10 Great Wii Games for Children Ages 9-12

It’s at the ages of 9 to 12 when children become most appreciative of video games.  They’re quick to notice when the graphics are good, which games they excel at, and which ones they’d play once they’re older. The gender differences between boys and girls also start to come into their own here. While the gender barrier in games are beginning to break down, most developing children are still not that comfortable in playing games “meant for the opposite sex.” The boys generally still prefer guns, swords and other symbols of manly manliness, while the girls generally still prefer fashion, style and other symbols of girly girlishness.

Regardless of gender, however, there are still some games that tickle their fancy. Puzzle games and those that appeal to natural skills will appeal to members of both sexes. Here are the 10 best Wii games for ages 9-12 would certainly enjoy:

Super Smash Bros. Brawl of Nintendo tops our winning list of Wii video games.  Pre-adolescents make intense party fighters and join or even beat serious gamers in online multi-player games.  The challenges here are harder to unlock than what they were used to, but they find a way to get around it.  They’d be thrilled to see the Mario, Pokemon and Metal Gear characters duke it out in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Mario Kart with Wii Wheel as an exclusive Wii game maintains a solid following of preadolescents who have grown up on Mario and friends.  With its enhanced graphics, kids of this age bracket have no problem maneuvering through racetracks and taking control of the wheel. Racing is, after all, one of the games that transcends age and gender.

WarioWare: Smooth Moves is another excellent party game for your budding tweens. The weird and wacky world of Wario, full of microgames for quick and easy fun, is a great game to own if your child has a couple of buddies coming over for a slumber party. Just make sure to get a few earplugs to block out the squeals and laughs at night.

Wii Star Wars: The Clone Wars enables kids to play the heroes and villains of the Star Wars Trilogy and Clone Wars as shown on TV and in the movies.  They have to be skilled with the Wii remote to win duels with the precision of a lightsaber.  The kids can be totally lost and immersed in a Star Wars duel, which is definitely a ton of fun. Who doesn’t want to swing a lightsaber around, even if it is just a virtual one?

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince from Electronic Arts continues in the tradition of the earlier Harry Potter book series.  A lot of magic is coupled with a little bit of romance in the Hogwarts air which breathes of potions, duels, and castle hauntings.  Although young Potter fans would certainly like to see more of Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione battle it out with Death Eaters and Slytherins altogether in a four-player game, it so happens that duels and spells are only meant for two players.

Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess by Nintendo allures its young followers with an exciting adventure into a mystical fantasy world with interesting characters and artsy graphics.  If your child likes the classic storyline of past Zeldas and won’t be bothered by its nostalgic audio, then you can expect the same to happen with Twilight Princess.

 Guitar Hero: World Tour enables eight young rockers to band together in two opposing groups to create and compete for the best guitar and drum tracks.  They can even record and edit their tracks to share their rock compositions online.  These young gamers got their first taste of how it feels to rock and roll onstage with the Legends of Rock Bundle. This game is just as popular as other Wii music games, including the ever popular Wii Rockband.

WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2009 from THQ allows your budding teens to be exposed to the sweat, roaring and testosterone-injected world of professional wrestling by unlocking famous wrestlers like Undertaker and Triple H. They can even handle living legends like Hulk Hogan and pit them up with their contemporary counterparts.  They virtually participate in 2-on-2 tags, 4- or 6-man eliminations, and royal rumbles, which makes for a lot of bodies to slam on the ring.

Boom Blox can look deceivingly easy but once you get into it, you find out that it takes certain intelligence and creativity to be able to bring down a massive 20-block structure just by throwing selected objects at it.  Think Tetris, except you’re tossing the blocks to bring down a building with your Wii controller. 

World of Goo is a particularly interesting game for your kids to enjoy. Like Boom Blox, World of Goo is a puzzle game that involves guiding blobs of goo to a pipe that sucks them right up. Your quest to do so, however, is hampered by a lot of brain-crunching obstacles that require a whole lot of creativity to get through; perfect for the budding mental capacities of a child.

If there’s a set of choices that will definitely cross all age barriers, it’s the list of the 10 Best Wii Games for Ages 9-12.  Kids at this particular age seem not to have outgrown the fun of simpler Wii video games they grew up with, but they’re ready to explore the more complicated stuff and take their gaming to the next level.  Grab a Wii Motion Plus accessory for enhanced game play and even the adults in your household won’t be ashamed to try what these kids are into.