him being weird, except him taking ages to get off it when asked, "I just need to do this!" "In a sec!" etc.... At least it's helepd his reading as he loves the Minecraft books.

Whoever yy about Stampy's voice being annoying. I can usually only manage a few minutes in the same room before I make DS turn it down or I sneak into the next room (but still within seeing distance).
Approaching DS collapses in fits of giggles watching the youtube videos too. I think he loves Stampy more than us

My DS was definitely weird already, but Minecraft does seem to be helping him make more friends. It's just, like someone else said, the conversations about creepers and redstone and enderdragons that go on, and on, and on.
I used to find Stampy fucking irritating as well and then I saw a video of the actual bloke being interviewed and thought, mmm, quite cute actually.