Video Games Gift Guide for 2022

Here at GeekTyrant, there are a few gamers and friends of gamers. At this time of year, people are always looking for gifts to get their friends and family members and I’ve compiled a list of ideas to consider for gifting the video game fans in your life. I’m going to try to hit a wide range of budgets for everyone.

I also would highly recommend asking the fan in your life about what they want or need before buying anything. You don’t want to be that person that buys something the person bought themselves 6 months ago. If you have additional thoughts or more specific recommendations, leave them in the comments below and help others out as they shop for their loved ones.

Also, many of the links below are affiliate links you can use to do your shopping at no additional cost to yourself while supporting us here at GeekTyrant.

Gift Cards

I know this is basic, but it’s very effective. Buy them a gift card to their game store of choice. Whether it be a physical store like GameStop or a digital one like the Microsoft Store, Nintendo eShop, or Steam, a gift card is a great gift. The individual can then use that to really buy the games or DLC that they really want with less guesswork on your end. There are physical gift cards and digital ones, or if you go to your local GameStop, they can often sell you a gift card on a receipt if they don’t have the physical cards in stock.

In this same vein, I’m going to recommend GameStop’s PowerUp Rewards membership. It costs about $15 for a year and every month, the member gets a $5 gift card to GameStop that they can use on anything they want including gift cards for their favorite digital game stores. There are other benefits, but the biggest draw in my opinion is that monthly $5 credit.

The Games They Want

I have yet to meet a gamer who does not have a wishlist of games a mile long. No matter what they game on, there’s always a long list of games they wish they owned. Depending on their platform of choice, you may not be able to purchase the item at a store, but most digital platforms will let you buy games for others. The only one I know of off the top of my head that doesn’t let you do that is the Nintendo eShop. That being said, if you’re unable to buy the game for your favorite gamers for any reason, you can always buy a gift card and tell them it is specifically meant to go towards the purchase of X game. That’s honestly my favorite kind of gift card.

Controllers

If your gamer plays on console, they may need some extra controllers so that they can play with their friends and family on the same console. This will depend on what games your favorite gamer likes to play and if they support local multiplayer or not. I always recommend going with first-party controllers first, but they do tend to be a bit more expensive. Other brands that I’ve had good experiences with include PowerA and NexiGo.

For PC gamers, controllers are absolutely great, but they may also benefit from a new keyboard and/or mouse. There are lots of options, but typically a mechanical keyboard is the way to go. I personally have really liked my Logitech G512 with brown switches and my Logitech G502 HERO mouse. Of course, some people may want the smaller keyboards without the 10-key pad or want to go wireless, so just do a bit of research beforehand.

If your gamer is into mobile gaming, they can also benefit from the joy of controllers. There are controller options like the Backbone One or the Razer Kishi that let you insert your phone into it for a Switch-like experience or you can grab affordable mounts for your pre-existing controllers that hold your phone. I’ve only used the latter solution, but they tend to work pretty well, just make sure that it’s compatible with your friend’s controller of choice. These are also great solutions if your friend is interested in cloud gaming through NVIDIA GeForce Now, Xbox Game Pass, Amazon Luna, or another service. Yes, you can get a dedicated cloud gaming device like the Logitech G Cloud, but this solution is a bit more practical in my opinion.

Skins

There are tons of companies out there that make skins you can apply to your consoles, PCs, controllers, etc. to show off part of your personality. Whether it’s a favorite sports team or game franchise, skins are typically more or less stickers that you can apply to the item and make it more personalized. I have not done this myself, but you can find sites like SkinIt, dbrand, and Wrappz.

Game-Related Merchandise

Games these days are rarely limited to just the game. The characters and icons often find themselves on mugs, pins, apparel, Funko Pops, action figures, and more. For the past couple of years I’ve gotten my best friend Destiny-themed merch instead of actual games and he’s loved it. It’s also great because merch is an area that probably has the largest price range spread. You can often find some things for as little as $5 or as much as $100+. Etsy, GameStop, Premium Bandai, Sideshow, and Tee Turtle are great places to look for collectibles.