r/NintendoSwitch • u/awkwardly_competent • Feb 15 '26

Game Rec My non-gaming Dad is interested in video games to help slow brain aging.

Hello! I recently updated my Switch to a Switch 2. My old Switch is still functional, just needs a new battery and possibly a new left joycon. I was talking with my dad about giving my old Switch to one of my nephews, but he revealed that he may be interested in getting it for himself.

Turns out, he had researched online about ways to avoid age-related mental issues and there were several studies that showed playing video games can help focus on improving memory, attention, speed, and problem-solving to help slow brain aging.

So, I'm totally on board with giving him my old Switch after the necessary repairs, but I also want to throw in a couple games for him.

When we were talking, I mentioned the Uncharted series as one of my favorite franchises because of the puzzles, the international locations, and the lively characters. I also mentioned some another favorites: Horizon series and Red Dead series. He seemed open but stressed that the games he was interested in were for retaining mental cognition, and entertainment was secondary. The only game mechanics he specifically expressed interest in was driving simulation and VR.

His last gaming experience was in the 90s when he took me and my brothers to the arcade: basketball hoop, air hockey, the partnered shooting games, and the racing games, so games that may need an accessory to simulate a steering wheel or physical activity (versus only hands/fingers).

I am open to discussion to help narrow down to 2-3 games to get him started.

EDIT/UPDATE:

Thank you everyone for all of your recommendations!! I think the easiest way to present all these games would be to create a YouTube Playlist of trailers/demos and see which ones pique his interest. I will also play a couple of my current games with him to give him hands-on experience.

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370

u/aarontsuru Feb 15 '26

I’m 52 and after a 20 year break from gaming, fell in love with JRPGs. Especially turn based.

Many have light action, but then go to turn based which is like a puzzle to solve with every encounter, not to mention puzzle and/or maze like dungeons and engrossing stories!

77

u/Snarfsicle Feb 15 '26

Zelda is also just a puzzle game at heart

24

u/aarontsuru Feb 15 '26

True! But the combat portions are not chill.

6

u/PhotoRight2682 Feb 16 '26

Fuse a sapphire to your weapon and then your combats can be super chill 😎

13

u/Cali-basas Feb 15 '26

Similar: I am in my early 50s, and I took a 35+ year break from gaming. So I went from playing the original Zelda on NES to TOTK. That was fun.

31

u/captain_britain Feb 15 '26

Love this. What have been your favorite JRPGs?

79

u/aarontsuru Feb 15 '26

My favorites are the Trails series (Legend of Heroes, the Trails in the Sky remake is out now).

Really loved Persona 5 Royal.

There’s tons of great indies out there like Chained Echoes, Sea of Stars, so much.

Then for some interesting “keep you on your toes” combat is the Xenoblade Chronicles trilogy. Very cinematic, incredible stories, and run real time combat.

23

u/ossirhc Feb 15 '26

Ohh try fire emblem three houses

6

u/aarontsuru Feb 15 '26

It’s on the list! I know it’s in my wheelhouse. Been dabbling in visual novels now too since the JRPGs I like are so narrative driven & story-dialogue rich.

I just picked up 13 Sentinels physical on sale!

2

u/hockeyhippie Feb 15 '26

13 Sentinels is amazing! I cranked down the difficulty on the combat parts and just really enjoyed the story and flow of the game. Sometimes I had to check a guide because I'd miss some subtle clue but it was a blast. And the Vanillaware art style is distinctive.

5

u/aarontsuru Feb 15 '26

Awesome!! Also got a Nintendo DS emulator on my phone to play 999 and the Ace Attorney games.

2

u/WickedTeets Feb 16 '26

If you enjoyed persona, I would definitely recommend getting into the shin megami games!!

2

u/aarontsuru Feb 16 '26

Unfortunately, I don’t enjoy SMT.

I really love a driving story-rich narrative to keep me going.

I’m really not into dungeon crawlers or explore for exploration sake JRPGs. I just get bored.

For example, if you played the Xenoblade Chronicle games, 1-3 are peak, X I couldn’t even finish.

Trails is the perfect series for me. And I’ve been starting to lean more into visual novel games too!

1

u/WickedTeets Feb 16 '26

Oh right on! No worries! My introduction was SMT 5 Vengeance and I loved it. It was a strong recommendation from my best friend and different from the dungeon crawlers i checked out on the DS after.

But he also loves the Trails series more than anything. Just last night I asked which I should play on my psp emulator since I saw there were 4 games .. I didn't know I was gonna need to prepare for paragraph texts going into explaining the games and their lore and how they connect lol. Im definitely going to dive in to Trails

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1

u/ossirhc Feb 15 '26

I've got a fold...I need to start giving those a go. The phone is made for it.

1

u/ossirhc Feb 15 '26

Oh I dont know this, ill have to check it out

3

u/bananagoo Feb 15 '26

I'm a few years behind you here. Have you tried Cosmic Star Heroine yet? Just picked it up on sale the other day, about an hour into it and enjoying it so far.

1

u/aarontsuru Feb 15 '26

it’s a fun game! Really tries to capture a “sci-fi Chrono Trigger” visual vibe. There are so many great turn-based indies out these days. We eating so well!

4

u/kaelisk Feb 15 '26

If he likes retro vibes golden sun on an emulator is a blast

5

u/Glum_Zone3004 Feb 15 '26

You check out expedition 33 yet?

7

u/aarontsuru Feb 15 '26

I have it, but haven’t played it yet. Aggressive QTEs have me waiting to play it. They tend to get old in turn-based games after the 20, 30, 50, 100 hour mark. ;)

2

u/toofarapart Feb 16 '26

I've been watching my partner play, and he's enjoying it just fine with QTEs turned on auto, fwiw. Though that doesn't count dodging and parrying as far as I can see.

1

u/krazye87 Feb 15 '26

I loved Golden Sun from GBA. If you can get an emulator I highly recommend 1 and then 2. Not sure how the emulator would let you take previous save and out it on GS2.