steve - I know one of the issues w/laminate is the noise issue, since it is a floating floor - Does the $1.60 include pricing for the underlayment? - The concrete slab will need to be leveled or you will have problems w/install and longevity of flooring To me the $3.50 for carpet installed sounds like a better deal - but that is me - I am a somewhat DIY - but I think by the time I got the proper tools and figured out how to do the floor it would be well over the $3.50 ft - Add to that the need for some type of area rug/s following installation - Tools/material/time/mistakes - per sq ft + $1.60 initial product - Even though the basement is "dry" - basements are more likely than any other room to have a moisture problem - I went w/carpet just tacked down so that if I do have any water problems its a relatively easy fix Good luck

Thanks for all the pictures and advice. My DH thinks that painting the floor is a good way to go, but I think it needs to be nicer. Sounds like most of you agree that the floor needs to be nice enough to feel comfortable with kids sitting on it to play. I think since we might be not putting much furniture down there to show, that clean painted walls, new light fixtures and carpet would be the easiest to do and have the largest appeal. Our ceiling is finished plaster, and has radiator pipes hanging on it, so it is not a new house with high ceilings and that type of setup. The ceiling and pipes are all sprayed off-white. Thanks for the preliminary help. I am currently working on emptying it out (we're getting a dumpster in 2 weeks). I will post some pictures when I get it emptied out.

eliza, my photos might be deceiving but the room is painted a pale green (BM Soft Fern) and isn't going to be re-painted any time soon! It's a big room (about 20' x 20') open to another big room (where our pool table is), and both were painted just about two years ago. Thanks for all the nice comments! I remembered 1 or 2 people were asking about playroom ideas recently so I figured I'd show mine.

I would vote for marmoleum -- true linoleum. It has a cork backing, which gives it a soft feel when you walk on it, and it seems to be fairly warm underfoot. Lots of different options available. Good flooring for active play. Easy to keep clean, kids can skate or ride bikes during the winter. Good for giant floor puzzles, too. You can always add the foam squares on top and put them away when they're done playing with them.