My son wants to "game" like most other kids at his class. So I got an old laptop, installed linux mint on it with dosbox. He loves lemmings, the incredible machine 2 and rollercoaster tycoon
This was the argument I used in high school when I wanted an Xbox 360. My parents were super reluctant given the cost, and then I told them I have nothing to talk about with friends in the hallways and I'm left out of conversations (I was). They reconsidered and eventually folded, and I was very appreciative
The trick is to introduce your kid to your taste in gaming while they're young
And then when they are in their tweens and want to game online with their mates, you set them up for it (with proper supervision and such, of course)
And they WILL develop their own taste in gaming -- But they will have some common ground with you still.
.... It worked for me and my dad (avid PC gamer, mostly plays strategy games and management sims though) anyway. Years later I convinced him to get Civ V and he completely destroyed me in it.
Unlikely. The reason I didn't have many friends is simply because I didn't get along with them: my interests were not their interests. It's much more fulfilling to find people who align with and elevate you than to seek popular approval.
No, because my interests were "reading books" and "knowing things" and I had very little patience for people who did not understand the basic rules to a game on first explanation, for example. That's still true but it's much easier to select your peer group as an adult.
I think the copyright expired and you can just download it for free, maybe its even on the internet archive. I got mine from abandonware or something like that.