I have a 10-year-old girl whose Nintendo DS is attached to her hand. She also has a Wii. I have nothing against either game system, but I do limit her gaming time during the week as well as her TV time. By requiring, a minimum of 30 minutes of reading a night, I’ve found that she’s starting to reach for a book a lot more frequently than before.

However, when her friends are around the Nintendos come out in force and they tend to pictochat or play the games that they can all join in.

I think the key with video games is the same as with everything in life-moderation!

I have a six-year-old daughter that plays the VSmile (educational games), the PS2 (fun games with her dad), the Nintendo DS (some silly dog game), or the Wii (activity games, Rock Band (I consider a fun family game)). She is only allowed a little at a time and only when all of her homework and chores are finished AND if there is time before she goes to bed. She also chooses to read a book or watch a movie with us as a family most of the time instead of playing the game. I agree that it should be up to the parent to be the one in control of what and how much a child plays (and with who).

Playing video games is better than watching TV, unless the television program is one that the entire family enjoys, actively, together by discussion and commentary.

Video games, however, do not develop the speech, comprehension and retention centers of the brains anywhere nearly as well as reading and writing.

Too bad playing “outside” and the “imagination” are things of the past. This coming from a first generation Nintendo kid.

I grew up on video games. I had an NES, SNES, Jaguar (one of the ultimate “flop” systems), and Gameboy color before I turned 18. Since I turned 18, I’ve owned every Sony system other than the PSP, both Xbox systems, Gamecube, and Wii. I also have done some PC gaming.

I’m a more avid gamer now than I was as a youth. When I did play, I don’t think I logged more than 10 hours in a week during the school year (most of that was on a single night when friends stayed over). During the summer I might have hit 15 hours, but the number of weeks I did that were less than 10, probably.

My 16-month-old daughter loves playing with my controllers and I have no problem if she wants to play games as she gets older. My wife and I will monitor the games she plays and for how long, but I believe that they can be just as useful or detrimental as any other media.

Since I’m a gamer, I’ll know what games are appropriate. If I buy games for myself that are too mature for her, she won’t be allowed to play them. On the other hand, if she is mature enough at 14 to handle Grand Theft Auto, then I won’t mind her playing. It’ll be a judgment call that my wife and I will make. In addition, if her friends are not allowed to play games that she can or not at all (although I have a harder time accepting that), I will respect their parents wishes because I would expect the same.

Video games have been on a bit of a roller coaster in terms of public view. It used to just be a waste of time where you play as a cartoon plumber who stomps on turtles and shoots fireballs. Then, games like Doom and Duke Nukem caused issues as they took the blame for teen violence. Now, with systems like the Wii, it’s starting to shed that “tool of the devil” skin (much like rock and roll in the 50’s) to show that not all games are violent.

I can’t wait to read this article. Like the author, I am not surprised to see that many teens like playing video games. I was surprised to see this many girls liking video games. My policy is whenever I have all of my homework done, and after I tend to the wife and the kids (I am a teacher), I turn on the 360. I have a great group of people I play with online. It is a “clan” for adults who desire to play with others who value respect and integrity. With that being said, I would be interested to see how many adults actively play video games. I think it would be a surprising result in favor of adults playing video games.

@mattstl77

I believe Game Guy actually touched on the # of adults who play. A recent study actually found that the average age of gamers is 34, I believe.

Video games are great for us grown ups too. However, the grand theft auto games are my favorite for a little tension release.
The ability for gaming consols to allow players to play with others on-line has opened up a new social market for gamers.

I’m 22, and my parents never let me have a video game system. It wasn’t a big loss because, as popular as they were when I was a pre-teen, they were less common out in the country. I also had a huge backyard full to play in. As I got older, I played a lot more computer games, but they were mostly Oregon Trail and The Sims.

Now, although I have most of the major consoles, I don’t play much. My husband, on the other hand… I think it’s because he stayed inside most of his childhood playing single-player games.

I must say that portable systems just drive me nuts. A lot of people my age tote them everywhere and take them out when you pause for half a second while speaking (a SLIGHT exaggeration). It can be quite annoying when you invite a friend over for dinner, and he brings his DS. A friend of mine in college played Sudoku on a portable system whenever she was “hanging out” with me. I felt boring and unwanted.

Anyway, the moral is that video games shouldn’t be yet another way to ignore other people. We do that enough with all of our automated tellers and express check-outs.

@Friendly Neighbor,

For some people it’s a way to ignore others. I do enjoy some single-player games (Star Wars: The Force Unleashed rocks!!). However, I pay $50/year for XBox Live so I can play with others. I like to play Halo and the Lego games with friends online. I’m going to get into NHL 09 online with the PS3. A few of my cousins and some other friends have the Wii, so we’ll occasionally play Mario Kart, too.

I haven’t seen the portable system issue that you have among adults. My sister-in-law who is 11 pulls her DS out regularly, but that’s different. If your friends are that rude, they aren’t very good friends. Hopefully you let them know how you felt.