We know, video games move at an absurd pace, and if you’re not a gamer, it can be hard to keep up. Fortunately, we’re here with a few recommendations to help you buy the right gift for the gamer in your life — be it a splashy new console or a modest stocking stuffer.
For The Gamer Who Pops The Platinum-Level Nice List Trophy
The Xbox One X isn’t a revolution in consoles. But, as we’ve discussed, it is a great technical upgrade that makes every game on the Xbox One look better. As it’s fully compatible with Xbox One games, you won’t need to worry about buying an entirely new library, and Microsoft is even ensuring backwards compatibility, allowing fans to dig deep into their libraries.
For PC Owners Who Want To Play Doom On The Couch
The NVidia Shield TV, the graphics card manufacturer’s bid to be more than just, well, a graphics card manufacturer, is a close-to-perfect solution for streaming PC games from your computer to your TV, in addition to being a quite solid 4K video streaming box. If you play games on your computer, but occasionally want to be on the couch, it’s ideal.
For The Super Old School Gamer
Giving a gift to somebody in your life who decided the best gaming involved carts and grey plastic? Get them the Retron 5. Cleverly designed to be able to play back old game cartridges, you can just slot them in and go, and it even comes with a handy, if mildly unergonomic, wireless controller.
For The Multiplayer Fan, Or Just Quieter Gaming
The Turtle Beach Stealth line of headphones have both offered great sound for gamers, and saved relationships for years now. The latest iterations, the 600 and 700, are particularly useful for how they’re designed, with the 600 offering a tuckaway microphone and the more expensive 700 offering Bluetooth compatibility, making them utility headphones. They’re perfect for keeping night gaming a little more quiet.
For The Highly Mobile Gamer
If the gamer in your life tends more towards the mobile side of things, a Kindle Fire is usually a good price. A nice balance between power and portability is the Kindle Fire 7. It’s no Nintendo Switch, but it will offer up a host of games to play on the go, and the price is low enough that you can squeeze it onto almost any budget.
Stuffing Those Stockings
Finally, rather than roll the dice at the bargain bin or buy the hottest game hoping they haven’t picked it up already, we recommend buying gift cards for their preferred console. Some of the best games on the market these days never ship on a disc at all, making them hard to give as a gift, and the constant wave of sales on every console and PC gaming service, such as Steam or GOG, means that even a $10 or $20 card will still go a long way.