Mainstream society seems to find it fascinating to mock gamers. “Gamers have no lives” is perhaps the most over-used cliché in modern comedies. But the truth is, gamers are wonderful people. I should know, because I’m one myself. But jokes asides, the number of gamers in our society is on the rise.
There are more gamers today than there have been ever before and everybody has at least a few of them in their social circles. Chances are you do too and for some of you, they might even be someone very close to you. Looking for an interesting gift idea for your gamer pal? Well, as a gamer myself, I’m here to present to you ten wonderful ideas.
1. A legacy gaming console
One thing is true for every gamer. They grew up as gamers, meaning they’ve been playing video games in every generation of consoles available ever since they were kids. Chances are they were very attached to their old Gameboy or PlayStation or Atari and have very fond memories of them.
Any of these legacy gaming consoles could help them dive in nostalgia and would therefore make a great gift. Most dealers selling these legacy consoles sell them along with hit games for the particular platform. So give your pal this gift and watch the child inside him/her jump with joy.
2. Geeky stuff
It’s no secret. Most gamers are geeks. And one thing about geeks is that they love geeky stuff. Everything they own needs to be special and unique. And above all, needs to be perfect. Every detail matters.
Good thing is there are plenty of great “geeky” items you can find online, anything from a bed for cats to a fusion pool table and dining table that make great gifts for geeks. Any gamer with a quirky sense of geekiness will love these and appreciate these. And above all, they will love you for giving it to them. God I wish I had friends like you!
3. An eighth generation console
A legacy console may be a good way to tune your pal’s nostalgia gears, but nothing quite beats a new generation console. There are more games coming out these years than ever before and what gamer wouldn’t appreciate being able to play what they love?
Make sure you find out what consoles they already own because I can’t quite think about what one would do with a second PlayStation. But there are a lot of consoles out there and any one of them added to their existing collection could prove invaluable. They won’t cost you too much but they will make your gamer friend very happy.
4. A gaming laptop
The phrase “PC Master Race” is prevalent among gamers for a very accurate reason. Most PCs aren’t fixed models like gaming consoles. You have a wide variety of options to choose from and with that option comes the availability of very powerful machines, lot more than their console counterparts.
Although there are some games that are made specifically for consoles, most games are made for PCs as well. And there are many games made specifically for PCs. A gaming laptop may be more expensive compared to a console but there is no better way to show a gamer your love. Trust me.
5. Gaming keyboard/mouse/gamepad
Most gamers already own a gaming rig so powerful that you can’t possibly afford to buy them something more powerful. But even in this scenario, there are gifts that your gamer friend might love.
Consider gaming controllers like gaming keyboards, gaming mouse or gamepads/joysticks. Each model of these available in the market have a specialty about them, something every gamer would appreciate. These are possibly the cheapest entry in this list but they’ll still make great memorable gifts never the less.
6. A VR headset (wearable)
VR headsets may still have a long way to go in terms of advancement but from the day they came out, it has felt like the future is here. If you’ve ever put on a VR headset, you’ll know what I’m talking about. They come in different shapes and configurations; some come with a built-in display, others use your mobile phones for displays.
With Google’s cardboard project, you could even build a DYI VR for you pal. May not be as effective as manufactured VR sets, but will hold a greater sentimental value for them. Anyway VR is the future and if your gamer friend is missing out on what fun is already available, you need to give them a VR headset as gift.
7. Posters of their favorite video games
Every gamer has a favorite video game or games. Mine are the Half-Life franchise and Red Dead Redemption. And if anyone gives me a poster of one of these games, I’d give them a big fat kiss.
Find out what games your friend loves. Even if he points out several games, there will be one or two they’ll mention specifically. Gamers are very attached to the games of their likings, many at a religious level.
And what better way to show appreciation for what they love than to have a poster of it hanging in their bedrooms, or in their mom’s basement, as every boring stand-up comedian of this century would put it. (Ha ha)
8. An old video game
Like the old gaming console I mentioned earlier there are some games every gamer played as child that they were very fond of. If you look up popular games for any specific year, there’s a good chance your gamer friend loved it.
There are retails that deal in these old games, and as for the platform, if you can’t get a legacy platform to go with the game, just find an emulator. There are emulators for pretty much every old generation console available for PC, and just the fact that you found a game they loved as a child would mean the world to a gamer.
9. The latest video games.
Again, like the new gen consoles, nothing quite beats getting a new game. There are many major titles coming out every year, every month. Every week! If you know what games your friend loves you could select a new game that’s similar.
Or if you don’t know what they love, well it’s okay. Just buy them the most popular new game available. We gamers aren’t naturally too picky about the games we play and even if it’s a really horrible game, we still love the idea of installing a new game and playing it for the first time.
10. Game related merchandises.
There have been many games made through the years. But some are just so epic that their fame creates a whole franchise around them. Leagues of Legends, Half-Life, Dota, Portal, Grand Theft Auto etc. are some examples. And each of these franchises deal in merchandises from the game’s fictional universe.
Every gamer has at least of few of these from his/her favorite game decorated in their rooms. So find out what games your gamer pal is really into and buy them a unique and quirky merchandise. Believe me, they will love it.
Featured photo credit: Flickr via farm3.staticflickr.com
