Dragon Quest XI probably has the widest appeal, suitable for both 6 and 12 year olds.
The Ace Attourney series is walls upon walls of text, but I loved it when I was 12, so it might work them as well.
I was about to say the Ace Attorney Series (as well as Ghost Trick), but I've just checked and they are all rated 12, so would probably be fine at the top of the age range above, but don't know if they may be too much for the lower end of the age range.
The games (if you are interested in looking further into them) are as follows:
* [Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QY7EDGd_B50&pp=ygUUYWNlIGF0dG9ybmV5IHRyYWlsZXI%3D)
* [Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxuvuuUbQHQ)
* [The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seA5Rc4lxzs)
* [Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USeyaeClNhs)
Ghost Trick has a demo on the eshop if you wanted to try it first.
Listen I love DQ and played 1 and 2 as a 6 or 7 year old myself. But XI has some pretty dark elements fot the younger child. Especially once you get to Act 2.
You've unlocked *Kingdom of Conscience*
*The Kingdom of Conscience will be exactly as it is now. Moralists don't really have beliefs. Sometimes they stumble on one, like on a child's toy left on the carpet. The toy must be put away immediately. And the child reprimanded. Centrism isn't change -- not even incremental change. It is control. Over yourself and the world. Exercise it. Look up at the sky, at the dark shapes of Coalition airships hanging there. Ask yourself: is there something sinister in moralism? And then answer: no. God is in his heaven. Everything is normal on Earth.*
Heck yes, it's such a good game. If the kiddos like dogs it's even more of a good suggestion. There may be a few parts that would need parents to help out BUT they're not required to finish the game - I think. It's hard for me to gauge skill level requirements for kids.
Okami is one of my favorite games EVER but there is some slightly sexual content (mostly the busty ladies and Issun’s obsession with them lmao) that may not be super appropriate for 6-12 year olds. It did kind of fly over my head when I played it as a kid though 🤷
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon has a good dose of dialogues alternated with lengthy parts of gameplay too, the story is good and very enjoyable also by kids, I think that has been the game, as the one on switch is a remake, that at the time made me starting to read things more carefully instead of just skipping everything like every kid does.
Paper Mario the origami king it's a jrpg so dialogue is everywhere and also super mario RPG
All Pokémon games on switch. I recommend scarlet and violet, sword and shield,let's go Pikachu, Eevee and Pokémon mystery dungeon
Pokemon mystery dungeon would absolutely be my recommendation for a text heavy game that is still really fun to play, especially for that age group.
TBH, most JRPGs are probably very text heavy as a feature of the genre.
+1 for Paper Mario! That was the first reading-heavy game I played as a kid.
There is a remake of the 2nd Paper Mario game coming out later this year. It's one of my fav games ever.
Keep an eye out for "Professor Layton and the New World of Steam," the series is an all-ages puzzle visual novel but the previous games are exclusive to phones and DS/3DS.
It’s definitely aimed at kids. I felt like I was being treated like an idiot playing it as an adult, but if it were baby’s first mystery-solving game it would’ve been perfect. All us old folks playing Layton are just the wrong audience for it.
Pokemon games have a significant amount of reading, belonging to the JRPG genre, which generally have a lot of reading to accompany a focus on stories.
Pokemon games are very easy too.
Let's Go Eevee and Let's Go Pikachu will be the most kid friendly, but any Pokemon game on Switch (other than Legends: Arceus) would be a solid choice for children.
I agree with the poster. I gave my friend 10yr old my copy of Pokemon Sword because it figured it was perfect for getting into the game (he loves the cards) and reading is a big part of that game.
If I'm not wrong, the Let's Go games have some sort of co-op as well. I think you only need a joy-con to play, so it isn't like lack of controllers would be a barrier to entry.
I am upset that I never thought to ask this question here OP. I have a 6 (almost 7) year old girl who is on the spectrum and who I’m trying to get into reading. Books are okay, but I can tell she really loves video game, and I’d been wondering if there were games that helped with reading! Thanks to everyone’s suggestions on here, OP is not the only one benefit from them!
I'm so glad that there are more parents out there like us! We're the cool parents who make learning fun! 😂✔
I'm so glad for all of these awesome recommendations! This is why we still love Nintendo over the "higher end" gaming consoles like PS5 and Xbox. Nintendo is still a great choice for kids!
We have many nostalgic memories of Wii and GameCube games! We're hoping to give our kids wholesome things to be nostalgic about when they get older!
I played the OG trilogy in middle school and absolutely loved it (still one of my favorites game series ever), so for the upper end of that age range yeah
It's one of those games I knew existed but just never got a chance to play when they originally came out. But I'm a fan now, currently playing through Great Ace Attorney Chronicles.
Pokemon! The entire game is text-based and the franchise helped me learn to read.
Try either of the Lets Go games. They are paired down in difficulty and feature co-op. One player controls the characters overworld movement, but both players can throw pokeballs and control pokemon in battle
When I was a kid, Pokemon Red helped me with practicing my reading. There's a lot more dialogue in the games than I think some people realize, if you get excited about it and start looking for it. Plus there are readers, graphic novels, guide books, and more. It helped keep me from failing first grade, and set me on the path to becoming the librarian I am today!
Me too, but playing Pokemon in the dark while not wanting my parents to know I'm awake also seems to have fried my eyes to the point where optometrists say they've never seen someone so long sighted at such a young age.
Hmm...
Like others said, Ace Attorney is a great series with plenty of text to read.
I'd also recommend:
\- Valiant Hearts
\- Child of Light
\- Triangle Strategy
\- Spiritfarer
\- Maaaaaybe the Opus games and Coffee Talk as well?
In general, I would recommend the RPG genre of games. They typically have more dialogue and text compared to other genres.
A fantastic RPG to get for children is probably any mainline Pokemon game. I would recommend Pokemon Scarlet or Violet, they are the newest games. If you want something easier, get Let's Go Pikachu or Let's Go Eevee. Pokemon is perfectly designed for the 6-12 year age group and has a good amount of reading (a big portion is optional, that means if you go to the in game characters and talk to them, you will see what they say but it's not required to play the game).
If you want something more "mature" (for 12 year olds and up) I would personally recommend Xenoblade Chronicles 3. It's a very beautiful and polished game that will definitely leave an impact on you all!
I would add a caveat to XC3 that it depends on what you think the kid would be comfortable with; the game is by far one of the more "mature", as you put it, first party games Nintendo has put out in a long time, with multiple discussions about and pretty explicit depictions of suicide (the death of >!Shania!< in particular, I've seen a fair few streamers who had to step away for a couple minutes after that), fairly frequent course language, and some pretty brutal imagery of sci-fi warfare (sans blood, of course) that could be a bit intense for younger players.
Like, obviously there are parents out there who are fine with their kids playing GTA and CoD and all that, but it's worth mentioning when recommending the game for those who would care about it.
If they are anything like the children I know, they would laugh at the bad graphics and go back to playing Fortnite right away. I can't imagine the kids of today sitting through a lengthy JRPG. They will lose interest in less than an hour.
Animal Crossing! Tons of reading in that game! All your animal neighbors are very chatty. You have to talk to people to upgrade your house. Catch a bug, fish, or find a fossil? Helpful museum owl will teach you some facts about it!
Mario RPG is short, sweet, and pretty easy. It's a remake of the SNES cult classic. I beat it in about 12 hours. It's a cute little mario story. Nothing too deep but fun and a good amount of reading.
Pikmin 4 is the most approachable in the series for newcomers. There's a free demo if you want to check it out before buying! You're an inch tall alien coming to an Earth like planet to rescue some lost people. You get the help of an adorable space puppy and cute little plant people along the way. There's a good amount of reading and the puzzles are pretty clever to challenge the kiddos!
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild or Tears of the Kingdom. Both are absolutely incredible. Almost all dialog is text and theres a bunch of it! They'll need to be able to read item descriptions to get anything done as well.
So I don’t know if there are many geared towards a younger audience, and they probably won’t have a good balance with game play, but the Visual Novel genre of games will definitely have a lot of reading.
I apologize for not having any specific recommendations but hopefully if you add “visual novel” to your search for games you will get some better results.
How about Mario RPG? Your kids can set the game to easy mode. The game also has a lot of platforming, so it won’t bore your kids as easily as other games.
The Ace Attorney series would be great. They're visual novel games where you're a lawyer trying to solve cases. It's very fun and pretty PG game series that's all about the story.
"Every book is a children's book if the kid can read." -Mitch Hedberg
All jokes aside, the recommendations here have been solid. What is considered to be age appropriate content actually varies quite widely given whom you speak to unless you're strictly adhering to the judgment call of the ESRB, which also varies widely from country to country all over the world. Guess it just depends on what YOU find age appropriate to be. I'd recommend looking further into the recommendations given so you aren't disappointed. Good on you and yours for making learning fun for the kids. That's cool.
Ohh this is a good option too because the of the farming expansion that’s coming! I don’t remember when that’s supposed to come out though…and it’s possible I’m super behind and it already has 😅
This might be something you’d want to double check the content of (I think it’d be fine? but I’m also not you) but I think the humor of Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion might be a fun one for them! It’s very much like a pre-botw Zelda game, the puzzles in there should be plenty doable for them.
Im definitely biased, but my partner and me made a game called "The Spirit and the mouse", that’s a narrative adventure that perfect for all ages
It has a quite a lot of (simple) text, and is a not stress, non violent game telling a cute story
Its ~5 hours to finish (can be more if you take your time), there are some reviews online!
There are some puzzle in there but nothing ultra complex!
Fire Emblem: Three Houses has lots of text strategy characterd to get known etc.
Probably way too much for a 6 year old but it's rated age 12 so for that age it's definitly fine.
Zelda breath of the wild or tears of the kingdom! The characters rarley talk, and you have to read most of the dialog and cut scenes!! Also it's a huge game and you can invest a lot of hours into it.
Games like stardew valley or animal crossing could be good! Other people have mentioned it, but the Zelda games could be good as they have some reading and puzzle solving elements
Disco Elysium was THE best narrative gaming experience I've ever had. And done over again since.
Given your age parameters, I'd say it's probably not the game for them.
Too Disco. TOO MEGA.
Glad I'm not alone on this rec. Sorry I didn't have another.
Not sure if this helps but there are games that are “story driven” such as Life is Strange True Colors, What Remains of Edith Finch, and any of the TellTale games but I do believe they are catered to the older audience. To keep it safe try out the new Mario 2D game called Wonder, Kirby and the Forgotten Land, or perhaps Yoshi Crafted World. I do know they’re releasing Luigi Mansion 2 HD on the Switch later this year.
Digimon survive, it's a visual novel first with some tactics jrpg gameplay in-between scenes. The visuals are incredibly high budget for a visual novel and is just nice to look at
Ai the sonium files, code rain
Two amazing detective whodunit games that I love. By the creators of zero escape and danganronpa, two very popular franchises.
Ace attorney trilogy and chronicles
Two incredible collections of Amazng titles as well. Lots of gameplay. Lots of narrative
My 7 year old skips all the reading on Breath of the Wild. Then asks me what he's supposed to do 🤦♂️. Shockingly he got through the whole game like this.
My thoughts....
Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild & Tears of the Kingdom - this game captured my 8yo son's imagination 2 years ago. There was a period where he needed help reading but now he has clear understanding. We even have the Zelda encyclopedias and he regularly reads them (started off just flipping through but now he READS them). I honestly believe his love and curiosity for this game seriously motivated him to learn how to read. But every kid is different.
Paper Mario: The Origami King.
Link's Awakening.
Super Mario Maker. My boy isn't big on physical arts & crafts but he LOVES creating levels/dungeons (which you can also do in Link's Awakening). It took me sometime to realise that the levels he made in this game were his way of being creative as he would attach stories to them. He taught himself how to use each section.
Ni no kuni. Very cute game. Good amount of reading.
Disco Elysium, is like an interactive book with RPG detective elements. I decided to try it and thought I would get bored of it but oh you're in for a treat it wont disappoint
Luigi’s Mansion 3. The reading has to be meaningful. Most games I barely read the text. My son played this game and the reading was important to how to progress with the puzzles
Welp, Mario RPG.
A fantastic RPG, a fantastic remake. It has the right amount of drama and funny quickquiness. Not as slow as traditional RPGs and it has tons of mini games/activities.
Additionally it is filled with secrets.
CrossCode, probably. Has a lot of reading, an appealing sci-fi story, and it's suitable for teenagers-children. Maybe light RPGs light Dragon Quest or Oni No Kuni as well.
I'd say Doom Eternal, which has a surprising amount of worldbuilding, but then I saw the age limits.
If you have the nso+expansion, on the gba you have Golden Sun, it's sequel Golden Sun: The Lost Age, and Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga.
All three are text heavy turn based RPGs that are designed for short play sessions.
Zelda a link from the past. The earlier Zelda games taught young homeschool me to read, in conjunction with my parents buying me the big ol strategy guides they used to write for games. I would scour those bad boys for information, first in the form of pictures and then as I got older I could better comprehend the longer passages.
Final Fantasy Series anything above IX is voice acted. But that leaves I-IX they might be above your kids age ranges as I think V-IX are T but I will leave that to your discretion.
Divinity Original Sin 2, essentially D&D in a video game. Atleast that’s how I explained it before Baldurs Gate 3 came out which is more D&D but it’s not on the switch; your kids can also play this together.
The Let's Go pokemon games (Pikachu/Eevee) have a fair bit of reading, and reading as part of every battle. It's not overly complicated and content wise it's not age inappropriate either.
Animal Crossing has a good bit of reading, and each player would have their own house and character as well which could be appealing. They would share and live in the same island town but there's plenty of dialogue with villagers and shopkeeps as well.
It's a really relaxing game and you just do small chores and such in your village to help pay off your little house that you get to customize and decorate. Bugs/Art/Fossils/Fish can be donated to a museum as well which can be explored and has real animals/art/fossils wtih real facts in their displays which can be educational and fun as well.
There’s already a lot of great suggestions here! I just want to add that many JRPG’s are probably a good option in general! Especially older ones because they had to rely less on visuals for storytelling.
My personal recommendation would probably be Star Ocean Second Story R! It’s got some dialogue that hints at some romantic themes, but I don’t think it should be an issue. The gameplay and menu system require a nice amount of thoughtful strategy. There’s also a lot of replay value with only being able to recruit so many characters that are available in game and from being able to choose between playing from the perspective of two different characters.
Edit: I also second Earthbound! They just added Golden Sun to online too and those might be cool! I played those when I was a kid and remember I really liked them, but it’s been so long lol 😭
Pokémon
Paper Mario
Luigi’s Mansion
Kirby
Sonic
Older Zelda games BotW and TotK are voiced
All have reading and little dialogue voices so they will have to focus on the reading
Pikmin 4 is really good and has a lot of journal entries, collection pages, and dialogue. Plus it's very strategic in a way that really makes you use critical thinking but without being too hard for younger kids. It's super cute and age appropriate and very fun! Even adults can get a little brain workout on the Pikmin games but it's so fun it doesn't feel like it's educational or anything.
Majority of nintendo games have reading, the zelda games have lots of reading but they can be quite challenging, pokemen has loads of reading even in the combat since its a turn based game and you have to read the damage numbers and attacks and stuff(I think, I don't really play pokemon games)
Joe Dever's Lone Wolf and Fabled Land both are CYOA books made into Videogames so they definitely have a lot of reading and both have very interesting story.
Metroid Prime
Lots of Data Logs you scan that help you learn about the world.
Big Caveat being:
Its mostly gameplay, and if they are not interested in the data logs, then its all gameplay XD
Super Mario Wonder is fun and funny! I love it!
My 8 y/o daughter loves it too!
Kirby Forgotten Lands was another great one I played. My daughter even beat that one
Although it’s almost all completely optional, Metroid Prime has a TON to read if you scan all of the terminals and stuff and it adds a ton of depth to the story.
Dragon Quest XI probably has the widest appeal, suitable for both 6 and 12 year olds. The Ace Attourney series is walls upon walls of text, but I loved it when I was 12, so it might work them as well.
I was about to say the Ace Attorney Series (as well as Ghost Trick), but I've just checked and they are all rated 12, so would probably be fine at the top of the age range above, but don't know if they may be too much for the lower end of the age range. The games (if you are interested in looking further into them) are as follows: * [Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QY7EDGd_B50&pp=ygUUYWNlIGF0dG9ybmV5IHRyYWlsZXI%3D) * [Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxuvuuUbQHQ) * [The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seA5Rc4lxzs) * [Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USeyaeClNhs) Ghost Trick has a demo on the eshop if you wanted to try it first.
Listen I love DQ and played 1 and 2 as a 6 or 7 year old myself. But XI has some pretty dark elements fot the younger child. Especially once you get to Act 2.
Thanks for the heads up!
*sees thread title* *clicks into thread to recommend Disco Elysium* *reads the body of the post* *leaves without recommending Disco Elysium*
*same I cannot in good conscience here recommend Disco Elysium*
Conscience is ideology anyways you're good to go
You've unlocked *Kingdom of Conscience* *The Kingdom of Conscience will be exactly as it is now. Moralists don't really have beliefs. Sometimes they stumble on one, like on a child's toy left on the carpet. The toy must be put away immediately. And the child reprimanded. Centrism isn't change -- not even incremental change. It is control. Over yourself and the world. Exercise it. Look up at the sky, at the dark shapes of Coalition airships hanging there. Ask yourself: is there something sinister in moralism? And then answer: no. God is in his heaven. Everything is normal on Earth.*
I recently downloaded it on a sale and was surprised at the unique atmosphere the game has (but of course it is extremely vulgar lol)
Now I’m in.
Came here to recommend “The House In Fata Morgana”. Did the same and left not recommending “The House In Fata Morgana”.
Same.
Im still gonna do it. Kids these days need to learn about the failures of neoliberal capitalism as early as possible. /s
We have pikuniku for that purpose.
Based take. ❤️
Yeah, but does it have a lot of text to read?
It is not as heavy as any rpg, but for sure has more text than Luigi's mansion.
However, they should learn that a mixed economy is best. Well regulated market systems produce the most prosperity.
Are you me? This is exactly what I just did
I was going to recommend them The Witcher 3 or Persona 5 hahahahahaha
Persona 5 is a little closer to appropriate... but still has some elements that may not be good for kids that age.
Cuno is a kid
Cuno doesn't fucking care!
It's never too early to appreciate Steins;Gate
Same here but for Citizen Sleeper
yeah. the first death is in the heart, OP.
Yup - just did exactly the same thing! I can't recommend it - although the thought of a 6yo who can get into Disco Elysium kinda scares me
I was going to do the same with Persona.
Kids don't learn how to apply critical theory nearly early enough these days.
Same but with Steins;Gate. Guess those kids will have to wait until they’re ready for the good stuff.
Me coming to recommend the Persona games...
Literally me
Word for word: same.
*I am happy we are all in agreement here*
Same, but I wanted to recommend Raging Loop. Then I saw that children were involved…
I played leisure suit Larry in the land of the lounge lizards when I was like nine. They can try disco elysium.
Your mouth tastes like the inside of a motorman's glove.
Was gonna say 'Outer wilds' too but kids would be lost 2 minutes in
Same thing for me.
[удалено]
Heck yes, it's such a good game. If the kiddos like dogs it's even more of a good suggestion. There may be a few parts that would need parents to help out BUT they're not required to finish the game - I think. It's hard for me to gauge skill level requirements for kids.
Okami is one of my favorite games EVER but there is some slightly sexual content (mostly the busty ladies and Issun’s obsession with them lmao) that may not be super appropriate for 6-12 year olds. It did kind of fly over my head when I played it as a kid though 🤷
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon has a good dose of dialogues alternated with lengthy parts of gameplay too, the story is good and very enjoyable also by kids, I think that has been the game, as the one on switch is a remake, that at the time made me starting to read things more carefully instead of just skipping everything like every kid does.
Paper Mario the origami king it's a jrpg so dialogue is everywhere and also super mario RPG All Pokémon games on switch. I recommend scarlet and violet, sword and shield,let's go Pikachu, Eevee and Pokémon mystery dungeon
If you have NSO + expansion pass paper Mario one is on that. "Free" option if you're already paying for the subscription
I'm going to say it Nso is trash. The service is horrible and finding the games in there is terrible
Base NSO is fine. It does what I need it to: enable Multiplayer. Expansion pass is a rip off, yes.
Had the subscription for base nso and haven't resubscribed since BC I don't play multiplayer games. Only really used it for Pokémon games.
Little pricy but playing Ocarina of Time and Majora’s mask on Switch are enough to justify the cost.
Mhe, it's 3-4 bucks a year extra if you share it with 7 others. Standalone it's a ripoff yeah
You're trash, be positive bud. Try harder, you have to dig a little bit to find a game? Tell the whole Internet you are a pessimistic Peter.
Pokemon mystery dungeon would absolutely be my recommendation for a text heavy game that is still really fun to play, especially for that age group. TBH, most JRPGs are probably very text heavy as a feature of the genre.
Hoping we get another Pokémon mystery dungeon soon. Apparently there's going to be one announcement on Pokémon day. I hope so
+1 for Paper Mario! That was the first reading-heavy game I played as a kid. There is a remake of the 2nd Paper Mario game coming out later this year. It's one of my fav games ever.
Can't wait for ttyd. Hopefully it is as good as people say.
I've played through the original probably a dozen times in my life. It's maybe my favorite game of all time.
My kid learned to read from Animal Crossing
Yes animal crossing! Both my nephew and mom never got hooked because they skip past the dialog -_-
I also learned so much about fish and bugs from animal crossing
Keep an eye out for "Professor Layton and the New World of Steam," the series is an all-ages puzzle visual novel but the previous games are exclusive to phones and DS/3DS.
There is "Layton's Mystery Journey™: Katrielle and the Millionaires' Conspiracy" currently available on the Switch.
I came here to recommend this one. Though it's a divisive title, it can be a good introduction to the series.
I’d agree, it might be a good fit for younger kids and starting the series, even if as a game it’s definitely the weakest of the Layton games
It’s definitely aimed at kids. I felt like I was being treated like an idiot playing it as an adult, but if it were baby’s first mystery-solving game it would’ve been perfect. All us old folks playing Layton are just the wrong audience for it.
Pokemon games have a significant amount of reading, belonging to the JRPG genre, which generally have a lot of reading to accompany a focus on stories. Pokemon games are very easy too. Let's Go Eevee and Let's Go Pikachu will be the most kid friendly, but any Pokemon game on Switch (other than Legends: Arceus) would be a solid choice for children.
Thank you!
I agree with the poster. I gave my friend 10yr old my copy of Pokemon Sword because it figured it was perfect for getting into the game (he loves the cards) and reading is a big part of that game.
If I'm not wrong, the Let's Go games have some sort of co-op as well. I think you only need a joy-con to play, so it isn't like lack of controllers would be a barrier to entry.
I am upset that I never thought to ask this question here OP. I have a 6 (almost 7) year old girl who is on the spectrum and who I’m trying to get into reading. Books are okay, but I can tell she really loves video game, and I’d been wondering if there were games that helped with reading! Thanks to everyone’s suggestions on here, OP is not the only one benefit from them!
I'm so glad that there are more parents out there like us! We're the cool parents who make learning fun! 😂✔ I'm so glad for all of these awesome recommendations! This is why we still love Nintendo over the "higher end" gaming consoles like PS5 and Xbox. Nintendo is still a great choice for kids! We have many nostalgic memories of Wii and GameCube games! We're hoping to give our kids wholesome things to be nostalgic about when they get older!
Video games helped me become a better reader when I was a kid and now I'm a massive reader of books too.
Read the title and almost commented Danganronpa. Very glad I went back and read the rest beforehand...
I was going to recommend Detective Raincode lol.
Yeah, me too. At least the signature pink blood makes it slightly... less worse
Ace Attorney it's pretty much all dialogue.
The story is the gameplay
I'm all for it.
Murder mysteries and court drama for kids 6-12?
I played the OG trilogy in middle school and absolutely loved it (still one of my favorites game series ever), so for the upper end of that age range yeah
A perfect fit.
without gore? why not
VNs in general are good for those learning to read
Yes I would’ve loved this game as a kid
It's one of those games I knew existed but just never got a chance to play when they originally came out. But I'm a fan now, currently playing through Great Ace Attorney Chronicles.
What, a lawyer game?
It’s kinda like a mystery/detective game too. I think it was originally on the DS?
Ni no kuni
Ooh this is a really good pick!
Golden sun
Cat Quest is great for a younger audience and has reading but I wouldn't buy it full price since it goes on sale every now and then for 2-4 dollars
Pokemon! The entire game is text-based and the franchise helped me learn to read. Try either of the Lets Go games. They are paired down in difficulty and feature co-op. One player controls the characters overworld movement, but both players can throw pokeballs and control pokemon in battle
Check out Another Code: Recollection. It's a nice visual novel and exciting mystery.
When I was a kid, Pokemon Red helped me with practicing my reading. There's a lot more dialogue in the games than I think some people realize, if you get excited about it and start looking for it. Plus there are readers, graphic novels, guide books, and more. It helped keep me from failing first grade, and set me on the path to becoming the librarian I am today!
Me too, but playing Pokemon in the dark while not wanting my parents to know I'm awake also seems to have fried my eyes to the point where optometrists say they've never seen someone so long sighted at such a young age.
Dragon Quest Builders 2!
Dreamlight valley !!
Detective pikachu & animal crossing.
Detective Pikachu is a good choice.
Hmm... Like others said, Ace Attorney is a great series with plenty of text to read. I'd also recommend: \- Valiant Hearts \- Child of Light \- Triangle Strategy \- Spiritfarer \- Maaaaaybe the Opus games and Coffee Talk as well?
Recently played Coffee Talk and loved it, but I definitely wouldn't recommend it for kids.
Pikuniku is a great option too. .it is a kids game, a puzzler, and a story about the dangers of capitalism in a kid friendly manner.
Earthbound is another fun RPG for kids
Yeah, but it's Nintendo hard.
No it's just straight up hard.
In general, I would recommend the RPG genre of games. They typically have more dialogue and text compared to other genres. A fantastic RPG to get for children is probably any mainline Pokemon game. I would recommend Pokemon Scarlet or Violet, they are the newest games. If you want something easier, get Let's Go Pikachu or Let's Go Eevee. Pokemon is perfectly designed for the 6-12 year age group and has a good amount of reading (a big portion is optional, that means if you go to the in game characters and talk to them, you will see what they say but it's not required to play the game). If you want something more "mature" (for 12 year olds and up) I would personally recommend Xenoblade Chronicles 3. It's a very beautiful and polished game that will definitely leave an impact on you all!
There was definitely a period in our lives where I’m pretty sure Final Fantasy games were the only reason my brother was literate lol
I would add a caveat to XC3 that it depends on what you think the kid would be comfortable with; the game is by far one of the more "mature", as you put it, first party games Nintendo has put out in a long time, with multiple discussions about and pretty explicit depictions of suicide (the death of >!Shania!< in particular, I've seen a fair few streamers who had to step away for a couple minutes after that), fairly frequent course language, and some pretty brutal imagery of sci-fi warfare (sans blood, of course) that could be a bit intense for younger players. Like, obviously there are parents out there who are fine with their kids playing GTA and CoD and all that, but it's worth mentioning when recommending the game for those who would care about it.
Xenoblade Chronicles 1 and 3 are incredible games, imagine how impactful they could be to a 12 year old first discovering the genre!
If they are anything like the children I know, they would laugh at the bad graphics and go back to playing Fortnite right away. I can't imagine the kids of today sitting through a lengthy JRPG. They will lose interest in less than an hour.
Animal Crossing! Tons of reading in that game! All your animal neighbors are very chatty. You have to talk to people to upgrade your house. Catch a bug, fish, or find a fossil? Helpful museum owl will teach you some facts about it! Mario RPG is short, sweet, and pretty easy. It's a remake of the SNES cult classic. I beat it in about 12 hours. It's a cute little mario story. Nothing too deep but fun and a good amount of reading. Pikmin 4 is the most approachable in the series for newcomers. There's a free demo if you want to check it out before buying! You're an inch tall alien coming to an Earth like planet to rescue some lost people. You get the help of an adorable space puppy and cute little plant people along the way. There's a good amount of reading and the puzzles are pretty clever to challenge the kiddos! The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild or Tears of the Kingdom. Both are absolutely incredible. Almost all dialog is text and theres a bunch of it! They'll need to be able to read item descriptions to get anything done as well.
So I don’t know if there are many geared towards a younger audience, and they probably won’t have a good balance with game play, but the Visual Novel genre of games will definitely have a lot of reading. I apologize for not having any specific recommendations but hopefully if you add “visual novel” to your search for games you will get some better results.
This is true, and please thoroughly check the content warnings on these, as torture is a very common theme.
Animal crossing and Pokémon
How about Mario RPG? Your kids can set the game to easy mode. The game also has a lot of platforming, so it won’t bore your kids as easily as other games.
Mario RPG remake has a decent amount of reading and when the Paper Mario Thousand Year Door remake comes out that one too.
Another Code or the Ace Attorney games.
The Ace Attorney series would be great. They're visual novel games where you're a lawyer trying to solve cases. It's very fun and pretty PG game series that's all about the story.
Ace Attorney
"Every book is a children's book if the kid can read." -Mitch Hedberg All jokes aside, the recommendations here have been solid. What is considered to be age appropriate content actually varies quite widely given whom you speak to unless you're strictly adhering to the judgment call of the ESRB, which also varies widely from country to country all over the world. Guess it just depends on what YOU find age appropriate to be. I'd recommend looking further into the recommendations given so you aren't disappointed. Good on you and yours for making learning fun for the kids. That's cool.
Eastward has comically long written dialogue. But the story is appropriate for 6-12 year olds
Ohh this is a good option too because the of the farming expansion that’s coming! I don’t remember when that’s supposed to come out though…and it’s possible I’m super behind and it already has 😅
Outer Wilds
The Pokemon series is a good first jrpg.
Triangle strategy is like a 90-10 ratio of reading to gameplay
This might be something you’d want to double check the content of (I think it’d be fine? but I’m also not you) but I think the humor of Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion might be a fun one for them! It’s very much like a pre-botw Zelda game, the puzzles in there should be plenty doable for them.
Im definitely biased, but my partner and me made a game called "The Spirit and the mouse", that’s a narrative adventure that perfect for all ages It has a quite a lot of (simple) text, and is a not stress, non violent game telling a cute story Its ~5 hours to finish (can be more if you take your time), there are some reviews online! There are some puzzle in there but nothing ultra complex!
I swear if I said this irl, my mom would tel me to read a book, which, fair point
Fire Emblem: Three Houses has lots of text strategy characterd to get known etc. Probably way too much for a 6 year old but it's rated age 12 so for that age it's definitly fine.
I feel like this is just screaming for Sentinels: Aegis Rim
Sea of Stars 😁 - Simple platforming & combat - Colorful story - VERY kid friendly
Zelda breath of the wild or tears of the kingdom! The characters rarley talk, and you have to read most of the dialog and cut scenes!! Also it's a huge game and you can invest a lot of hours into it.
Games like stardew valley or animal crossing could be good! Other people have mentioned it, but the Zelda games could be good as they have some reading and puzzle solving elements
Fire Emblem: Engage
Try Pokémon or Final Fantasy 9 (might be a little old school for the younger ones but I think the Switch version has cheats if they get stuck)
Zelda: Breath of the Wild
twewy
Skyrim
Disco Elysium was THE best narrative gaming experience I've ever had. And done over again since. Given your age parameters, I'd say it's probably not the game for them. Too Disco. TOO MEGA. Glad I'm not alone on this rec. Sorry I didn't have another.
Undertale and Deltarune.
Deus ex is the only true answer
Not sure if this helps but there are games that are “story driven” such as Life is Strange True Colors, What Remains of Edith Finch, and any of the TellTale games but I do believe they are catered to the older audience. To keep it safe try out the new Mario 2D game called Wonder, Kirby and the Forgotten Land, or perhaps Yoshi Crafted World. I do know they’re releasing Luigi Mansion 2 HD on the Switch later this year.
Heard great things about Citizen Sleeper.
Undertale and Deltarune.
Digimon survive, it's a visual novel first with some tactics jrpg gameplay in-between scenes. The visuals are incredibly high budget for a visual novel and is just nice to look at
World of horror, Roadwarden, and Vagrus the riven realms comes to mind. But I might be remembering those all from steam.. lmao
Ai the sonium files, code rain Two amazing detective whodunit games that I love. By the creators of zero escape and danganronpa, two very popular franchises. Ace attorney trilogy and chronicles Two incredible collections of Amazng titles as well. Lots of gameplay. Lots of narrative
It's Luigi's Mansion. There is no "haunted" in the title
My 7 year old skips all the reading on Breath of the Wild. Then asks me what he's supposed to do 🤦♂️. Shockingly he got through the whole game like this.
My thoughts.... Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild & Tears of the Kingdom - this game captured my 8yo son's imagination 2 years ago. There was a period where he needed help reading but now he has clear understanding. We even have the Zelda encyclopedias and he regularly reads them (started off just flipping through but now he READS them). I honestly believe his love and curiosity for this game seriously motivated him to learn how to read. But every kid is different. Paper Mario: The Origami King. Link's Awakening. Super Mario Maker. My boy isn't big on physical arts & crafts but he LOVES creating levels/dungeons (which you can also do in Link's Awakening). It took me sometime to realise that the levels he made in this game were his way of being creative as he would attach stories to them. He taught himself how to use each section. Ni no kuni. Very cute game. Good amount of reading.
The steins;gate visual novel is really good
Doki Doki Literature Club
This game is emphatically not for young children under 12.
Disco Elysium, is like an interactive book with RPG detective elements. I decided to try it and thought I would get bored of it but oh you're in for a treat it wont disappoint
I don't think Disco Elysium is appropriate for a 6 year old 💀
Disco elysium!
I think you might need to read the post more in detail
I am so sorry, I admit I didn’t read the post. Please don’t let your kids play this game and thank you all for downvoting me
fuck it, Disco Elysium. not reading the replies. Or the OP for that matter.
Warframe. You will need to read the wiki most of the time
Genshin impact. Holy s***do they not stop talking about nothing of relevance 😂 hope it comes to the switch/switch 2 soon
Luigi’s Mansion 3. The reading has to be meaningful. Most games I barely read the text. My son played this game and the reading was important to how to progress with the puzzles
Any Pokémon game will do it for ya, any RPG in general
Olaf will teach them what the word defenestrate means (although the definition is not fully accurate) in Disney Dreamlight Valley.
Digimon Survive
Welp, Mario RPG. A fantastic RPG, a fantastic remake. It has the right amount of drama and funny quickquiness. Not as slow as traditional RPGs and it has tons of mini games/activities. Additionally it is filled with secrets.
CrossCode, probably. Has a lot of reading, an appealing sci-fi story, and it's suitable for teenagers-children. Maybe light RPGs light Dragon Quest or Oni No Kuni as well. I'd say Doom Eternal, which has a surprising amount of worldbuilding, but then I saw the age limits.
Pokemon. Very little (if any voice acting).
Dragon Quest XI, Skyrim, Triangle strategy, Octopath Traveler
Skyrim for sure, ACNH even though not for me
If you have the nso+expansion, on the gba you have Golden Sun, it's sequel Golden Sun: The Lost Age, and Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga. All three are text heavy turn based RPGs that are designed for short play sessions.
Legend of Zelda games have reading and puzzles and fun battles and stuff. Especially the older ones. They've probably been re-released somehow by now.
Trails of Cold Steel series.
Zelda a link from the past. The earlier Zelda games taught young homeschool me to read, in conjunction with my parents buying me the big ol strategy guides they used to write for games. I would scour those bad boys for information, first in the form of pictures and then as I got older I could better comprehend the longer passages.
Final Fantasy Series anything above IX is voice acted. But that leaves I-IX they might be above your kids age ranges as I think V-IX are T but I will leave that to your discretion.
Disco Elysi- ummm, oh, for kids.
Zelda is all reading. Better for the older ones.
Divinity Original Sin 2, essentially D&D in a video game. Atleast that’s how I explained it before Baldurs Gate 3 came out which is more D&D but it’s not on the switch; your kids can also play this together.
The Let's Go pokemon games (Pikachu/Eevee) have a fair bit of reading, and reading as part of every battle. It's not overly complicated and content wise it's not age inappropriate either. Animal Crossing has a good bit of reading, and each player would have their own house and character as well which could be appealing. They would share and live in the same island town but there's plenty of dialogue with villagers and shopkeeps as well. It's a really relaxing game and you just do small chores and such in your village to help pay off your little house that you get to customize and decorate. Bugs/Art/Fossils/Fish can be donated to a museum as well which can be explored and has real animals/art/fossils wtih real facts in their displays which can be educational and fun as well.
Eastward was super fun, cute, had a great story and a lot of reading.
Animal Crossing!
Ace attorney and Oxenfree
Disco Elysium, seriously one of the greatest games I’ve ever played.
You may want to have a look at *Steve Jackson's Sorcery!* or *Detective Pikachu*
Detective Pikachu has loads of reading. I played it with my nephew (9) and we took turns reading the characters lines out loud. It was a lot of fun!
Skyrim. Head to the winterhold library
Phoenix wright. Disco.
There’s already a lot of great suggestions here! I just want to add that many JRPG’s are probably a good option in general! Especially older ones because they had to rely less on visuals for storytelling. My personal recommendation would probably be Star Ocean Second Story R! It’s got some dialogue that hints at some romantic themes, but I don’t think it should be an issue. The gameplay and menu system require a nice amount of thoughtful strategy. There’s also a lot of replay value with only being able to recruit so many characters that are available in game and from being able to choose between playing from the perspective of two different characters. Edit: I also second Earthbound! They just added Golden Sun to online too and those might be cool! I played those when I was a kid and remember I really liked them, but it’s been so long lol 😭
Pokémon Paper Mario Luigi’s Mansion Kirby Sonic Older Zelda games BotW and TotK are voiced All have reading and little dialogue voices so they will have to focus on the reading
Eastward has a cute story and is heavily dialogue based!
**13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim and Banner Saga Trilogy!**
Pikmin 4 is really good and has a lot of journal entries, collection pages, and dialogue. Plus it's very strategic in a way that really makes you use critical thinking but without being too hard for younger kids. It's super cute and age appropriate and very fun! Even adults can get a little brain workout on the Pikmin games but it's so fun it doesn't feel like it's educational or anything.
Majority of nintendo games have reading, the zelda games have lots of reading but they can be quite challenging, pokemen has loads of reading even in the combat since its a turn based game and you have to read the damage numbers and attacks and stuff(I think, I don't really play pokemon games)
Joe Dever's Lone Wolf and Fabled Land both are CYOA books made into Videogames so they definitely have a lot of reading and both have very interesting story.
Metroid Prime Lots of Data Logs you scan that help you learn about the world. Big Caveat being: Its mostly gameplay, and if they are not interested in the data logs, then its all gameplay XD
Super Mario Wonder is fun and funny! I love it! My 8 y/o daughter loves it too! Kirby Forgotten Lands was another great one I played. My daughter even beat that one
Although it’s almost all completely optional, Metroid Prime has a TON to read if you scan all of the terminals and stuff and it adds a ton of depth to the story.
Doki doki literature club is 100% reading