Any gamers 30 and over and do you let your kids play too?

I'm 36 and have 2 sons. Both have played most of the same games I have, Unreal Quake series, Half-Life and even some of the racing games. Admittedly it gets expensive buying 3 of the same title. However, it is all in the name of fun. My oldest, now 16, is very active in JROTC and is doing well in school. Only thing he really gets mad about is me not letting him use the truck. My youngest, 14, loves to ride skateboards and is currently kickin my ass in NFSU2.
 
I'm 43 and have been a gamer since 1984. I love games, but I must admit that I play far less than I used to due to time constraints. I have three boys 9, 11, and 14. They all love computers. We have three networked computers in one room and it is the most used room in the house. I generally let them play any game they want and they have remarkably gravitated toward decent, relatively sane, games. Medal of Honor is a house favorite as is Call of Duty. I play with them in muti-player sometimes, but am mostly relegated to tech support.
 
I'm 46 with a son just starting college and he grew up with me being the primary gamer. We have a blast playing on the home LAN and sometimes online when he's away. I get the best of him in BF1942, but he owns me in CS. We both just finished HL2; looking forward to some deathmatch soon. No problems with Steam for what it's worth. I like being able to play on any pc that has the steam client loaded.
 
Heh. 38 here, but no kids. But if i had kids, they would certainly be able to play games that i approved of. Which would include FPS's.

Wow, this is bringing bakc memories. I've been gaming on computers before there even WAS a PC. Wrote my fair share as well. :D
 
29 will be 30 in January. I have nieces and nephews. My sister asks me to authorize their games. I play with them on PS2 and X-box but their still intimidated by the miouse and keyboard for gaming.
 
derrickperry said:
blaming games is just about as bad as blaming guns for killing. people kill people, period.
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Yes...but the question is what causes ppl to kill ppl...what causes ther ppl to think that killing another person is ok??? If a child was raised by the Manson family then s/he'd be around A LOT of violence...if a kid was raised around A LOT of violent games then there's a good chance that s/he'd end up killing another person...

IMO games can CAUSE ppl to kill ppl...they may not directly be the cause...the person would most likely be exposed to other kinds of violence too...being around violent abusive parent would CAUSE someone to be violent him/herself when s/he grows up...violent games COULD, in some cases, advance a persons violent behavior but most likely ONLY IF s/he is already exposed to violent/abusive ppl....

Now if the kid has good parents and has a good religion and is being brought up well THEN IMO there is a MUCH LESS possibility that the child would be violent when s/he grows up...

I play violent games to vent my anger...oh wow...I go straight to gaming when I'm mad or very pissed off about something...If I didn't have games then I'd prolly end up either taking it out on other ppl or keeping it locked up inside and exploding off on someone else...or maybe even destroying my or someone elses property...that is just not good...games (either violent ones or non-violent ones) is a good way to vent anger...

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I'm 32 and have a three year old boy. He loves to game, I keep him away from the more violent games right now because I feeel he doesn't have the capacity to understand what is going on. Mario is one of his idols. I have let him sit in my lap while I played Jedi Knight or run my character around in City of Heros and he loves it.
I am also glad to see that I am not the only one who sees the irony of a teenager trying to tell a 25 or 30 year old man that he is too old to do anything. Sounds to me like Sparky needs to get a good old fashioned visit from the ass whoopin fairy. People are allways going to look for some sort of scapegoat to hide the fact that they have been shitty parrents, games just happen to be the popular thing right now. I can't stand these uneducated, partialy informed, loud mouthed fucksticks who involve themselves in business that doesn't concern them, but thats not something I don't want to get involved in right now. I can't type as fast as I my brain can come up with creative ways to swear about people that piss me off.

Anywho before I ramble on anymore than I allready have, play your games, play them with your kid. The important thing is that you are WITH your kid, and not letting the game be a babysitter for them. To me, thats what is important.
 
Metallica_Band said:
IMO games can CAUSE ppl to kill ppl...
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No offense, but thats just plain dumb. Sports are far more likely to kill people then gaming. Having the wrong color tshirt in the wrong neighborhood can "cause" someone to kill someone. There's no end of reasons to kill people, the list of "dumb reasons" can be hundred of thousands of items long. And it still comes down to one reason. Does the person have a firm grasp on reality or not. Games are no more a factor then chewing gum or any other "reason." I've been gaming all my life, and I couldn't hit a person if I tried. I'd poop my pants probably in anticipation. By that metric, I've grown up "around violence" pretty much non-stop, and since gaming is "an addiction" I should be addicted to killing people.
 
Metallica_Band said:
Now if the kid has good parents and has a good religion and is being brought up well THEN IMO there is a MUCH LESS possibility that the child would be violent when s/he grows up...
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I'll put it off on the upbringing as well, but what does religion have to do with it. Last I checked religion has caused more deaths than the lack of it. Sorry If if I seem a little disgruntled with that statement, but I'm sick people blaming problems on a lack of religion. Thats bigotry.
 
Im 29 years old. Ive been playing games since 86' and I also let me 6 year old son play games. I cannot let him play online games though for one reason. Profanity. The morons that play CS:S and have mics are so rediculously immature that they spout profaninty non stop.
 
Vildayyan2003 said:
Im 29 years old. Ive been playing games since 86' and I also let me 6 year old son play games. I cannot let him play online games though for one reason. Profanity. The morons that play CS:S and have mics are so rediculously immature that they spout profaninty non stop.
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Your a better parent for it.
 
As long as your a good parent. Columbine didn't happen because of video games, it happened because of bad parenting.
 
Metallica_Band said:
Yes...but the question is what causes ppl to kill ppl...what causes ther ppl to think that killing another person is ok???
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I think if we knew that then there wouldn't be a problem would there? ;)

Anyway the reason games are blamed is because it is what is prevelant right now. I think it is a cop out for parents not being involved in a childs life. Don't get me wrong that isn't 100% for sure now-a-days. I grew up playing video games on nintendo and I turned out fine. I loved the killing type games more than the strategic anyway.

But on to the point, I am an expecting father :D and play games all the time (UT2004 and COD), but I don't know what I will let my kid do. I am against letting him/her play, but not due to being scared of violence, but because I don't want him/her to be addicted to them and end up being lazy (this seems to be the trend in my neck of the woods).

Growing up I would spend all day outside playing sports and would only touch the video games during rainy days or at night. I would like to continue that trend with my kid. Of course, the problem also comes in how do you stop them from playing games at other peoples houses?

Just my 2 cents.
 
bvincent said:
I'm 40 with 3 kids, 2 boys aged 10 and 5 and a 3 year old girl. The boys and I lan every weekend, usually with games such as AVP2, Doom3, SWB, and others. We have a blast, I really don't care what anybody thinks about it. We spend time together and we have fun, even the 5 year old boy knows that these are just games and has nothing to do with real life. I even let him (the 5 year old) play online in AVP2 deathmatches where he just owns people, nothing like getting your ass kicked by a 5 year old :p

Anyone that thinks letting kids play these kinds of games will turn them into some monster is just stupid. The columbine kids I blame lack of proper parenting and the use of ADD drugs such as ritalin. I know parents that were practically forced to give their child ADD drugs by the school system and child protective services and the outcome was very bad. Turned a decent happy kid into a very depressed child who no longer seemed to care about anything. It may work for some but these drugs can have bad effects as well. I would have pulled my kids out of any school that wants to force ADD meds on my child and just home-school them before CPS gets involved.
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I was one of those kids they used to try experimental ADD and ADDHD medication on, Riddelin was one, dexidrine (like giving a kid crank or speed)was another, and yes,it does affect your life as you grow older and CAN affect you in your early adult years.

Im 27 years old and i have the memory capacity of someone who is roughly 80 years old. Dont have any kids of my own, but if i did i would allow them to play games like WoW, HL2 and DM3 so long as i could see they were able to tell the difference between reality and the world of the gaming.
 
I'll be 31 in March. I've got 2 boys one 6 and the other 2.

My oldest was playing games since he turned 2 and that freaked my mom out seeing him playing UT and being aware of what he was doing.

The only problem I noticed, and my mom told me about, was that he has a very short attention span since he's been wired for quick reactions. This has been medically proven (according to my mom) who used to work with young kids as a social worker and with doctors. The doctors put him on ritlen to slow him down since they say he's ADHD. underclocked hah!

He's also a engineering genuis. He can build anything out of anything. Which I think stemmed from him building levels in quake and other games. I've always had to buy him toys a few years out of his recommended age range. Legos and connexs (sp?) and you got a life size mechwarrior. :eek:
 
I am 33 and have two sons, 8 and 6. Both play games with me with the 8 year old being the most active gamer. He has played games from Pac-Man to Vice City and I have yet to see any harm in him PLAYING A GAME.

A person posted a few pages back that people do not give kids enough credit that they do not know fantasy from reality. My son knows that what he is doing is controlling a pixelated thing on the television and does not bring that into his real world. I think a big defference in some kids is that television and games are a babysitter. Let a kid formulate his own conclusion and he will get it wrong 8 times out of ten. Be with him and let his see that when you play it is for fun and then when it is over, its over.

People sing a different tune when they do not have kids. They say they will neverf let their kids docertain things. It changes after you have them. Not all kids are the same and if a parent sees his son or daughter being affected by television or games it is time for them to step in. That is what you do as a parent. I also would rather be the one to explain things to my kids rather than them doing it somewhere else where I cannot be the one to explain to them what is going on.

On a side note I always ask a parent if their kids are allowed to play certain types of video games before I let them and if they are not then no one plays.
 
for all you people that are saying "people kill people"...no...the qoute is:

"Guns don't kill people, dangerous minorities do!" - Family Guy

:D

I'm only 14, so reading this stuff is from a different perspective than I have. My dad won't let me buy/rent/play GTA because you can rape women in it. In my eyes, I know I'm never going to do that, but oh well. He's sticking firm. I've been trying for years to no avail. But I've pretty much given up on my Xbox. I'm a hardcore PC gamer/enthusiast, and overclocking and benchmarking has become my "fetish". My dad never really played around with computers at all, and I love educating him in the ways of the nerds :p. I'm just glad that my dad is happy to support whatever my hobby is, and that's what I think makes a good parent. Not necessarily buying everything for the kid or anything, but showing that you care and supporting it. I hate getting yelled at for spending so much time on my computer :D. "You've been on too long. Its been like 7 hours!" "No way dad, its only been 6 1/2..." hehe
 
I am 30 and I have two boys. One is 8 the other 4.

My eight year old mostly plays on his gameboy but occasionally he will play UT2k4 or a paintball mod I have for it. I have a small LAN room in my house and we play each other on it. He tried to play KOTOR but got bored with the story and just wanted to fight people. I was thinking about loading up Quake 1 or 2 for him.

My four year old loves to sit and watch me play. He really gets into the battles from Dawn of War and Red Alert. He also likes that The bugs are "My friends" in HL2. He is the more mellow of the 2 and likes to play his kid games. Putt-putt and all that. Usually I sit with him and we work out the puzzles. Thats the most important part : Being with them and doing fun things.

The real fun is sitting down with the Old Atari 7800 and playing Galaga or Combat. :D
 
I have 5yr and 7yr old sons. We play games together as part of some of the things that we together.. Some of the games we play on my PC are Serious Sam, Red Faction2, and occasionaly Soldier of Fortune 2. They absolutely love first person shooters. They also like driving the tanks and stuff in Battlefield Vietnam. Then there are the games on their GameCube. Anyways, we have a blast.

The thing that is inportant is that you are involved with them on the games that are violent and mature. Don't turn them loose for hours at a time and especialy on a public server. The key thing is moderation.

More importantly, I think with kids today, the problem is that they get hooked on one thing such as a video game and don't do anything else such as go outside and just play. This hampers the development of coordination and social skills. You end up with a teenager that can't seem to make meaningful friendships, obesity, and other physical problems that result from lack of activity when they were younger. Remember, the experiences that they have as youngsters are the building blocks of their teenage and adult years. Wether it's video games, bycycling with their buddies, camping, baseball games, fishing, school, or what not, it all adds up to the way they "turn out". Gaming for kids with their dads can be some of the best memories they can have, but you still should do other non-video game things with them.
 
32 year old gamer here, and I intend to be an 80-year-old gamer someday with (hopefully) 1 gamer child or 2.

Anyway, lets consider some parental choices.....

You could spend time playing videogames with your children, thus ensuring they are not out on the streets doing drugs or joining gangs, and ensuring they have a healthy relationship with you.

You could just sit at home playing videogames and not letting them, causing them to resent you, go out on to the afformetioned streets and do god knows what.

You could quit videogames all together and do other things with you children, but they will still resent you for not letting them play games and you will resent them for the same reason, thus ensuring an unhealthy relationship that results in them going out on the streets and doing god knows what.


Quite frankly I think option 1 is the way to go for a true gamer. Casual gamers may be able to go somewhere in the middle between 1 and 3 quite easily.
 
I am 54 years old and have played games since 1993. Started out with Wolf3D, then Spear of Destiny and then DOOM! I have a 14 year old son that utterly pwns me at CS:S! He cut teeth on my keyboard while playing Doom 1. We have had years of fun together doing what we both like to do best, and that is play computer games together. I remember him setting on my lap as a 3 year old watching me play Doom and getting a kick out of it! He still enjoys watching me play and regularly suggests doing that in the evenings.
 
man yes i'm not that old but. god whats the big deal i have played M T E RP them all and only prob i really have is that i don't like people. so what people don't like me. so hay when i have kids thay can play what i say thay can play not what the ESRB ses.

edit:and me and my dad play gta all the time. god. (hes 43)
 
I don't think your too old to game, I'm 30 as well. A study was done by USA Today claiming that the average PC gamer was 28 years of age. I do agree that you made a mistake letting a 6 year old play violent PC games. It's bad enough he learns violence on TV, in school, from his friends, now you his parent a person he should look up to are exposing him to it, telling him it's ok? There are much more productive activities you could be teaching your son to do. Just my opinion.
 
yes but if mom and dad would take the time to tell him right from wrong it would not be a big deal.
 
Riftgarde said:
An even better option, don't have kids. :)
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Who you gonna game with when you're 90? Your buddies will be dead (probably due to violence from young gamers). You can buy your sons/grandsons all new super PCs and then throw the "LAN 'O DEATH" slamming Bawls and gaming till your heart gives out!
 
I'll be 32 on Jan 1st. I still game, though I don't have as much time as I used to. I'm still trying to finish Doom 3 lol. Guess I get my money's worth now ;)

I don't have kids but I got to think that actually spending time with him/her could not be anything but a good thing. Violence level should be subject to you the parent. As a "responsible parent" you should make the call as to what is appropriate for them. Games don't "make people" violent. Those tendencies come through from bad parenting, and sheltering them from all violent media be it tv shows/movies/books/video games isn't going to stop them from being violent if that's their upbringing...
 
I'm 24 and engaged - I' want to start having kids before i'm 30. I don't understand why people complain and say that video games make kids violent. I don't even care if its a violent game. As long as the kid knows that video games are fake (duh), as long as you raise them to understand that and to have morals I don't see anythjing wrong with that. In fact, I think it would be a good way to form a bond with your son/daughter.
 
I am 24 and i have a 6 year old girl that loves to play games, and my boy is 2 and he loves to sit on my lap and watch me, he is my future gamer LOL
IMHO u are never to old for games, if u where life would suck, i go to my dads house still and lan with him every few weeks or so and he is 43 so GAME ON
 
I am 31, my 2 year old son loves to watch me play desert combat. I will never stop playing games, i will be 169 years old playing HL69, or possibly Duke Nukem: Forever at this rate. I will let my son play the games i play, if i think he can handle it. If he can handle watching TV he can handle playing games.
 
I would Have to Concur with Laserdemon...I am 33, and My son is 4..he has his own computer..and plays Counterstrike on it..And he also Sits in my LAp when im Playing DC or UT2K4...He knows the games are just that..GAMES!..they are fake..and he knows that...Just like the Cartoons he watches..SpongeBob and Fairly Godparents(whatever).

Hes gonna be My little gamer..and Go with me to Quakecon Hopefully within the Next 3 years..Thats up to "Mom" though...I have been already..But thats one Expierence That I want my son to enjoy with "His ol Man"
 
Why do I have to be 30 or over to post here.

I am 22 and I have two kids and I let them game all the time with me. Lucas is awesome at Unreal Tournament 2004 and Melissa she loves the Grand Theft Auto series.

Lucas is 8 and Melissa is almost 7.







"Woah dude is he kidding?"





Yes I am kidding. I don't ever plan on having kids. They are a drain on my cashflow that I could use for gaming and my PC.


My advice is let your kids play anything that is not obviously riddled with violence and or curses AND rated M.
 
The average gamer is 24 - 40 , because !

wat is better coming home from work having a nice cold beer and sitting down playin a vid game ? eH ? eh ? i am sooo right.


Anyway... ad for us letting our kids play videogames....

its really a matter of US making sure they kno its not normal and it is just a game.. because we all kno they will play them at friends houses , and theres worse stuff they can learn from "friends" or kids at school , so making sure they understand first is the best thing u can do.
 
Im 32, my son and I have been playing games together since he was around 4-5. Over the years we have enjoyed many a shooter and other similiar "violent" games.
Now he is a 9 year old straight A student with lots of friends, a great social life, and loves to play sports and PC/console games.

You can try to blame games all you want for what kids do, but the problem is their parents. Studies have shown agressive behavior after just a few minutes of gaming? Oh yeah, its called adrenaline! Duh.
Now, an irresponsible parent like those of the kids in Columbine would like to disagree, and of course point fingers at games, but its true. The events that went on there are just as much their fault as it is their children's fault, and no fault of any freakin software company.

On a related note, it seems like people have fogotten just how violent the cartoons we grew up with were. If you think games we play on the computer affect kids, what about the characters we watch on TV every day blowing their faces off with shotguns, repeatedly! Or getting smashed by large objects, losing limbs, beating eachother silly, falling off cliffs, etc etc. We would all be a bunch of school shootin up mofos if what they say about video games is true!
 
Thirty seven here, father of three. We all game together, it's called quality time.

Let sargemahoney know I own my own home and vehicles, I'm a taxpaying American citizen, and my Father died with a WWII purple heart so I could retain the right to screw my kids up any way I see fit.
 
Well, I'm not 30 yet. Give me 6 months and I will be though.

I've let my son play GTA, I just turn the sound down so he doen't pick up the words. Also, I sit with him and encourage him to drive safely on the streets and to watch out for people on the sidewalk. When he plays, he just drives the car around looking for places to jump. Still, he prefers Super Smash Bros and Kirby and the more kiddy games. I let him play those without parental supervision.

Also, we play as many co-operative games as possible: BF1942, SW Battlefront, Halo, etc.
 
I'm 40 and gaming has been my favorite past time since the magnavox odyssey days. Now that my son is 16 and hanging out with dad isn't considered "cool", gaming is one of the only things we can do together for some quality time. Gaming certainly hasn't made him violent in any way and he's an honor roll student. I was a little apprehensive about letting him play GTA3 when he was 14, but I finally gave in and he was fine with it. Lately, we play EQ2 together and we LAN almost every weekend with a couple of his friends to play Halo, CS, and now HL2-DM. My opinion is that it all comes down to the parenting. You can't rely on the TV and violent games raise your kids. But you CAN participate with them to make sure they have a good grip on reality AND have a blast fraggin the crap out of eachother in the process.
 
im 29 and have been gaming for as long as I can remember, I have a 7 year old son who enjoys games too,he just got a gameboy advanced for his birthday, I gave him my sega genesis when he was 2 years old. now he plays pc games with me and he really has fun with it,as do I
 
I am 35 and have 4 kids ages 2, 7, 11 and 15 um.. boy girl boy girl. We all love to game. I have 4 computers Lan'd up so we can play together as a family and Its a blast.
 
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