reply to post by Hiasyouwant
not reading all the comments here right now, but wanting to reply, so forgive me if my reply was already stated.
it is the PARENTS.
it is about whether or not you are a good enough parent to limit their game time, slelct age appropriate games for them, and monitor how the games
affect them.
My two toddler play mario sunshine. a lot.
do I mind? not at the moment. We do not have television here. I prefer to watch my two year old try over and over again how to get through a level,
learning about trial and error, getting thrilled and cheering when she gets it - than mindlessly staring at cartoons, which parents justify because
they occasionally stick in a good moral here and there. Aside formt he educational programming for children, which is only good in small doses as
well, tv is crap. when i had tv i wouldnt let them watch Caillou because they followed up every show talking in his whiny voice and picked up a lot fo
bad habits. and the commercials! Dotn get me started on how sick I am of hearing "Oh can I have that?!"
even before they were two, my children had developed their hand eye coordination and could make mario run around where they wanted, i loved that it
was an open 3-d world. they taught themselves what to avoid, what to jump on, how to open doors. all using their brain. Now that they are a bit older,
my five year old enjoys a bit of zelda, other mario titles, and games like tetris and bust a move (those titles are great for growing brains)
They still get bit of filtered tv programming via netflix and youtube. they are smarter than the average children, very verbal and energetic. my two
year old is showing an amazing ability to understand complicated conversations that i would never even realize she was listening to.
I do not allow them to play their father's old video games, they are hidden away, and they know that not every game is good, even if it looks like it
was made for children.
i am not worried about their social skills either. i live in the boonies - no one around for them to play with at all, yet they somehow manage
justgreat when they get in a roomful of other kids. They play and are happy and outgoing, not odd or shy or awkward.
As they begin school they will not have the time for such games except on w eekends, and they will be fine with that.
to classify video gaiming as being bad, is incorrect. i think if a responsible parent is up to the challenge of doing it right, and realizing that
they are addictive and wants to spend the next 18 years of a child's life keeping it under control, then it is not bad.
best lesson ever: mario party, allows three players, and the mini games are of varying degrees of difficulty so even my two year old wins a couple of
them - mommy has to pretend to lose now and then of course - they used to cry when they lost or didnt get the big prize at the end, now they cheer on
the winner.
if games that have lessons, can teach them, what is the harm. My five year old wants to be a video game programmer when she grows up. She tells me she
is doing her studying when she plays, lol.
and you should see them on a computer! Even the two year old would impress you.
so the problem isnt the games, it is in the parenting. IMHO
edited to add:
i have been gaming nonstop since my parent bought the atari 2600. Pacman didnt make me evil. Follwed a few years later by nintendo - which i played at
every opportunity, and game i could get my hands on to try. been gaming ever since - wii, comuter, even my phone when i am stuck waiting in line or at
a dr office. Mentally i am fit and sound and not in the least antisocial or withdrawn or stunted. In fact, because my physical health took a downturn
a few years ago, i love that my daughters and i can share gaming. Their dad takes them out to parks and playgrounds, fishing and the like. Mom plays
mario party with them and cheers them on.
edit on 1-7-2011 by chrissiel123 because: (no reason given)