• Log InLog In
  • Register
Liquid`
Team Liquid Liquipedia
EDT 00:13
CEST 06:13
KST 13:13
  • Home
  • Forum
  • Calendar
  • Streams
  • Liquipedia
  • Features
  • Store
  • EPT
  • TL+
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Smash
  • Heroes
  • Counter-Strike
  • Overwatch
  • Liquibet
  • Fantasy StarCraft
  • TLPD
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Blogs
Forum Sidebar
Events/Features
News
Featured News
Code S Season 2 (2026) - RO12 Preview0herO wins GSL Code S Season 1 (2026)0Code S Season 1 (2026) - RO4 & Finals Preview5[ASL21] Ro4 Preview: On Course12Code S Season 1 - RO8 Preview7
Community News
Weekly Cups (May 11-17): Classic wins double0Code S Season 1 (2026) - RO8 Results2Weekly Cups (May 4-10): Clem, MaxPax, herO win1Maestros of The Game 2 announcement and schedule !18Weekly Cups (April 27-May 4): Clem takes triple0
StarCraft 2
General
Code S Season 2 (2026) - RO12 Preview herO wins GSL Code S Season 1 (2026) Weekly Cups (May 11-17): Classic wins double Code S Season 1 (2026) - RO4 & Finals Preview Team Liquid Map Contest #22 - The Finalists
Tourneys
GSL Code S Season 1 (2026) GSL Code S Season 2 (2026) Maestros of The Game 2 announcement and schedule ! $1,400 SEL Season 3 Ladder Invitational $5,000 WardiTV Spring Championship 2026
Strategy
Custom Maps
[D]RTS in all its shapes and glory <3 [A] Nemrods 1/4 players
External Content
The PondCast: SC2 News & Results Mutation # 526 Rubber and Glue Mutation # 525 Wheel of Misfortune Mutation # 524 Death and Taxes
Brood War
General
Lights Ro.8 Review (asl s21) 25 Years Since Brood War Patch 1.08 vespene.gg — BW replays in browser BGH Auto Balance -> http://bghmmr.eu/ BW General Discussion
Tourneys
[Megathread] Daily Proleagues [ASL21] Semifinals B [BSL22] RO8 Bracket Stage + Another TieBreaker [ASL21] Ro8 Day 4
Strategy
Muta micro map competition Fighting Spirit mining rates [G] Hydra ZvZ: An Introduction Simple Questions, Simple Answers
Other Games
General Games
Stormgate/Frost Giant Megathread Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne ZeroSpace Megathread War of Dots, 2026 minimalst RTS Nintendo Switch Thread
Dota 2
The Story of Wings Gaming
League of Legends
Heroes of the Storm
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Heroes of the Storm 2.0
Hearthstone
Deck construction bug Heroes of StarCraft mini-set
TL Mafia
Vanilla Mini Mafia Mafia Game Mode Feedback/Ideas TL Mafia Community Thread Five o'clock TL Mafia
Community
General
US Politics Mega-thread European Politico-economics QA Mega-thread YouTube Thread Russo-Ukrainian War Thread UK Politics Mega-thread
Fan Clubs
The herO Fan Club!
Media & Entertainment
[Manga] One Piece Anime Discussion Thread [Req][Books] Good Fantasy/SciFi books
Sports
2024 - 2026 Football Thread McBoner: A hockey love story Formula 1 Discussion
World Cup 2022
Tech Support
streaming software Strange computer issues (software)
TL Community
The Automated Ban List
Blogs
Why RTS gamers make better f…
gosubay
How EEG Data Can Predict Gam…
TrAiDoS
ramps on octagon
StaticNine
Customize Sidebar...

Website Feedback

Closed Threads



Active: 1677 users

starting sc at 5 year old

Blogs > enord
Post a Reply
1 2 Next All
enord
Profile Blog Joined September 2013
France258 Posts
March 09 2014 15:02 GMT
#1
hi

my monster is experiencing sc for the first time and loving it

i wonder if i'm being a bad grufalo allowing him.. my better half seems adamant that i am ruining chances of him doing "other" stuff.. possibly ruining his life really

i waited "patiently" 2 years to get "talk/sense" out of his speech, i waited 4 before he was allowed "angry birds" .. now i feel a little better for being "free"er and i am (possibly wrongfully) relieved that from now on i will never have to refrain him anymore, ever

there is no such thing as "experience", it is a lantern enlightening only the past, never what the future holds for us or indeed our kin

i have the "honesty" to declare that i don't know how my kid will deal with stuff from video games

i know i play ball, karting, bricks, drawing learning to read/write .. acrobats and rougher fights etc too
with him, making him discover everything is important, no conflict there

so.. why try and refrain his access.. indeed, to anything (+ Show Spoiler +
no! no p rn of course u minger, s.. the thoughts in some people...
)

i was already teaching him the credit/banking system when he was 1..
"see here i'm giving the nice lady a bit of plastic .. so she can asks the bank to give her money i have there" (credit card)

everyone (since i started with this "kids are smart, never dumb stuff down for them")
has always rolled their eyes sideways or been supportive

there is no doubt in my mind that the 7 year old mark is important

by 7 the kid must be ready

he must know about important stuff, he must be cognitive and know that he is capable of things, incapable of other things

sc is good for that, no?

maybe the whole "killing/destroying comes a bit early.. mmmkay or does it not come late already?

fun:
he likes all three races .. or was that the result of my heavy handed lobbying ? i'll never know
his favorite dialog: "butter my biscuit!"




**
make / have a good tl .. ohhh and i want my icon back :°D
vOdToasT
Profile Blog Joined September 2010
Sweden2870 Posts
Last Edited: 2014-03-09 15:45:32
March 09 2014 15:44 GMT
#2
I played Command & Conquer and StarCraft when I was six, and I turned out fine. It's only one person, I know, but I felt like telling you anyway.

Just make damn sure you help him in school. Help him with his homework, ask him how he's doing (in a nice way so that he isn't scared to tell you), and if he is struggling, help him out. And talk to him about things he is going to encounter in life so that he can deal with them, like girls hitting on him, bad teachers, the school workload, and so on.
If it's stupid but it works, then it's not stupid* (*Or: You are stupid for losing to it, and gotta git gud)
Pokebunny
Profile Blog Joined June 2008
United States10654 Posts
Last Edited: 2014-03-09 16:15:24
March 09 2014 16:14 GMT
#3
I first played SC when I was four years old in 1999. Has been nothing but an amazing experience in my life.

http://www.teamliquid.net/blogs/113783-my-starcraft-history-intro-part-1
Semipro Terran player | Pokebunny#1710 | twitter.com/Pokebunny | twitch.tv/Pokebunny | facebook.com/PokebunnySC
NeThZOR
Profile Blog Joined November 2010
South Africa7387 Posts
March 09 2014 16:30 GMT
#4
Started SC when I was 6, other games even before that. My dad encouraged my hobby by buying a computer for me and some of the games that I ended up playing.
SuperNova - 2015 | SKT1 fan for years | Dear, FlaSh, PartinG, Soulkey, Naniwa
DarkPlasmaBall
Profile Blog Joined March 2010
United States45940 Posts
March 09 2014 16:41 GMT
#5
You're not being a bad grufalo, but just make sure you take care of your monster.
"There is nothing more satisfying than looking at a crowd of people and helping them get what I love." ~Day[9] Daily #100
Tufas
Profile Blog Joined April 2010
Austria2259 Posts
Last Edited: 2014-03-09 17:33:05
March 09 2014 17:31 GMT
#6
I started playing quake 3 when I was 8 years old, that may be too soon, just saying
Where is my ACE flair
Liquid`Drone
Profile Joined September 2002
Norway28799 Posts
March 09 2014 17:52 GMT
#7
playing challenging games from a young age is good. I think you're best off restricting it to single player with a 5 year old though. I also think first person shooter games should be avoided when you're that young, imo they should pretty much all be avoided until kids are ~10. but starcraft is great, it's very challenging and not really that much more violent than chess. Most grindy games should be avoided too I think, cuz they're just too much of a timesink compared to the reward - you prolly develop more by doing practically anything than you do from 500 hours of single player diablo 3.

Like, I really don't think there's any point in forcing your kid to go play in the sandbox instead of playing minecraft, but you must be cautious that minecraft doesn't make your kid play 10 hours straight in the sandbox - which he normally would find boring.
Moderator
Omnishroud
Profile Blog Joined November 2013
1073 Posts
March 09 2014 18:02 GMT
#8
If anything a mentally challenging game like SC will help him develop and improve a multitude of things. It will quite literally make him smarter provided he isnt just randomly clicking shit.

All good things in moderation, however.
Omni = Capped (RIP TL Account) - LoL EUW: Capped92 - EU Bnet: Capped#1137 - Steam: Capped92
GaNgStaRR.ElV
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Canada535 Posts
March 09 2014 18:14 GMT
#9
On March 10 2014 00:02 enord wrote:
hi

my monster is experiencing sc for the first time and loving it

i wonder if i'm being a bad grufalo allowing him.. my better half seems adamant that i am ruining chances of him doing "other" stuff.. possibly ruining his life really

i waited "patiently" 2 years to get "talk/sense" out of his speech, i waited 4 before he was allowed "angry birds" .. now i feel a little better for being "free"er and i am (possibly wrongfully) relieved that from now on i will never have to refrain him anymore, ever

there is no such thing as "experience", it is a lantern enlightening only the past, never what the future holds for us or indeed our kin

i have the "honesty" to declare that i don't know how my kid will deal with stuff from video games

i know i play ball, karting, bricks, drawing learning to read/write .. acrobats and rougher fights etc too
with him, making him discover everything is important, no conflict there

so.. why try and refrain his access.. indeed, to anything (+ Show Spoiler +
no! no p rn of course u minger, s.. the thoughts in some people...
)

i was already teaching him the credit/banking system when he was 1..
"see here i'm giving the nice lady a bit of plastic .. so she can asks the bank to give her money i have there" (credit card)

everyone (since i started with this "kids are smart, never dumb stuff down for them")
has always rolled their eyes sideways or been supportive

there is no doubt in my mind that the 7 year old mark is important

by 7 the kid must be ready

he must know about important stuff, he must be cognitive and know that he is capable of things, incapable of other things

sc is good for that, no?

maybe the whole "killing/destroying comes a bit early.. mmmkay or does it not come late already?

fun:
he likes all three races .. or was that the result of my heavy handed lobbying ? i'll never know
his favorite dialog: "butter my biscuit!"




I would say let your kid play if he is keen for it.

As other poster have mentioned as well, I was playing similarly themed games, and I was 9 when original SC came out. At the end of the day you can just turn off the extra gore and mute the chat/stay offline if you want to avoid stuff that is maybe a little bit too mature for a 5 year old. Worst case he is just not going to be interested as I don't really see the harm in exposing kids to as much as you can(as I can tell you believe in as well).

Also a kudos for the whole "dont dumb down life" thing, it will deffo pay off in the long run. I know my parents told me so many stupid fucking lies as a kid I spent my teenage years undoing some of the basics of life and relearning it all again.
Bunn
Profile Blog Joined September 2010
Estonia934 Posts
March 09 2014 18:50 GMT
#10
dont ruin his eyes
"There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. If it kills you, it kills you. A man must constantly exceed his level." - Bruce Lee
Chocolate
Profile Blog Joined December 2010
United States2350 Posts
March 09 2014 19:01 GMT
#11
Just make sure he is socializing with kids his age, too. I got sucked into videogames when I was about 10 or so and stopped spending time with friends very much, and my social skills suffered. I can't imagine the consequences of that happening at the age of 5-7. Of course, I am not a father, so what do I know

But I think SC could be a great experience. I recommend chess as well, especially if you live in a city of more than a few hundred thousand. He will be able to meet kids his age that play chess, and if you spend a lot of time playing with him he could get really, really good (I know two people who were rated like 1200 USCF at the age of 7...). And chess teaches and hones all kinds of skills: memory, problem solving, planning, etc. Of course it is not as reflexive as SC, but I do think that in general the human-to-human contact it allows is quite beneficial.
Saechiis
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
Netherlands4989 Posts
March 09 2014 19:16 GMT
#12
How to train your Monster, good script.
I think esports is pretty nice.
d00p
Profile Blog Joined May 2011
711 Posts
March 09 2014 19:54 GMT
#13
On March 10 2014 03:50 Bunn wrote:
dont ruin his eyes


Don't spread misinformation or maybe you'll tell us how it will ruin his eyes?
Deleuze
Profile Blog Joined December 2010
United Kingdom2102 Posts
March 09 2014 20:01 GMT
#14
If you hold down shift and press a letter key it types a thing called a capital letter. They go at the start of sentences, proper nouns and when using the first personal pronoun 'I', as well as other places. Hopefully you won't try to teach your son to type.
“An image of thought called philosophy has been formed historically and it effectively stops people from thinking.” ― Gilles Deleuze, Dialogues II
enord
Profile Blog Joined September 2013
France258 Posts
Last Edited: 2014-03-09 21:54:08
March 09 2014 20:23 GMT
#15
ty for your general support
(for reals, i need it)

On March 10 2014 04:16 Saechiis wrote:
How to train your Monster, good script.

i know right

On March 10 2014 03:50 Bunn wrote:
dont ruin his eyes


yes, that is something i'm scared about, like walkmans for ears (in my day), i make him stop regularly and i make him drink

hell, i even make him consciously stop looking at the screen regularly

On March 10 2014 03:14 GaNgStaRR.ElV wrote:

I would say let your kid play if he is keen for it.
...
+ Show Spoiler +
As other poster have mentioned as well, I was playing similarly themed games, and I was 9 when original SC came out. At the end of the day you can just turn off the extra gore and mute the chat/stay offline if you want to avoid stuff that is maybe a little bit too mature for a 5 year old. Worst case he is just not going to be interested as I don't really see the harm in exposing kids to as much as you can(as I can tell you believe in as well).

...
Also a kudos for the whole "dont dumb down life" thing, it will deffo pay off in the long run. I know my parents told me so many stupid fucking lies as a kid I spent my teenage years undoing some of the basics of life and relearning it all again.

"if he is keen for it."
is he keen because he saw me do it. or that i have it available in the first place..? that is the real issue (monkey see monkey do) .. or is he keen because this rtsg type of game sucks you right in for long ???
or because the gameplay of the game is "giving orders" all the time (remember that such is the life of a 5 year old: following orders)
or
just because it is challenging his very core? (which could be good or bad)

"pay off in the long run"

yeah, i humbly admit that i'm ready to f ck up a part of his childhood to make him ready for the rest of his life (presumably with less help/presence from me (me me me hubris yes i know and i stand by it)

ps:
i wish i will see you again (here or elesewhere) on the same subject, when you guys start debating these issues with your wife/life partner (mother of said kid :D ) ... i'll be able to share that too, with you

i always am labelled as difficult to understand.. so..
YES
i am looking for anything this issue (5 and video games) brings out in you all

ty for all who have posted and to those with kids (or kids themselves) that will come forward to participate on this glorious sc forum for this "debate"

edit: f ck typos / f ck blizz no lan

make/have a good tl
make / have a good tl .. ohhh and i want my icon back :°D
pebble444
Profile Blog Joined March 2011
Italy2503 Posts
March 09 2014 20:44 GMT
#16
Make sure he playes terran. No but seriously, what about starting playing a musical instrument too
"Awaken my Child, and embrace the Glory that is your Birthright"
Omnishroud
Profile Blog Joined November 2013
1073 Posts
March 09 2014 20:45 GMT
#17
You are completely overthinking it.

Ask yourself these questions.

Does the game have too much violence (of any type) for your child in your opinion?

If yes, dont let him play.

If no, let him play.

Is your child playing too much?

If yes, remove him from game / limit playtime

If no, let him carry on.

Its that simple.
Omni = Capped (RIP TL Account) - LoL EUW: Capped92 - EU Bnet: Capped#1137 - Steam: Capped92
enord
Profile Blog Joined September 2013
France258 Posts
March 09 2014 20:52 GMT
#18
On March 10 2014 05:01 Deleuze wrote:
If you hold down shift and press a letter key it types a thing called a capital letter. They go at the start of sentences, proper nouns and when using the first personal pronoun 'I', as well as other places. Hopefully you won't try to teach your son to type.

o
... now lets see.. shhift ... mmkay ... mmmmkay

+ Show Spoiler +
to be be absolutely clear:

+ Show Spoiler +
i HATE capital letters

i hate that one must capitalize one s self in the "i" "I" tradition

so i dont.. thank you for your encouragements and please

you go sheep somewhere useful, my lawn is fine ty

ps: j'adores deleuze, mais c'est un pleutre et tu es bien peu utile
+ Show Spoiler +
ps : i love deleuze but he is a coward and you are less than useful
make / have a good tl .. ohhh and i want my icon back :°D
enord
Profile Blog Joined September 2013
France258 Posts
March 09 2014 21:24 GMT
#19
On March 10 2014 04:01 Chocolate wrote:
Just make sure he is socializing with kids his age, too. I got sucked into videogames when I was about 10 or so and stopped spending time with friends very much, and my social skills suffered. I can't imagine the consequences of that happening at the age of 5-7. Of course, I am not a father, so what do I know

But I think SC could be a great experience. I recommend chess as well, especially if you live in a city of more than a few hundred thousand. He will be able to meet kids his age that play chess, and if you spend a lot of time playing with him he could get really, really good (I know two people who were rated like 1200 USCF at the age of 7...). And chess teaches and hones all kinds of skills: memory, problem solving, planning, etc. Of course it is not as reflexive as SC, but I do think that in general the human-to-human contact it allows is quite beneficial.

"the human-to-human contact"

yes that is the linchpin of my wife s argument



and i agree

playing with others is nowhere in sight in sc, in any rtsg

this dissociativeness some kids get from gaming is what i'm most scared of..

on the other hand he just started, i'm buying simcity and a steering wheel for a car game soon .. so as to show him other games.. games that you can share with friends his age and take turns or "collaborate"

just, i'm quite sure that the "cowboy and indians" (or cops and robbers) syndrome is really high at that age (pretending to beat others into submission and "killing" them is a necessary phase/point)

not to worry thank you, he socializes good good good (invites friends from school or other and gets invited galore)
make / have a good tl .. ohhh and i want my icon back :°D
enord
Profile Blog Joined September 2013
France258 Posts
March 09 2014 21:48 GMT
#20
On March 10 2014 05:45 Omnishroud wrote:
You are completely overthinking it.

Ask yourself these questions.

Does the game have too much violence (of any type) for your child in your opinion?

If yes, dont let him play.

If no, let him play.

Is your child playing too much?

If yes, remove him from game / limit playtime

If no, let him carry on.

Its that simple.

"overthinking"
sorry .. never
overthinking stuff is not thinking as much as you can, which is what i do

i realize that kids will be.. whatever they will be (que sera sera and all that jazz)

and that whatever i do, i'm always mucking about, stuff is already there boiling and i steer just as much as i f ck up
(i'm not a good role model but i always show him how important he is to me and how much i love him and hold his future dear)
he will be me, i will do all i can, then he will be himself and i do hope some of what i could pass on will help

he is
i'm just here for the ride

ps: as to your points.. how do you fantasize it happening.. you think i do what i want...
a child is usually the product of two people s decision making (not to mention school/friends of his etc)
lets just take 1: "Does the game have too much violence "
who decides? once done, how do you see if it is or not? can you ever "come back rom it"? etc

no such thing as overthinking
make / have a good tl .. ohhh and i want my icon back :°D
1 2 Next All
Please log in or register to reply.
Live Events Refresh
PiGosaur Cup
00:00
#82
PiGStarcraft660
EnkiAlexander 63
Liquipedia
[ Submit Event ]
Live Streams
Refresh
StarCraft 2
PiGStarcraft672
RuFF_SC2 142
Nina 104
StarCraft: Brood War
GuemChi 5966
Noble 21
Bale 11
Icarus 6
Counter-Strike
FalleN 2370
Coldzera 1786
m0e_tv462
Super Smash Bros
hungrybox1806
C9.Mang0692
ChuDatz15
Other Games
summit1g13469
WinterStarcraft316
ViBE185
Maynarde112
Sick91
Trikslyr23
CosmosSc2 14
Organizations
Counter-Strike
PGL7546
Other Games
gamesdonequick946
BasetradeTV61
StarCraft 2
Blizzard YouTube
StarCraft: Brood War
BSLTrovo
[ Show 15 non-featured ]
StarCraft 2
• Hupsaiya 66
• intothetv
• AfreecaTV YouTube
• Kozan
• IndyKCrew
• LaughNgamezSOOP
• Migwel
• sooper7s
StarCraft: Brood War
• Azhi_Dahaki109
• BSLYoutube
• STPLYoutube
• ZZZeroYoutube
League of Legends
• Rush1025
• Lourlo809
Other Games
• Scarra1055
Upcoming Events
GSL
5h 17m
Cure vs sOs
SHIN vs ByuN
Replay Cast
19h 47m
GSL
1d 5h
Classic vs Solar
GuMiho vs Zoun
WardiTV Spring Champion…
1d 6h
Replay Cast
1d 19h
Sparkling Tuna Cup
2 days
WardiTV Spring Champion…
2 days
Replay Cast
2 days
RSL Revival
3 days
Classic vs SHIN
Rogue vs Bunny
BSL
3 days
[ Show More ]
Replay Cast
3 days
Afreeca Starleague
4 days
Flash vs Soma
RSL Revival
4 days
BSL
4 days
Patches Events
4 days
Replay Cast
5 days
Universe Titan Cup
5 days
Rogue vs Percival
Wardi Open
5 days
Monday Night Weeklies
5 days
Replay Cast
5 days
Kung Fu Cup
6 days
Liquipedia Results

Completed

Proleague 2026-05-19
2026 GSL S1
Nations Cup 2026

Ongoing

BSL Season 22
ASL Season 21
IPSL Spring 2026
KCM Race Survival 2026 Season 2
Acropolis #4
KK 2v2 League Season 1
BSL 22 Non-Korean Championship
YSL S3
SCTL 2026 Spring
2026 GSL S2
RSL Revival: Season 5
Heroes Pulsing #1
CS Asia Championships 2026
Asian Champions League 2026
IEM Atlanta 2026
PGL Astana 2026
BLAST Rivals Spring 2026
IEM Rio 2026
PGL Bucharest 2026
Stake Ranked Episode 1
BLAST Open Spring 2026
ESL Pro League S23 Finals
ESL Pro League S23 Stage 1&2

Upcoming

Escore Tournament S2: W8
CSCL: Masked Kings S4
CSLAN 4
Kung Fu Cup 2026 Grand Finals
HSC XXIX
uThermal 2v2 2026 Main Event
Maestros of the Game 2
WardiTV Spring 2026
Bounty Cup 2026
BLAST Bounty Summer 2026
BLAST Bounty Summer Qual
Stake Ranked Episode 3
XSE Pro League 2026
IEM Cologne Major 2026
Stake Ranked Episode 2
TLPD

1. ByuN
2. TY
3. Dark
4. Solar
5. Stats
6. Nerchio
7. sOs
8. soO
9. INnoVation
10. Elazer
1. Rain
2. Flash
3. EffOrt
4. Last
5. Bisu
6. Soulkey
7. Mini
8. Sharp
Sidebar Settings...

Advertising | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use | Contact Us

Original banner artwork: Jim Warren
The contents of this webpage are copyright © 2026 TLnet. All Rights Reserved.