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.
Snow Day
Add Comment
Posted on December 19th, 2008 by
The kids are watching a movie upstairs, their mom is home today, and so am I, for we are housebound by a couple feet of the stuff pictured on the left. A snowday! Boy were my kids happy. Henry immediately and has repeatedly asked to play games today – and we will – once Linda is through with her baking. It’s a wonderful day at the GamerDad house. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!
Last Few Weeks of Child’s Play 2008
Posted on December 19th, 2008 by
Just a head’s up to remind everyone that this year’s Child’s Play annual toy drive for children’s hospitals is still going strong. There are over 60 partner hospitals in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Egypt to choose from.
Reviews: Everyday Shooter and Super Stardust Portable (PSP)
Posted on December 18th, 2008 by
Recently Sony released two digital downloads for the PSP –Everyday Shooter and Super Stardust Portable. Each is a revamped version of an offering on the Playstation Network for the PS3, and each can trace its’ lineage to the Asteroids games. To say that both of these games were successful on the PS3 is an understatement – they were critically acclaimed and loved by fans; so I was thrilled at the opportunity to try them on my PSP-3000 which hasn’t seen many good new games since I got it a few months ago. But rather than have separate reviews that end up comparing back and forth incessantly, I am going to review both together! Of course each will get appraised and scored separately at the end. more…
NWN2: Storm of Zehir – Looking forward by looking back
Posted on December 18th, 2008 by
For most older PC gamers, the thought of the heady days of game releases like Baldur’s Gate 2 bring a flush to their cheeks and a twinkle to their eyes. For many, the games of today – role-playing games in particular – have lost a great deal as they have shifted focus from quality of writing and combat systems to quality of graphics. While bemoaned initially due to what many consider a lackluster main campaign, the Neverwinter Nights games have become central to an older style of gaming because of their pseudo turn-based combat and ease of creating custom content. Many of the classics of the RPG genre have been redone using either the original NWN or the sequel. Some of these – such as the ‘Premium Module’ Wyvern Crown of Cormyr and the excellent Darkness Over Daggerford added innovative features not found in the original game (Cormyr added mounted combat via a jousting game, and Daggerford allowed you a stronghold). The first expansion for Neverwinter Nights 2, Mask of the Betrayer, focused on providing some of the best writing in a game since Planescape: Torment. The recently released second expansion focuses on delivering a classic feeling party-based RPG experience. While I am still fairly early on in the twenty-plus hour campaign, I wanted to provide my first impressions of how they did. more…
Reader Letter – Thanks Halo 3
Posted on December 17th, 2008 by
“dear gamer dad, thank you very much, i am a 12 year old boy and your article about halo convinced my mom it’s an ok game so simply, thanks.”
He’s talking about Halo 3 folks, a game that I feel has been rated too hard by the ESRB. Halo 3 features violence, but we’re talking about aliens and alien blood here. The aliens aren’t even scary except for the Flood, which is kind of upsetting but not at all worse or scarier than the mutant vampires in Will Smith’s I AM LEGEND, a movie rated PG-13. You can see why I’m semi-popular with the teenage crowd. So, how do I feel about this letter then?
Spider-Man 2
Posted on December 17th, 2008 by
Whatever a Spider Can!
Few superheroes resonate like Spider-Man does. Superman is the goody-two-shoes Boy Scout, Batman is the dark hero bent on vengeance, Wolverine (from the X-Men) is all attitude and claws, but Spidey occupies a different niche. In the words of a random bystander in Spider-Man 2: “He’s just a kid.” Just a kid. That means he has problems, like any kid. The kind of problems that can’t really be solved by “doing whatever a spider can.”
more…
Game Review: Little Red Riding Hood’s Zombie BBQ (DS)
Posted on December 16th, 2008 by
When I went to PAX, tucked away in a little corner of Destineer’s booth was a game with one of the weirdest names I have ever heard. I just had to try it out. Turns out it was a pretty fun demo. When I found out it was only going to be 20 bucks, I figured I’d give it a chance (though it is kind of a hard game to find). So what kind of game IS Little Red Riding Hood’s Zombie BBQ? Read on to find out:
This Week in Games: Dec. 14 – 20
Posted on December 14th, 2008 by
By now the publishers are obviously assuming that you have either bought everything you have planned to buy, are out of money, or are focused on the upcoming holiday. Whatever the reason, the busy fall release season is pretty much over. Big releases this week? The Wii release of Rock Band and the XBOX360 / PS3 / PC releases of Rise of the Argonauts. Check out the rest of the list! more…
Game Review: Big League Sports (Wii)
Posted on December 13th, 2008 by
Ever since it was released, the Wii console comes packaged with a surprisingly fun game to show off the capabilities of the Wii remote. That game is Wii Sports. Game makers have tried to imitate the fun of Wii Sports with their own motion controlled sports collections, but none have been as fun as the original. Now the ball has been passed to Big League Sports. Read on to find out if it has what it takes.
Game Review: Mortimer Beckett and the Secrets of Spooky Manor (Wii)
Posted on December 13th, 2008 by
After receiving a letter with a strange request from his missing uncle, Mortimer Beckett journeys to the haunted Beckett family mansion. His uncle asks him to search for pieces of a Ghost Machine hidden in the mansion. Now Mortimer is on a spooky scavenger hunt to find this mysterious machine, rid the mansion of ghosts, and rescue his uncle.
