Why do kids games seem more populated by adults than children?

[Lazuli]

Its very apparent with the recent animal crossing but its been a trend for a while now, most noticeably in nintendo games, which makes sense as a childrens console.

Is it the weeb/cutesie chibi aesthetic in these games or the actual gameplay that makes them so popular with adults?

[A Chozo]

The recent animal crossing isn't a kid game, it's a game.

[Malix Farwin]

Because for the most part there is no such thing as "kid's game".

[LedZeppelin]

Just because a game doesnt have violence doesnt mean adults shouldnt play it

[Benitora]

Most likely because people that are getting older, haven't stopped playing games.

I mean, Pokemon as a game was first out on the Gameboy in 1996. If you where 9 years old then playing it, you would be 33 years of age today.
Does that mean you are no longer allowed to play Pokemon?

If anything, I'd see it as a failure of certain game franchises for not making some of their games catering more towards the older demographic.

[Orby]

Who said the recent Animal Crossing is for kids? And Nintendo for that matter... I would say Nintendo is more the Disney of video game consoles, a family console. Not necessarily a kids console despite it being kid friendly and just because something is friendly towards kids doesn't mean adults can;t enjoy it too .

While I have never been into animal crossing personally, I know plenty of adults that like it. One of the reasons being nostalgia from when they were kids they played the original on the N64 or Gamecube. So to play it again is nostalgic to those adults. And some may just wanna check it it out, out of interest.

[Nihilist74]

Its very apparent with the recent animal crossing but its been a trend for a while now, most noticeably in nintendo games, which makes sense as a childrens console.

Is it the weeb/cutesie chibi aesthetic in these games or the actual gameplay that makes them so popular with adults?

Looks like kind of a neat game except for the "weeb/cutesie chibi aesthetic". It looks fun like stardew valley. I love stardew valley.

[Absintheminded]

Most of the adults you're thinking of are probably millennials who grew up with NES and onward. Are we to stop enjoying our generation's form of entertainment because of your opinion on what ages should play what games?

[Nnyco]

I think its just your inability to see that a game isnt for kids only just because its cute looking.

[Katchii]

Because sometimes even older people just want a light hearted romp without all the drama, gore, violence, mature themes or whatever that are in the more "adult" games you're referring to.

Think of it like the pool.

Just because you can swim in the deep end doesn't mean you can't have fun with people who can't or just don't swim in the deep end in the shallow end of the pool.

[Dark-Zarupia]

Maybe these adults grew up with Nintendo and have children now and want to play a game that can be played with their children.Just a thought

And not everything that is cute is meant for weebs....

Why are the Lego games for so populair?

For example i used to play the first lego starwars when i was young with my friends,now it does not appeal to me,but i can imagine if i would have a child i would buy myself some lego games to play with my children, just because they're funny,friendly and easy to play.

And ye if you're a adult and enjoy these types of games go ahead.

[Paetolus]

They aren't kids games, they're (for the most part) games that are meant to be enjoyed by everyone. You could maybe argue the Yoshi and Kirby games are specifically kids games, but other than that, most Nintendo games are meant for everyone. The only reason Nintendo does so well in the current gaming landscape is because they cater to everyone, not just hardcore gamerz, if they did, they'd be blown out of the water by Sony and Microsoft. It's more adult to play whatever the hell you want than to limit yourself to serious "adult" games.

[Artofficial]

I never expected to play Animal Crossing, but I moderate a Twitch channel and the streamer got into it, and I saw lots of people on Twitter posting about it. I mainly play competitive games with ranked gameplay to give you an idea of what I'm into. Alas, I had the $60 and wanted to try something out since my Switch was collecting dust.

It's a lot of fun to play and I'm glad I bought it. I didn't expect to be into it this much, but it's got me reaching out to people and expanding my online friend base quite a bit. There's goals and objectives I set to reach rather than what the game tells me to do, even though the game does have set objectives. I'm working on building a third room for my house for music, and I'm enjoying helping other people gather the things they need for their own objectives.

I don't think everyone would like this game, especially if you don't want to interact with other people, but to me that's what makes it enjoyable. It gives me a chance to be creative and play at my own pace. Instead of pushing gladiator, finishing an m+15, or pushing platinum in Apex, I'm working on planting more trees and enjoying being a complete noob in a game I know nothing about and doesn't punish me for being a noob. It's kind of nice.

[jcf190]

Nobody quoted C.S. Lewis yet?

“Critics who treat 'adult' as a term of approval, instead of as a merely descriptive term, cannot be adult themselves. To be concerned about being grown up, to admire the grown up because it is grown up, to blush at the suspicion of being childish; these things are the marks of childhood and adolescence. And in childhood and adolescence they are, in moderation, healthy symptoms. Young things ought to want to grow. But to carry on into middle life or even into early manhood this concern about being adult is a mark of really arrested development. When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty I read them openly. When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.”

[Millyraynge]

Its very apparent with the recent animal crossing but its been a trend for a while now, most noticeably in nintendo games, which makes sense as a childrens console.

Is it the weeb/cutesie chibi aesthetic in these games or the actual gameplay that makes them so popular with adults?

In my opinion it's because of the deaccelerating effect. Most of the usual titles for teenagers or adults are very hectic action-based typ of games with sometimes a constant growing difficulty curve. A lotta people enjoy calm and relaxing low brain activity games mostly find in the children segment of games.

[Stormspark]

How in the hell is Animal Crossing a kid's game? It's family friendly to be certain but that doesn't mean it's "for kids". Not everything has to be rated M with lots of blood and guts and dismemberment and lots of fast action, games need to have variety. AC got a lot of attention from Doom fans for this reason. It's something else to do, as a change of pace.

I like violent games as much as the next person but it's not ALL I want to play. My 3 favorite games this year so far are Resident Evil 3, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, and AC.

[Justpassing]

Beacuse today's adults are yesterday's adults who grew up with this stuff.

[Schattenlied]

OP seems the kind of person who thinks every animated movie or show is "for kids" just because of they are animated.

Tell me, Warcraft has had cartoony graphics for over 18 years now... Is Warcraft a kids game?

Of course not, don't be ridiculous... There's a difference between being family friendly, AKA, not targeted at any specific age group, and being "for kids".

[yasiru]

Its very apparent with the recent animal crossing but its been a trend for a while now, most noticeably in nintendo games, which makes sense as a childrens console.

Is it the weeb/cutesie chibi aesthetic in these games or the actual gameplay that makes them so popular with adults?

I will be frank. I am one of those guys that would think, "why are people so interested in this kid's game?" but that's more of my own personal problem than any real critique. A dogmatist like Tech will call me a dude-bro or some other name though because of it, as if throwing terms around like dude-bro isn't childish in and of itself. But anyway, i digress..

That said, I too was like, why are people so interested in AC:NH. I haven't played any AC games, so I thought you know what, I will give it a try. Well, I actually enjoy it. It's relaxing to play and isn't as stressful as some reflex-heavy games can be at times, like a competitive shooter or something. I do see how people could get burned out on it though as it can get very grindy and repetitive. Honestly though, I almost feel the opposite, in that children might get more tired of the grind than an adult who has been playing grindy games for years.

It is no secret though that Nintendo caters toward families and young players. They have actually come out and said they have kids do testing on their games and tweak things on how well the child can perceive or handle certain aspects of a game.

[Hey There Guys its Metro]

The concept of a "kids game" is really subjective at this point.
Many games that you think might have qualified are just games that appeal to a lot of types of people now.

I think Pokemon and its various 20 years of IP is a great example of this.

But then again, there are games that are made purely to entertain toddlers.
That is something to distinguish.