Christmas is almost upon us, and with it comes the frantic scramble to find the right gifts for your family and friends. It could be said that Gamers are one of the worst type of people to buy presents for, usually because they already own every game in existence and, unless you have been told to buy them a specific game, it can be a nightmare trying not to duplicate items that they have already bought for themselves.
Never fear though! Mini Gamers has come up with a few ideas of what you could get gaming fans this year. We have searched high and low to find the best and most original gaming-related gifts that will satisfy most gamers and even appeal to the gamer who has everything. This is our shortlist:
1) Assassin's Creed Collectible Figurine
This highly decorative figurine is the pefect collectible for fans of the highly-aclaimed Assassin's Creed series. However, as this figure is limited edition, its price tag is not cheap. This figure retails for around £30. We found that online stores like play.com and Amazon were selling it slightly cheaper at £24, but this is still an expensive but exquite gift piece for most gaming fans. This item can be purchased from the GAME stores.
2) Super Mario Bros: Super Mario Chess: Collectors Edition
This zany little chess set is perfect for fans of those superb Italian plumbers, The Mario Bros. However, as another collector's item, this gift also carries a hefty price tag. Expect to find this item for just under £50. If you can afford it, however, the item can be purchased directly from The Super Mario Store for £47.99.
3) Gaming T-shirts/Hoodies
Online retailer Play.com features a large number of game-themed T-shirts and Hoodies. Prices vary but rarely go above £11.99. It has to be said, that the T-shirts do seem to be aimed more at men than at women, but they will make a useful and affordable present for many male gamers. Gaming T-shirts can also be found at HMV and other clothing or memorabilia stores.
4) LittleBigPlanet Sackboy/Sackgirl Beanies
These cute six-inch beanies come in a variety of designs aimed at both male and female gamers of all ages. They usually retail for around £6.99 and can be found in many highstreet stores such as GameStation and HMV.
5) Raving Rabbids: Travel In Time Blister Packs 1, 2 and 3
This gift idea is aimed at slightly younger gamers who like the Raymans Raving Rabbids series of games. There are three separate blister packs. Each containing approximately three different figurines from the latest game in the series - Rayman's Raving Rabbids: Travel in Time (Wii). Each blister pack retails for around £6.99 but is guaranteed to provide little gamers with hours of imaginative fun with their favourite characters. This item can be found in many GAME and HMV highstreet stores.
6) PAC-MAN Alarm Clock
Arcade or retro fans and gamers who grew up in the 1980's are sure to love this novelty alarm clock. It wakes up its owner with the authentic sounds of the original game. Not to worry though, if the novelty wears off, you can turn off the alarm feature and simply use it as a standard clock.
7) 80's Stress Ball
shaped like one of the blob-like aliens from the original Space Invaders game, this nifty little gadget is both a practical and nostalgic piece of memorabilia which will appeal to Arcade gamers. This item usually retails for around £5, but they can be a difficult item to track down but is sold by online retailers such as Play.com, however they might end up being a belated Christmas gift due to delivery schedules at this time of year... Be warned!
8) The VTech: Storio
The link between fun and learning is considered to be pretty strong these days and many video games (especially for the Nintendo DS) have attempted to educate our brains in a variety of fun and exciting ways, but for children who are yet too young to have their own Nintendo DS, comes a nifty little handheld reading tutor.
The VTech Storio Animated Reading System is aimed at very young children between the ages of four and six and can increase their confidence as well as develop reading and language skills.
Children can play a number of reading games, interact with the story and develop basic comprehension skills. Alternatively they can read along with the story, watch the animated screen or simply listen to the narrative.
The actual Storio system is not cheap and costs around £60 to buy, but a number of Storio accessory packs can then be purchased for around £12 each, featuring characters like Tinkerbell, Toy Story or Dora the Explorer. The packs vary depending on the age of the child and will help them learn to read more easily. It also covers basic English Language skills from the National Curriculum such as phonics, vowels, spelling, capitals and more.
This is a great little handheld gadget and very useful to little ones. The VTech Storio can be found at toy stores including The Entertainer and Toys 'R' US amongst many others.
So that completes our wonderful and wacky tour of unique or collector gifts for gamers. These items are great as both a main present and as a compliment to the actual games.
We at Mini Gamers hope that this post has given you some last minute ideas and that you have enjoyed exploring what type of gaming memorabilia is on offer in shops today.
No comments:
Post a Comment