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It’s that time of the year again! Colder weather, hot chocolate at night and, of course, holiday gift-giving. However, it seems like gamers are one of the hardest groups to shop for year after year. This might be that the technology and games move so fast that it just might be too confusing.
That’s where we come in. We rounded up the best gifts for gamers for the holiday season. Regardless of whether they’re a gaming vet with all of the best consoles, or they’re a newbie to gaming and want to get a good start, we’ve got you covered with great gift ideas from Nintendo, Sony, and even retro gaming companies.
Scroll down and shop the best gifts for the gamer in your life, below:
Nintendo Switch OLED: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Bundle
Walmart has the Nintendo Switch OLED bundled with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and a three-month membership. It comes the OLED model of the console, two gray Joy-Con controllers, a digital download of the game and a membership.
‘Super Mario RPG’
For $59.99
Nearly 30 years after its release, Nintendo remastered the classic Super Nintendo game Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars.
After saving Princess Peach from King Bowser, the Smithy Gang, led by an evil robotic blacksmith named Smithy, invades the Mushroom Kingdom and shatters the Star Road into seven pieces.
Pac-Man and Ghosts Lamp
Add a bit of classic gaming with the Pac-Man and Ghosts Lamp. It has Pac-Man being chased Inky, Blinky, Pinky and Clyde, while its LED light brights up any gaming room. It’s a great throwback to the ’80s!
Xbox Series X Replica Mini Fridge
At 14.4 inches tall, the Xbox Series X Replica Mini Fridge is designed to sit next to your real Xbox Series X, while the thermoelectric cooler keeps up to eight cans chilly. There’s even some room in its door to keep a few candy bars nice and cool.
Retroid Pocket 2S Handheld Console
The Retroid Pocket 2S handheld gaming console is ideal as a retro gaming emulator that’s compatible with NES, SNES, Sega Genesis, N64, Saga Dreamcast and other old school gaming platforms.
Asus ROG Ally
The Asus ROG Ally is a handheld gaming PC that’s surprisingly lightweight with a premium feel in the hand. This thing is a beast with an AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme Processor, 7-inch touchscreen display, 16GB of memory paired with up to 1TB of on-board storage (expandable with microSD card) and more.
It even runs the full version of Windows 11 for multiple gaming platforms, such as Steam, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Epic, RetroArch and much more. Now you can play just about anything on-the-go.
Xbox Series S Starter Bundle
The Xbox Series S Starter Bundle has the digital-only version of the gaming console, a white Xbox Wireless Controller and a three-month subscription to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for cloud gaming and online multiplayer.
‘DreamWorks All-Star Kart Racing’
What if Mario Kart, but Dreamworks. DreamWorks All-Star Kart Racing has 20 iconic characters from all of DreamWorks Animation, such as Shrek, Po, Boss Baby, Puss in Boots, Hiccup, Megamind and more. It has 20 kart racers that matches with each character. But, you can swap out kart parts for faster builds with hundreds of combinations of chassis, engines, wheels, spoilers and more.
N-Gen Gaming Chair
The N-Gen Gaming Chair has thick cushioning for a more comfortable experience, durable design with high-quality multi-layered polyurethane leather that’s scratch- and stain-resistant and overall affordable price. Meanwhile, the gaming chair comes in six colors, including black, pink, red, blue and more.
SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Gaming Headset
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 works with just about any PC, Mac, PlayStation or Nintendo Switch, as an overall great and affordable gaming headset — thanks to its excellent audio quality, microphone clarity, and solid Bluetooth connectivity.
‘Just Dance 2024 Edition’
Just Dance 2024 is a motion-control rhythm dance game where players mimic dance moves to chart-topping hits for more points. The higher you level up, the harder the dance moves get.
It also includes 40 new tracks, including “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus, “Tití Me Preguntó” by Bad Bunny, “How You Like That” by BLACKPINK, “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” by Whitney Houston, “Chaise Longue” by Wet Leg, “I Am My Own Muse” by Fall Out Boy, “Vampire” by Olivia Rodrigo and much more. Check out a complete playlist here.
‘Super Mario Bros. Wonder’
Super Mario Bros. Wonder has Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, Toad, Toadette, Nabbit and Yoshi (four colors) as playable characters. However, instead of an adventure in the Mushroom Kingdom, Mario and friends find themselves in the Flower Kingdom.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 for PS5 finds Peter Parker and Miles Morales joining forces to defeat Kraven The Hunter, who has claimed Manhattan as his latest hunting ground.
The open-world action adventure game has expanded its map from the first two games in the franchise, while gamers can explore Brooklyn and Queens, in addition to Manhattan.
Meta Quest 3
The Meta Quest 3 is virtual reality headset that offers stunning cinematic picture and audio for gaming and entertainment in the Metaverse.
Last-minute shopping can be frustrating during the holidays, but it helps to have a plan in place. When shopping online, you’ll want to factor in shipping deadlines so that your gift gets delivered in time. Christmas falls on a Monday this year, so it’s best to get your gifts shipped as soon as possible, or at least by Dec. 21, which is the deadline for most carriers.
Amazon Prime members get free overnight and two-day shipping on millions of items (click here to launch your free 30-day trial). Walmart, Target and Best Buy are also offering extended delivery options and in-store pick up during the holiday season.
For more recommendations, check out the best gaming chairs, best stocking stuffers and our Shop 100 ultimate gift guide.
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