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 Mummy Demastered (PS4, Switch, Xbox One, PC)
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Posted on December 1st, 2017 by
The Mummy is one of Universal Studios’ most popular movie franchises. There have been several sequels and spinoffs, a ride at their theme parks, and I think there was even a cartoon at one point. Recently they’ve remade the movie and WayForward published a game based on it called The Mummy Demastered. The reason for that title is because they made the game to look like a movie tie-in from the 16-bit era, and it’s available to download for nearly all the current game consoles and PC (reviewed on PS4 here). It’s a 2-D platforming run and gun exploration type of game, similar to Metroid. With all those good things going for it, could anything go wrong? You’ll just have to read on to find out!
Spelunker Party! (Switch)
Posted on November 29th, 2017 by
Spelunker was an 8-bit 2-D platformer game where you explored caves, avoided obstacles, and gathered treasures. It came out in the US, but gained more popularity in Japan, probably because it was one of those easy to play yet hard to master games, and it came out when the Famicom (Japanese NES) was big. You can even find Spelunker references in other Japanese media, like anime cartoons and video games like Taiko no Tatsujin (Taiko Drum Master). There’s even been a few remakes and rereleases of the game, and I’ve reviewed a few of them. Such as Spelunker HD, which was one of the first games I reviewed on the PS3, and Everyday Spelunker, a mobile version of the original game. Now cave exploring is back as a downloadable title on the Switch with Spelunker Party!
Brawlhalla (PS4, PC)
Posted on November 27th, 2017 by
Over the past year or two, there’s been a free-to-play fighting game that’s taken the PC world by storm. I know because I’ve seen it at recent PAX shows I’ve been to. And now it’s available on PS4 and Steam as well! All are still free-to-play and supposedly cross-platform online as well. Brawhalla is a cartoony four player fighting game that resembles Super Smash Bros. quite a bit (reviewed on PS4 here).
The Games of the SNES Classic Edition
Posted on November 24th, 2017 by
Last year, Nintendo released the NES Classic Edition, a smaller sized 8-bit NES shaped console with 30 classic games. It’s been notoriously hard to find, and I’ve been a bit bummed that I haven’t been able to get one. But I wasn’t TOO upset because most of the games I played on the NES were from Capcom, not Nintendo (Mega Man and Disney games). But the 16-bit Super Nintendo is my all-time favorite console ever. It was the gaming console that really cemented my preference for console games, and the system just clicked for me for some reason. So when Nintendo released the SNES Classic Edition in the same vein this year, I REALLY wanted to get it. Luckily, my family got it for me for my birthday! Nintendo DID say they were making more of the SNES Classic Edition, and I don’t know if that’s really true or not, or if we were just more prepared this time. But not only was I able to get one, but three of my brothers got one, too! So to celebrate me getting a SNES Classic Edition, here’s a blog about all the games on it!
Playing With Super Power: Super NES Classics (Book)
Posted on November 22nd, 2017 by
Last year around this time, I reviewed a book from Prima about NES classic games. I think they released it to coincide with the NES Classic Edition (sadly I still don’t have one). You can read that article by clicking here. This year they did the same thing with Super Nintendo games. I didn’t get a review copy of it like I did the NES book, but luckily I did get the SNES book for my birthday instead (along with the SNES Classic Edition…yay!). So here’s a review of the book before I post my article on the SNES Classic Edition itself.
Semispheres (Switch, PS4, PSVita, PC)
Posted on November 21st, 2017 by
Try to simultaneously maneuver an orange sphere and a blue sphere to their respective exits in the puzzle-like game Semispheres. Most levels are a symmetric pair of boards, color coded to the spheres. Get both spheres to their own colored exit to solve the level. The standard relaxing music and lack of any time pressure combine to make a soothing puzzler suitable for on the go gaming.
(Switch version reviewed here.)
American Girl WellieWishers: Garden Fun (iOS, Android)
Posted on November 20th, 2017 by
AmericanGirl is a popular line of dolls for girls, and now there is a spinoff series called WellieWishers. The WellieWishers are a group of young girls who enjoy playing in their garden, taking care of animals, putting on shows and tea parties, and being kind to one another. And now your girls can join in on the fun with a free-to-play mobile app for iOS and Android (reviewed on iPad here).
Super Mario Odyssey amiibo
Posted on November 17th, 2017 by
Super Mario Odyssey is Nintendo’s new hit Mario game on the Switch. So of course they released some amiibo figures to go with it, and they’re all dressed up for the occasion. In the game, Bowser’s trying to marry Princess Peach, so the amiibo figures have a wedding theme. Let’s crash the ceremony and check out these new figures!
Dungeon Dice (Boardgame)
Posted on November 16th, 2017 by
A rollicking series of dice rolls determine your fate as you fight monsters to level up and gain loot in Dungeon Dice. Despite the dice, the players have meaningful decisions such as when to push their luck, when to commit their nonrenewable resources, and when to burn resources just to punish (and/or annoy) the other players.
Dungeon Dice
Publisher: Potluck Games
Ages: 8+
Players: 2-4 (5 w/expansion)
Time: 20-30 minutes
(Review copy provided by Potluck Games)
Earth Atlantis (Switch, PC)
Posted on November 15th, 2017 by
An apocalyptic event has left the Earth 96 percent covered in water. Machines have evolved into sea-like creatures and it’s up to you to hop into your submarine and destroy them. Why? Who knows? But that’s just what you do in Earth Atlantis, a 2-D shooter with elements of exploration and strikingly unique visuals. It’s available to download on Nintendo Switch and PC, but reviewed on Switch here.
