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It probably depends on the kid/environment.

My first attempt at programming was to write Breakout in Basic, so video games can inspire I guess (this was longer ago than I care to disclose).

But today's video games are so advanced I get the impression kids wouldn't even bother to try to write their own game because it wouldn't compare to their experience.

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I halfway agree with you - they probably wouldn't try to write something like Halo, because they wouldn't know where to start. Simple, fun games still exist though. Just look at all the Flash ones.

Simple, fun games are usually the most successful games out there. The hard-core gamer market is small comparatively, especially if you're counting by players instead of purchasers.

(Numerical comparison: Half Life life-time sales: 9.3 million as of the end of 2008[1]. Bejeweled life-time sales: 50 million+ as of Feb this year[2]. And how many play FarmVille (though it's not overly simple)?)

[1]: http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/56193 [2]: http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/27183/Bejeweled_Sales_Hit...

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