The holidays are going to be here before you know it. If you haven’t already done your shopping, you need to get started. But with so many games out in the market and a number of new consoles and peripherals being released, it can be difficult to figure out exactly what you should give (or receive!) during the holidays. Here are some ideas that just about anyone would be happy to find under the tree this year.
NES Classic Mini
From your weird uncle to your younger cousin, this is a sure-fire crowd pleaser that will make anyone happy. Good luck finding one though… Availability has been scarce, but Nintendo promised that it will have more units available in time for the holidays. We’ll believe it when we see it, and you’d better add a distinct caveat or avoid promising this one at all. At a mere $60 for 30 classic games, you’d be hard-pressed to find something better. It has all three of the original Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Donkey Kong, Metroid, Mega Man 2, Tecmo Bowl, and much more—so it has something for all types of gamers. Think ahead and grab an extra controller, too, because everyone will want to play it.
Hitman Season Pass
Hitman has seen something of a resurgence in the past few years, and it started with the reimagining of the franchise for mobile devices. Hitman GO helped to breathe new life into the mobile offerings from developer Square Enix and that wasn’t the end of Hitman on the casual gaming scene. 2016’s episodic reimagining of the Hitman continues that trend, and it has been one of the few nice surprises of the year. It would also be an excellent gift for a lucky friend. With six different exotic locations and plenty of DLC, this game will keep people interested for a long time. Alternatively, you can slip them an I.O.U. for the Complete First Season package due out at the end of January.
Pokémon Go Plus
Pokémon Go took the world by storm when it was released this summer, and it’s still one of the most popular apps out there. If you’re pals with any budding Pokémon trainers, then the wearable wristband that supplements the game will make you way more helpful and thoughtful than Professor Oak ever was. And don’t worry about them not getting a lot of use out of it. Pokémon Go is expected to come back in a big way soon, because news is rumbling that the game is about to reveal a new generation of monsters. That right there is sure to bring back anyone who has fallen out of favor with the game.
PlayStation VR
If you’re going to invest in one big-ticket item this holiday season, we highly recommend making it the PlayStation VR. While not necessarily cheap at $400 it’s still significantly more cost effective than either the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive and can already run with a standard PS4, no high-speed computer required. With a huge userbase already out there for the PS4 you can expect a lot more support for the PSVR, which means more quality games. Rez Infinite is one of the few titles to fully take advantage of the new medium and the new Star Wars VR is downright incredible with the Rogue One VR mission available for free download to anyone that already owns Star Wars: Battlefront.
These are just a few gifts we recommend for the holidays, but there are plenty more options from sweaters to snacks. The most important thing is to be thoughtful and try to find something genuinely fun and you’ll be just fine.
