Great Gifts for Gamers: 2011-2012 Edition

OK, so you’re trying to find that perfect gift for yourself or the gamer in your life, and aren’t quite sure what to get for that guy or girl who already has virtually every virtual entertainment product imaginable. Have no fear! In consultation with the high-tech division of Santa’s Workshop, we’ve come up with a sleigh-full of ideas sure to make your Holidays, happy!

Under $50 range:

The Lighted Keyboard
Shred enemies into the wee hours without having to keep that pesky desk lamp on to see your multi-button combos. A keyboard with lighted keys is one of the most under-appreciated accessories you can add to a PC gaming setup—until you have one for yourself. We like the Razer Black Widow Ultimate keyboard for our late-night plinking and plunking.

Pizza chain gift cards
Yep, pizza. Any gamer knows that food is the fuel the body needs to sustain itself during those epic six to 36-hour sessions of Madden, Battefield 3, or Call of Duty, and Pizza Hut or Dominos pies do just fine in terms of the value and time-spent-eating-to-gaming ratio. Gamers aren’t looking for gourmet meals during these times, they’re looking for quick and easy grub. Buy them gift cards and you can be 100% sure your gift will be totally used and appreciated. Throw in a roll of paper towels covered in wrapping paper and give along with the card for extra bonus points.

Official Prima Strategy eGuides
You know your gamer’s got to have at least a couple games on their wish list. Why not get an official Prima game guide to go with it? For example, the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Prima Official eGuide is filled with tons of information on every quest, every item and every achievement in the game. They are fully searchable and come with interactive maps so they’ll never get lost in the vast world of Skyrim. You can purchase it here. Trust us, you’ll thank us later!

$50-200 range:

Soundbar
The new wave of soundbars deliver all the oomph most rooms need to punch-up the gaming and television watching experience—without the hassle of multiple cords and multitude of pieces that came with surround sound systems of the past. Check out the Panasonic models for plenty of performance, or climb up the scale to a Polk Audio model for more powerful but pricier punch.

Rumble chair
Immerse your gamer in his or her games like never before with a gaming chair. Couches and loveseats usually don’t seat the player in a forward enough position for maximum gaming posture, and dedicated gaming chairs solve that ergonomic inequity in a wide range of styles. From Cohesion’s XP line of gaming chairs to X-Rocker’s offerings, you can give the game in your life a nice Holiday kick in the butt.

$200+ range:

Bigger TV
By now you’ve seen the Black Friday deals that offered 42” TVs for under $200, so why not upgrade the most important part of your gamer’s setup with a bold move they’ll never expect—a new TV! From Samsung to Vizio and from Sony to Toshiba, a 40-inch or bigger TV (that retailed for thousands of dollars just 1-2 years ago) make all gaming experiences more intense.

Driving “cage”
Driving game enthusiasts occupy a unique niche in video games, and often these are the only types of games these players own. If you have this type of game in your household, blow them away with a driving “cage” from Playseat. These cool seats, with design influenced by NASCAR specs, place gamers in fully adjustable driving positions with side and head “protection” and heavy-duty construction will transform his or her gaming space into a race car chassis.

Any price!
Don’t forget gift cards—especially for online points that gamers can redeem for virtual goods. Gamers who are too young to have a credit card will love you for it, while older gamers always like to have some points stashed on hand in case they want to buy some extra DLC, or dress up their avatar with an astronaut suit.