Gaming for the Ages

In all types of art there are light hearted , casual versions and serious extreme versions. The former deals with child like idealism of bravery and good , while the latter deals with real hardships of nature and human conflict. This can be seen throughout TV shows, books, art , music, and movies. Video games are a very young medium that has until recently been considered entertainment solely for children.We are now seeing more adult themes take root in this art. There are some key ideas to keep in mind when dealing with this fact and choosing games for your family and yourself to consume.

Playing a game with your kid is like reading with them. There are characters, settings, adventures and its interactive. No more having to create voices yourself, the game now does it for you. This fact might make you sad, you might feel like these nostalgic moments are no more, but there are many other nostalgic moments that are gained. The sharing of play and experiences, the cooperation of overcoming obstacles, and the co-creation of unique play troughs can be a lasting memory. This is one of the great attributes unique to video games. They allow single event the ability to teach multiple lessons.

When the kids go to bed the console can become your play pen. Just like video games for children video games for adults can be a lesson in cooperation and competition. Being able to play though adult themes (war , deceit) can be more engaging than reading or watching the same content because as the player you are forced to participate and drive the outcome. There have been many games created recently focusing on making the feature of "player choice" dictate more of the games content. I expect this type of content to become more sophisticated for all the different genres.

Don't take my word for it. Play a game that is rated "M" for mature. The ESRB rating system is not the best but this can be a start to your personal journey into interactive story telling. I'm not saying you'll find the best acting, or best original drama. Not every movie is good. I hope you can see that this medium has potential. Its only 30 years old, and its just getting started.