Welcome to GamerDad: Gaming with Children. My name is Andrew S. Bub - the GamerDad - and I've been writing about videogames, movies, and children for over 15 years now. After working as a magazine journalist, I switched gears to write about how media violence affects children, educating parents about them, and working closely with magazines, newspapers, major retailers and even politicians. GamerDad is an internationally recognized expert in this field. Games, movies and media are fun, kids and families love them, they aren't going away. So join me in cutting through the hype and lets have a real conversation about the things that matter: Video Games, Violent Media, and their supposed effect on children and families.
Welcome to GamerDad: Gaming with Children. My name is Andrew S. Bub - the GamerDad - and I've been writing about videogames, movies, and children for over 15 years now. After working as a magazine journalist, I switched gears to write about how media violence affects children, educating parents about them, and working closely with magazines, newspapers, major retailers and even politicians. GamerDad is an internationally recognized expert in this field. Games, movies and media are fun, kids and families love them, they aren't going away. So join me in cutting through the hype and lets have a real conversation about the things that matter: Video Games, Violent Media, and their supposed effect on children and families.
World Flipper (Mobile)
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Posted on October 20th, 2021 by
I’ve always liked video pinball games, even when I was a kid. One of the video pinball games I remember on the NES was Pinball Quest. It stood out because it combined elements of pinball with an RPG fantasy quest game. Granted the game was super frustrating but the idea was neat and I’m surprised game makers haven’t revisited that concept more. But now they have with World Flipper, a free-to-play mobile game that combines both pinball and RPG elements (reviewed on iPad here).
Italy: Land of Wonders (Mobile)
Posted on October 18th, 2021 by
You have just taken a job as a lighthouse keeper in Italy, but it turns out to be more than that. You learn that you must collect sparks that keep Italy beautiful every night, with the help from some spirits of course. Gather these sparks by playing a puzzle maze game while you learn facts about Italy’s geography, architecture, food, culture, and landmarks. Not surprisingly, this game was actually published by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, maybe to promote tourism or something? At any rate, this game is free on mobile devices, but reviewed on iPad here.
Let’s Have a WarioWare Get Together!
Posted on October 15th, 2021 by
WarioWare: Get it Together was recently released on Switch, so in honor of that, I wanted to write a blog about it! At first I thought about talking about all the games in the WarioWare series, but I did that last time a new WarioWare game came out, so you can just read that blog here if you want. Not much would’ve changed anyway if I did it again. But WarioWare: Get it Together has a focus on characters, so I figured I’d go over all the crazy characters in the series and how they play in this game! So let’s get started!
GLO (PS4, PS5, Switch)
Posted on October 13th, 2021 by
GLO is a minimalistic platformer where you are a square and must reach the exit depicted by an outline of a square. But the gimmick here is that most of the screen is pitch black, and only the small area around your square is illuminated. So you have to do a lot of blind jumps and careful maneuvering. GLO is available on PS4 and 5 as well as Nintendo Switch, but reviewed on PS4 here.
Hoa (PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox X/S, PC)
Posted on October 11th, 2021 by
Anytime I review a game with hand-drawn graphics, the press release almost always says it’s “Ghibli inspired,” even if it looks nothing at all like a Studio Ghibli cartoon. However, Hoa is one game that definitely deserves that claim. Everything from the visuals, music, and overall themes are absolutely “Ghibli-esque.” In this very chill and relaxing 2-D puzzle platformer, you play as a forest fairy named Hoa. Although to me she looks more like a walking hat. Hoa has the power to bring back life to her land, which has been ravaged by machinery. The game is available for most current game consoles and PC, but reviewed on PS4 here.
Reader Review: World’s End Club (Switch)
Posted on October 8th, 2021 by
My brother Nathan loves games from NIS America, so he jumped at the chance to review this one. Check out his review of World’s End Club for Switch below! –Cary
Ravva and the Cyclops Curse (PS4, Switch, Xbox One, PC)
Posted on October 6th, 2021 by
There once was a powerful owl sorceress who could summon monsters at will. But an evil cyclops turned her to stone. Now the sorceress’ daughter Ravva must use her weaker summoning powers to save her. Ravva and the Cyclops Curse is an 8-bit styled 2-D puzzle platformer. It’s available for most current consoles and PC, but reviewed on PS4 here.
Guts N Goals (PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, PC)
Posted on October 4th, 2021 by
Compete in a retro pixel styled soccer match where you get to smack around the ball, and other players, with bats and other weapons. Guts N Goals is a madcap multiplayer-centric soccer game available for most current consoles and PC, but reviewed on PS4 here.
5th Evolution – Carbide City (RPG)
Posted on October 2nd, 2021 by
Tabletop role-playing games continue to grow in popularity, with hipster/influencer/famous folks taking it up and thus rubbing off on their followers. Growth in RPGs of all systems and genres are on an upward trajectory. The default is good old swords and sorcery with blade-wielding armsmen and spellslingers going toe to toe with monsters of all types. Other genres exist out there (horror, western, modern/spy, etc…) but one of the hardest to pin down is a game where the players take on the role of superheroes. My personal favorite system, Champions, does a superb job of letting a player create exactly the hero they want while also keeping the power level between characters fairly balanced. However, Champions is also called an RPG for accountants and its combats are not for the faint of heart. The 5th Edition of Dungeons and Dragons is the most popular game out there at the moment and folks have tried to adapt that system into all sorts of new genres. Folks over at Limitless Adventures are attempting to fuse 5th Edition rules with superhero stories and characters, calling the new rules 5th Evolution (or 5evo for short.).
Colors Live (Switch)
Posted on October 1st, 2021 by
I always thought Nintendo’s Art Academy games were neat ideas. Even though they were not completely realistic and couldn’t replicate the feel of actually drawing on paper, they taught a lot of art techniques and some of the games even showed you how to draw Pokémon and Disney characters! With the touch screen usable in handheld mode, I’m kind of surprised Nintendo hasn’t made an Art Academy on the Switch yet. So that’s why I was interested in reviewing Colors Live. It’s a paint and art program on the Switch with a unique twist: the physical version of this game comes with a special stylus that hooks into the headphone jack and uses sound to detect pressure sensitive hard and soft brush strokes!
