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.
Game Review: Bit.Trip Runner (WiiWare)
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Posted on May 22nd, 2010 by
The Bit.Trip series of WiiWare games feature a few common themes. They’re rhythm based and have a retro look and feel. The music in the Bit.Trip game are ‘chiptunes,’ which are 8-bit sounding electronic songs written by modern day artists. Past games in the series also had old-school gameplay ideas, like ball and paddle or classic shooter elements. And the newest game in the series introduces 2-D platform jumping to the mix!
Playable Pac-Man on Google!
Posted on May 21st, 2010 by
When visiting Google.com to do an Internet search, have you ever noticed that sometimes they have a different logo, usually to commemorate some kind of special event? Well, today their logo looks like the Pac-Man maze because this year marks Pac-Man’s 30th anniversary! But that’s not all! If you wait for a few seconds, you can actually PLAY Pac-Man right there on Google!
Once Upon a Time in Red Dead Redemption
Posted on May 20th, 2010 by
In the vast expanse that is New Austin there’s a lot to do. Most of involves killing but hey, this is the wild west as seen through the lens of Sergio Leone. The Italian “Spaghetti” Westerns, starring Clint Eastwood, loom large over Rockstar’s latest playground and I couldn’t be happier about the result. They nailed it. From the man-of-few-words hero/villain that has a name (Marston) to the endless parade of classic and homage ridden sidequests. I haven’t delved far into the main quest but the desert and I have more than a passing acquaintance. It’s a dangerous place, not as lonely as it should be, but there’s something interesting around every corner. Thankfully, the pace, except for the main missions, is yours to make.
Red Dead Redemption -Oops
Posted on May 20th, 2010 by
“The game contains a scene in which two characters have sex on a table; there is a brief instance of female nudity. One sequence depicts a man injecting himself with a syringe filled with cocaine. Language such as “f**k,” “c*nt,” and ‘sh*t” can be heard in the dialogue.” –OOPS! I cut and pasted this from the ESRB as “notes” because … I haven’t written this review yet! I didn’t mean to post this is the bottom line.
Alan Wake Part 2: Twin Peaks
Posted on May 19th, 2010 by
I’ve delved much further into Alan Wake and have to say the writing gets worse – not the “hey look at that thing you can plainly see” narration, but when you start collecting pages of Alan’s manuscript you quickly realize that Alan is not the Joyce Carol Oates or even the Stephen King kind of novelist – he’s sub-Dan Brown (DaVinci Code). Not good. Also, the story is telegraphed pretty obviously and I’m pretty sure how it will end. NO SPOILERS here though and I want to emphasize – the game is admirably well made. It’s also slavishly devoted to referencing another Pacific Northwest mind-f**k that admittedly most of its audience has likely never seen. The “began brilliantly but ended badly” cult TV series (I was a fan) TWIN PEAKS. more…
Alan Wake
Posted on May 18th, 2010 by
A good horror game knows how to balance darkness and light for effect, mood or even gameplay. I’ve never seen this concept executed better than in Alan Wake, a new Xbox 360 exclusive that hit stores today. Though I spent more time with another new game, Red Dead Remption today, Alan Wake made the bigger impression – which is not something I would have predicted before heading out to the store this morning.
Sam & Max Season 3: The Devil’s Playhouse: Episode 2: The Tomb of Sammun-Mak (PC, iPad, PS3)
Posted on May 18th, 2010 by
Sam & Max aren’t your regular police force…they’re the Freelance Police. Sam is a no-nonsense dog detective and his pal Max is a hyperkinetic rabbity thing. For more than 20 years they’ve been serving their brand of justice on the pages of underground comic books, on a Saturday morning cartoon, and in some popular computer adventure games. Now they’re ready for their third season of crazy madcap episodic point and click adventures! (PC version reviewed here)
Game Reviews: Armored Core: Last Raven Portable (PSP)
Posted on May 16th, 2010 by
Armored Core: Last Raven is a PlayStation 2 classic in the long-running robot mech battle series. Now you can play it on the go with the PSP via the PSN store. But does it hold up well on the portable handheld game system? Read on to find out.
Game Review: Chess Challenge (WiiWare, DSiWare)
Posted on May 14th, 2010 by
Chess Challenge is a downloadable game for WiiWare and DSiWare (WiiWare version reviewed here). As the title suggests, you can challenge computer players in Novice, Intermediate, and Expert skill levels. You can also play against another human player on the same Wii, but the biggest selling point is all the many ways you can play chess online.
Free Game! Photo Dojo (DSiWare)
Posted on May 13th, 2010 by
If you’ve ever wanted to be in a fighting game, now’s your chance! Photo Dojo for DSi lets you take pictures of yourself and friends in various fighting poses for use in a simplistic beat-em-up. Best of all, if you have a DSi and can connect wirelessly to the Internet, you can download Photo Dojo for free up until the beginning of June! After that it’ll go up to 200 points, but that’s still not a bad price to pay for one of the best uses of the DSi camera.
