Okay, so my little brother is 9, and his 10th birthday is coming up very soon, he always liked watching me play Overwatch, and wanted the game for himself. So I’d like to get him an account on Overwatch as one of his gifts for his birthday, so we could play together, is it not breaking any rules if I let him play at the age of 10? Thank you.
-Cookie
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Warning : super toxic response
Does someone actually have to answer this for you?
I mean, it’s rated T for Teen, 13+.
It’s also an online game, so that 13+ is really only for the fact that its a game with shooting and stuff like that.
So NO, you are not breaking rules by buying them the game.
However (cant believe I even have to say this), make sure your bro isn’t immature.
I wouldn’t expose a 9 years old to OW, the game itself might not be bloody and all but it still depicts violence and people in voice or chat can be very offensive.
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Sounds like a really nice gift for a 10 year old, I would say go for it.
I’m a teacher, and every now and then I also get to deal with kids of that age, so I can unequivocally state: no. I get your intention and it’s sweet in it’s essence, but kids at that age kind of have to be protected from themselves. Yeah, he would like to play Overwatch, but that’s just not appropriate. He would probably also like to eat nothing but ice cream and chocolate, yet your parents will occasionally make him eat his vegetables.
a) There’s the law. 10 is not 13+, that’s very clear. Would anyone get prosecuted for that? Of course not.
b) There’s the content. Overwatch isn’t bloody, but you still mostly shoot at people. Watching and doing are very different, especially for young kids. I’m the last person who’d say that violent video games cause violence, but he will get more of a rush out of playing and that can heavily impact how well he sleeps - and dreams.
c) There’s the community. Some of us are really nice and helpful, but other are insanely toxic. That’s not the environment you want to put a little kid in. You have to expect him to not be that great at the game, so his rank will be bad, and in the bad ranks, the bad people live (at least in larger concentration). There is a lot of abuse to face in Overwatch, so much that even some adults might struggle with it. That’s not the place for a kid, period.
Should you go against my advice (because I know how sometimes logic doesn’t do the trick when you really want something), at least take some precautions:
a) Disable his voice comm and maybe even text. It won’t be ideal in terms of gameplay strength, but you can shield him from the worst.
b) Don’t play too much, don’t play too late.
c) Only ever play against the A.I. That’s enough game for him, and it puts the two of you in a more gentile environment.
Again: don’t do it, but if you do you are completely responsible for his experience.
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I know the fact the community is toxic, maybe a better idea is to play with a friends group I personally know and I in the game so hes not exposed to some randoms that can be really toxic, that was my intent in the first place.
My brother, being young, also plays Fortnite, so it wouldn’t be the first time hes exposed to an online multiplayer game that’s violent.
The intent of my post was that I just wanted to know if I’m not doing something against the rules.
just play mercy and don’t go on voice chat xD
YOUNG PUNKS! GET OF MY LAWN! ![:rage:](https://d1kzxbyyijk9k6.cloudfront.net/en/overwatch/images/emoji/twitter/rage.png?v=6" ":rage:")
I’d refer you to the last line of my first post again. If he plays something by his own impetus, it’s just not the same as if you are the one actively bringing him to the game. If he has a bad experience, you would be partly responsible and you would - even more importantly - feel responsible. You should be aware of this.
Yet no parent would feed their kids vegetables only and every parent would spoil their kids with ice cream and chocolate every now and then. A good parent will teach their kids that moderation is key, that includes being able to play a video game every now and then.
Absolute BS. These ratings have nothing to do with laws and are merely guidelines. It’s up to the parent themself to decide what games they can play.
Well you can apply the same arguments to any game they play. Wether that’s playing soldier in the playground or staying up too late watching tv. Again moderation is key. In general the Overwatch universe is pretty friendly so there’s no reason to withhold it.
Yeah I wouldn’t advise bringing another kid into the game…
personally i think the age limit should be changed to 25… it would get rid of a lot of the toxicity ![:stuck_out_tongue:](https://d1kzxbyyijk9k6.cloudfront.net/en/overwatch/images/emoji/twitter/stuck_out_tongue.png?v=6" ":stuck_out_tongue:")
Again Young punks get of my lawn!
PREACH. I hate when people assume that.
You are not really breaking any rules by letting him play overwatch, The games rating of 13+ is mostly a guideline for for parents. In the end they are the ones deciding if it’s okay for their kid to play the game.
Myrion talked a bit about some of the issues that could come with allowing a 9 year old to play a game like overwatch.
However i’m not sure i agree that you should not let him play at all or that if you do, having to mute/remove the chat and limit it to bot games.
The thing is, yes many people in the game are toxic, but this just happens to be how people tend to behave in multiplayer pvp games on the internet. Keeping kids away from such things, won’t teach them how to deal with it.
Ofc you may want to be careful about how you handle the whole situation. Make sure he’s not overexposed to a point where it can be harmful. This could be done by limiting how much he’s allowed to play, including not letting him play too late so it won’t effect his sleep (stop at least a few hours before bedtime).
Also make sure someone talks to him about how to handle the toxic behaviour and keep an eye out for how he reacts to it.
As you also mentioned, a great way to limit how much toxicity he’s exposed to, could be to simply create custom games for people you know and let him play in those.
Some of my own best memories from when i was a kid, was playing games with my brother and friends. Some of these games include Doom, Quake and CS, which i started playing at the age of ~8-10.
How you choose to deal with it is up to you. I just thought i would share my thoughts on the subject 
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worth noting screens emit a lot of blue light which an screw up the sleeping rhythm that’s one thing apart from the excitement that can disturb sleep… (can somewhat be mitigated by having night time mode turned on which mutes blue hues in favor of more reddish colors…)
the circadian rhythm is in part controlled by the light your eyes see during a day.
so if you wanna avoid sleeping disorders yourself or with kids staying away from screens or muting the blue hues they output can help.
Also for adults avoid drinking coffee after 2 (unless you cant function without coffee or refuse to lol)
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(I haven’t really checked up on proper scientific sources of this, so i personally can’t vow for the information to be true)
If you decide to stay at the computer at later hours, then yes reducing blue light is a good idea. it should also reduce eye strain.
Personally i’m using a program to reduce blue light from both my monitors. it can be controlled to match your day/night cycle. However many newer monitors have a function to reduce blue light emission build in, Or you could adjust the color output manually.
There’s also developed special glasses that can block a lot of the blue light.
What i heard is the caffeine can effect your sleep for up to 6 hours after ingestion.
Warning Snowflake detected