The Big Con
LumiScore
Growth
43/100
Growth Value
- Problem Solving
- Reading & Language
- Ethical Reasoning
Risk
LOW
Engagement Patterns
Minimal pressure to spend or play excessively.
Heads up
Parent Pro-Tip
Play the first hour alongside your child to discuss the game's moral themes—Ali steals to save her family, creating opportunities to talk about ethics, desperation, and whether ends justify means. Use the mother-daughter conflict as a springboard for conversations about family relationships and communication.
Top Skills Developed
Development Areas
Representation?How diverse the game's characters are in gender and ethnicity. Higher = more authentic representation. Display only — does not affect time recommendation.
Bechdel Test?The Bechdel Test checks whether a game has at least two named female characters who talk to each other about something other than a man. A simple measure of representation.— Passes the test
Ali and her mom have multiple conversations about saving the video store and their relationship
Parent Pro-Tip
The extensive reading and dialogue in The Big Con make it ideal for building literacy skills—encourage your child to read conversations aloud or discuss character motivations to deepen comprehension and critical thinking about the story.
What your child develops
The Big Con offers strong cognitive benefits through its puzzle-solving and narrative-driven gameplay. Players must think strategically about who to pickpocket, when to use disguises, and how to navigate conversations to achieve goals. The game features extensive dialogue and reading comprehension requirements, strengthening language skills. Problem-solving is central as players figure out how to con NPCs and progress through scenarios. The ethical dimension is particularly interesting—players must navigate moral gray areas as they steal to save their family business, prompting reflection on means versus ends. The coming-of-age story explores complex family dynamics, especially the mother-daughter relationship, building empathy and emotional understanding. Creative thinking is encouraged through multiple approaches to challenges.
Regulatory Compliance
Tap a badge for details. Grey = not yet assessed.
About this game
Hustle through the 90s in THE BIG CON, an adventure game where you’re an awkward teen hustling to save her family video store from gangsters. Play as Ali, a high school junior gone AWOL from band camp to seek revenge on the loan sharks that threaten her mom’s video store.