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.
The Legend of Zelda Astro Gaming Headset
Add Comment
Posted on November 30th, 2018 by
Astro Gaming is one of the leading makers of gaming headphones, and now they’ve made one featuring The Legend of Zelda. Let’s take a look at it, as well as another headset celebrating the 10th anniversary of Astro Gaming’s A40 model, too!
Bunnymare: Circus Escape (iOS, Google Play)
Posted on November 28th, 2018 by
A troop of weird, bunny puppet things live at a circus, but a cruel ringmaster mistreats them when they don’t perform well and locks them up in a cage at night. One night, one of the bunnies finds a magic hat with a portal to some kind of happy candy farm. Now you must help the bunnies escape in this Lemmings-like action puzzler. It’s available free-to-play on mobile devices, but reviewed on iPad here.
Night Slashers (Switch, PS4, Xbox One)
Posted on November 26th, 2018 by
Back in the 90’s, side scrolling beat ‘em ups were a dime a dozen. Most of them had a modern day street gang theme, but some strayed from the norm with sci-fi or fantasy tropes. But I don’t remember too many horror themed beat ‘em ups. But here comes Night Slashers, which is just that. It’s from the now defunct Data East, but I don’t remember it in arcades back then. I would say it was Japan only, but there is English text. So I guess the arcades around me just didn’t carry it. Anyway, now you can download it on the Switch (and later other consoles).
LEGO DC Super Villains (PS4, Switch, Xbox One, PC)
Posted on November 23rd, 2018 by
In one of the early LEGO Batman games, one of the best parts was that after you beat the main story mode, you could go back and play as the bad guys. And now there’s a whole game featuring a cascade of DC Comics villains in LEGO form. In many comics, like Batman, oftentimes the bad guys are more interesting than the heroes themselves. In the new LEGO game, Lex Luthor is breaking out of prison and the Joker is on a crime spree. But when the Justice League try and stop them, the heroes mysteriously disappear, only to be replaced by new ones called the Justice Syndicate. But are these new heroes really all they seem to be? Either way, Lex Luthor, the Joker, Harley Quinn, and the rest of the bad guys are going to have their hands full in this new LEGO game. It’s available on nearly all current consoles and PC, but reviewed on PS4 here.
Heavy Fire: Red Shadow (PS4, PSVR, Xbox One, PC)
Posted on November 21st, 2018 by
In the not-to-distant future, North Korea and the United States are at war. You play the part of a US army gunner, and you must defend your post with your turret armed with machine guns and rocket launchers. Heavy Fire: Red Shadow is available for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. It’s also compatible with PSVR, but since I don’t have any VR equipment, it’s just reviewed on PS4 here.
Catacombs (3rd Edition) (Boardgame)
Posted on November 20th, 2018 by
Catacombs takes the basic idea of flicking wooden discs around a game board and transforms it into a competitive role playing game of players vs a game master. Played over a series of boards, players journey into a dungeon in hopes of becoming powerful enough to beat the final boss in the game. A fun mix of disc-flicking, tactics, and a fantasy theme create a very unique, and enjoyable, boardgame. The newest edition (with fancy new rubber playmats rather than cardboard) is currently finishing up a Kickstarter campaign.
Heavy Burger (Switch, PC)
Posted on November 19th, 2018 by
When I was a kid in the early 80s, there wasn’t very many games that could pull me away from Pac-Man. But one of those games that did was BurgerTime. I enjoyed that game so much as a kid, that when I got home after playing it for the first time, I cut out a chef hat and pepper shaker out of paper and played ‘pretend’ BurgerTime around the house. Yeah I was a weird kid, but at least you can’t say I didn’t use my imagination! BurgerTime was made by Data East, a game company that isn’t around anymore, but they made some memorable games in the arcade back then. A few years after BurgerTime, another arcade game they made was Heavy Barrel, a top down overhead army shooter. I always thought of it as just another Ikari Warriors clone, and don’t have many memories associated with it. But I did see it recently at a retro arcade bar I went to. So taking a cue from combining other arcade games like Arkanoid vs. Space Invaders, what happens when you mix BurgerTime and Heavy Barrel? You get Heavy Burger, of course! It’s a super awesome multiplayer twin stick shooter featuring many of Data East’s arcade classics. It’s available to download on Switch and PC, but reviewed on Switch here.
Just Dance 2019 (Switch, Wii U, Wii, PS4, Xbox One)
Posted on November 16th, 2018 by
The Just Dance series of games is one of the more popular console dance music games out there. So much so that there’s a new release annually, and it’s time for the 2019 version to hit with more songs and other goodies. It’s available for nearly all current game consoles (and even older ones), but reviewed on Switch here.
Swap This! (Switch)
Posted on November 14th, 2018 by
Help thaw out and free multicolored fish in this simple yet fun color matching fast action puzzle game downloadable on Nintendo Switch. To play simply tap two fish anywhere on the playfield to swap them out. If you can get four or more of the same color next to each other horizontally and/or vertically, the ice will crack, and after a second, the fish will break free and you’ll earn points. While the ice is cracking, you can match more fish and if you can free many fish of the same and/or different colors at the same time, you’ll boost your score!
4 Dudes on a Couch: Switch Co-Op Games
Posted on November 13th, 2018 by
Videogaming with your friends in the living room has never been so good. When the Nintendo Switch was released, the detachable controllers meant that two player multiplayer gaming was ready out of the box. Buy a second set and now you have controllers for four. True multiplayer games were slow to start, but soon after Mario Kart was released a flood of indie titles were ported over or released onto the console. While cramming four people around a single Switch display may be asking too much, but the system is portable enough to carry over to a friend’s house for some fine multiplayer gaming. As a fan of 4PLG (four player local gaming) on a single system, I’ve kept my eye open for good quality multiplayer titles and I thought I’d share them here with you. Some are big-name indie titles ported over to the Switch while others are far less famous. There are many quality options out there, so consider this the beginning of what may be an ongoing series. Each of the following games allow four player local play on the same screen and (unless noted) can be played with just four JoyCons.
