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.
Zoombinis (iPad)
Add Comment
Posted on August 24th, 2015 by
The 1990’s were kind of a renaissance for educational computer games. I remember reviewing a few for The Dallas Morning News back then, as well as watching my little brothers play a bunch when they were younger as well. But one I hadn’t heard of before was Zoombinis. But that doesn’t make it any less popular, as it was still an award-winning game that taught logic and reasoning problem solving skills through sorting, classification, and a bit of trial and error. And now you can enjoy this classic educational title downloadable on Apple tablet devices.
Dragon Fantasy: The Volumes of Westeria (Wii U, 3DS)
Posted on August 21st, 2015 by
Back in the 8-bit and 16-bit days, I was really into RPGs about the time I was in high school. Some of my favorites included Final Fantasy 6, Chrono Trigger, Lufia 2, and many others. But once I hit college and the 32-bit era rolled in, I started to lose interest. Part of it was my fault, as college and other commitments took more of my time away. But 32-bit RPGs and beyond were often times bigger, longer, and more meandering. I felt they focused on story and characters more than actual gameplay. But every now and then I do miss those days where I could just veg out for a few hours and play a classic RPG. Luckily now there is Dragon Fantasy, a new downloadable title for Wii U and 3DS, which plays and looks like the RPGs I grew up with.
Legend of Kay Anniversary Edition (Wii U, PS3, PS4, 360, PC)
Posted on August 19th, 2015 by
Back in 2005 I remember going to E3 and seeing a colorful 3-D platformer starring a martial arts cat. The game was called Legend of Kay, and it was a PS2 game published by Capcom I believe. I didn’t get to review the game when it came out, but five years later I did review a Nintendo DS version of the title. So it’s been ten years since the original release, and now you can play the first PS2 game on most modern home consoles (Wii U version reviewed here) with the Legend of Kay Anniversary Edition.
Reader Review: Guild of Dungeoneering (PC)
Posted on August 17th, 2015 by
When I went to PAX South earlier this year, a bunch of my little brothers came with me since it was so close to home. While at the PAX show, one of my brothers (Jeff) showed interest in Guild of Dungeoneering, a game that they previewed there. So now that the game is out, I decided to have Jeff take a shot at reviewing it, since he took a liking to it before. My brothers may have different tastes in games than I do, but they still have good tastes in games regardless, so I highly recommend checking out his review by clicking here!
Art Academy: Home Studio (Wii U)
Posted on August 14th, 2015 by
Nintendo has been teaching art, painting, and drawing techniques with their Art Academy games for nearly five years now! But they’ve all been regulated to just their hand-held touch screen systems like the DS and 3DS. There’s even one that teaches you how to draw Pokemon! But now you can enjoy learning art from the comfort of your own home with Art Academy: Home Studio, a downloadable title for Wii U.
Divide by Sheep (iOS, PC)
Posted on August 12th, 2015 by
Get ready for a really woolly math game! In Divide by Sheep, you must help flocks of sheep hop across islands and make it to a life raft. But you must have the correct number of sheep on the raft to earn a star (up to three stars in a level). But watch out because there are obstacles every step of the way that can dwindle your number of sheep, like smaller islands, hungry wolves, and even lasers that can cut your flock in half…literally! Divide by Sheep is a downloadable title for iOS devices and Steam (reviewed on iPad here).
GamerDad Unplugged: Highlights of GenCon 2015
Posted on August 11th, 2015 by
I visited GenCon last week, one of the largest gaming conventions in the U.S. 60,000+ people mobbed downtown Indianapolis for the four days of the event. All types of games were covered including boardgames, roleplaying games, and collectible card games. I have an entire series covering many games in detail over at OpinionatedGamers. I have a rundown of dice games, more complex games, family games, children’s games, and a mix of roleplaying and “everything else.”
However, to save everyone some time, I’ve dug out some of my favorite games of the convention so you don’t necessarily have to wade through all my reports (unless you want to see some of the variety at the convention.)
Reader Review: Tcheco in the Castle of Lucio (PC)
Posted on August 10th, 2015 by
Tcheco in the Castle of Lucio is a NES styled retro platformer downloadable on Steam. My friend Robbie Allen liked it so much that he submitted his own review of it, so be sure and check it out!
Ant-Man Pinball (360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, PC, iOS)
Posted on August 7th, 2015 by
Hot off the heels of Marvel’s newest film comes Ant-Man Pinball from Zen Studios. Help Scott Lang shrink down with his special ant suit to battle bad guys and save the day…on a pinball table! Ant-Man Pinball is available for consoles and devices that support Zen Pinball 2 and Pinball FX2 platforms. (Reviewed on 360 here)
Roving Rogue (Wii U)
Posted on August 5th, 2015 by
In this retro-styled 2-D platformer, downloadable on Wii U, you start out at the end of the game, defeating the last boss in his castle. Then you must escape from his crumbling fortress, racing against lava in vertically scrolling levels and crumbling rocks in horizontal ones. But you have one handy trick up your sleeve. You can teleport short distances in a puff of smoke, like a thief or a ninja!
