Over 97% of today’s kids are video gamers

According to a new survey from the Pew Internet & American Life Project 97% of young people today play video games in one form or another–boys and girl alike. And when they play video games, they often play them with someone else, ether in person or online. Two-thirds play face-to-face, the survey found, while a quarter play online with other people. “It shows that gamers are social people,” says Amanda Lenhart, a senior researcher at Pew. “They communicate just as much. They spend time face-to-face, just as much as other kids. They e-mail and text.”

The kids these days game fairly often, too, with 50% of them saying they had played a video game the previous day. And even though many underage respondents said they had played or owned several M- and AO-rated games, the Pew researchers were quick to distance themselves from making any proclamations about video games and real world violence. Instead, Joseph Kahne, a study co-author and dean of the education school at Mills College in California, said games like Halo–while violent–provided “more than average opportunities for players to help one another.”

Source: Gamepro

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Grand Theft Auto 4: perfect game

Highly-anticipated video game Grand Theft Auto (GTA) IV has received a string of near-perfect reviews ahead of its worldwide release on Tuesday. The game is expected to break records for the fastest-selling game of all time and many shops are opening their doors at midnight for gamers. The game has been classified as 18 in the UK and Mature for US gamers. In the US, regulators have reminded parents that the title is not designed for children under 17 years old. In a joint statement the ESRB and the National Institute on Media and the Family urged parents to check ratings on games for their children.

It said: “With the latest installment of the Grand Theft Auto series… parents need to be reminded to make sure their kids are playing games appropriate for their age and level of maturity. “It is critical that parents consider the assigned rating carefully.” The GTA series has proved incredibly popular and almost equally controversial in the last few years. More than 70 million copies of the franchise’s titles have been sold worldwide but the series has also been criticised for glorifying violence. Needless to say, the game was leaked to the internet last week and quickly became one of the most popular console torrents in the history.