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Video Games and Parenting

Posted by Serges LaRiviere on Sat, Jan 14, 2012


I am a geek dad of a kindergarten-aged child, so I am all too aware of the issues of content exposure with video games at very impressionable ages.  As a parent I am worried about the material my child is exposed to on a daily level from television, movies and video games.  I realize that I cannot shelter my kid from all the horrors of the world, but there are certain things I have control over.  As a gamer myself, I want to share with my child all the wonders and fun that video games have to offer.  My kid and I have sat down together and will play games like “Minecraft” (a game akin to virtual Legos where you can dig, mine and build to your heart’s content in a giant blocky world) to the racing game “Mario Kart” and it is some of the most fun we spend together outside of books and building forts outside with sticks and rocks.  Improvements in hand-eye coordination, self-confidence, map-reading skills and problem-solving skills are all things that have been attributed to playing video games.

The problem is finding games that match my child’s maturity and cognitive ability.  I would never let my child play a video game with graphic violence, like the “Call of Duty” war simulation games, nor game with graphic adult content like “God of War”, both rated M for Mature by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), the self-regulated board which determines ratings based on a scale similar to what the film industrial uses.   Unfortunately, the scale that the ESRB uses, if not quite specific enough for the aware or concerned parent, as the ratings they give don’t break things down far enough.  What may be OK for everyone content-wise may not be functionally playable for a 6 or 7 year old.  Some games lack a rating altogether, making it difficult for parents to judge before they buy.

One resource I have found is http://www.commonsensemedia.org/ which breaks things down by age.  It is a free resource which rates games on a myriad of different factors, including age appropriateness, playability, adult content, violence and educational content.  They also provide ratings of books and movies.  On top of their in-depth reviews, it also offers a forum for parents to weigh in with their own reviews and ratings.  From everything I see they have a great system of rating games without being preachy or censor-happy.  I find their insights to be a great way to find new games for my child and I to play, both together and alone.

Have any other ideas on where to find great family-centered reviews on games?  Comment below!

Tags: Video Games, Parental Controls, Parenting