GM was my first exposure to programming at about age 12. I would highly recommend it for your kid, for all the following reasons. It doesn't require programmin

GM was my first exposure to programming at about age 12. I would highly recommend it for your kid, for all the following reasons. It doesn't require programming. Pretty complex games can be made with the drag-and-drop interface, which is simple & intuitive and designed for kids. It naturally encourages a shift into programming. By age 14, I was completely off drag-and-drop and using the built-in GML programming language for everything instead. This programming language has some quirks to make it work with the GUI-driven system, but is still a decent introduction to programming (though these quirks mean I'd hesitate to recommend it to someone raised on more traditional languages). The system is designed to be simple and accessible but also flexible. Its object & room model is abstract enough that you can make most any type of 2D game with it, from puzzles to platformers to top-down RPGs. The system scales: your kid can learn the basics easily and do more complex things with the system as they get older and more experienced with it. Commercially successful games developed in GM include Hotline Miami, Undertale, Gunpoint and Cook, Serve, Delicious. Above all, it's easy to get results in. Unlike more complex systems & traditional programming languages, a beginner can assemble a rudimentary game in an afternoon, rather than spending a week learning to draw a square.