Santa's Little Helper: A video game shopping guide for bewildered parents

For some parents, Christmas can be more terrifying than Halloween -- and not because of the in-laws. It's because their kids expect them to tuck good video games under the tree.

This year will be especially challenging: Game companies are expected to release hundreds of new titles for the holidays like a colony of bats exploding into the night sky. For those who don't know the difference between a D-pad and a DS, we've assembled a few easy tools to help clueless parents get in the game fast.

Step 1: If you find yourself facing a wall of games at Target, slowly back up and walk out of the store. Don't buy the first game the clerk recommends. Most likely, it's what he or she would like to play, and not what your kid would like. Go home and proceed to Step 2.

Step 2: Hit some game review sites. Here are a handful to start:

• Gamespot: This site reviews most major games that have been released. For upcoming games that are buzz-worthy, the site puts together sneak peeks and early game trailers. You can look up games by their titles, platforms and genres. At the bottom of the home page is a Most Popular feature, where readers can see what titles are generating the most excitement. Want a shortcut? Check out their holiday gift guide. Other sites worth checking include IGN, 1Up and Kotaku.
• Metacritic: Once you have a list of candidates, you'll want to make sure the games don't turn into very expensive drink coasters. There are dozens of sites that review games for their fun factor. Instead of visiting them all, hit Metacritic. The site aggregates each game's scores into an average.

Step 3: Now that you have a list of games that are sure to be a blast for your 8-year-old, how can you be sure those games won't have nude scenes buried in the middle of Level 39 or images of body parts being ripped to shreds in high-definition glory? You can ...

... check the games' ratings. Like movies, video games have their own set of age-appropriate ratings enforced by the Entertainment Software Rating Board, an industry-funded group. You can find a guide here, along with a tool that lets you look up the ratings for thousands of titles. The ratings also come with a handful of descriptors, such as "Intense Violence" and "Blood and Gore," to help parents flag content.

Step 4: Consult the adult experts. If you find the ratings and descriptors too vague, head over to What They Play. The site reviews games from the parents' perspective, giving each game frank, detailed descriptions of sequences that parents would want to know about before they buy the game. If you plan to make regular purchases throughout the year and not just during the holidays, Warren Buckleitner writes a well-regarded newsletter called Children's Technology Review, which reviews not just games but gadgets, websites and educational software. An electronic subscription costs $30 a year.

No money for a subscription? Common Sense Media is a nonprofit group that reviews games and other entertainment for kids and families. The group, which has child psychologists and curriculum experts on staff, don't police games so much as recommend titles that would be fun and appropriate for kids at various ages. On the flip side, the National Institute on Media and Family, which takes a hard stance against violence in media, issues a "report card" that flags naughty bits.

Be wary of advocacy groups that peddle game guides. Before heeding these, check out the groups' political or religious philosophies to make sure they mesh with your own.

Step 5: Watch your kid unwrap the goodies and dive into your carefully selected games with glee. Who knows? Now that you've mastered the task of buying games, you may be ready to start playing them, too.

-- Alex Pham

Photo: A Best Buy employee works on the display for the "Rock Band 2" special edition video game bundle last month at a store in Mountain View, Calif. Credit: Paul Sakuma / Associated Press

Comments

[Tyler]

I'm getting gamefly gift cards for the kids this year. For what I'd spend buying 1 or 2 games new they can play an unlimited variety for months. I'm surprised, given the economy that renting games from gamefly vs. buying them retail isn't being mentioned more often. Popular games are expensive!

Renting is the logical choice. And it's healthier for kids to rotate games rather than getting wrapped up in one. If something isn't right or they end up not liking it they can just put it back in the mail and get the next one and no one is out $60!

They have full parental controls in place to allow parents to password protect their accounts and determine what sort of games kids can get to. Kids can still get online and add games to their game queue (works just like netflix) but they won't even have access to M-rated games. A great feature that provides peace of mind if your kids are younger. There's full game reviews by both experts and users as well as ESRB ratings.

To me this is the obvious choice and a perfect stocking stuffer for parents and kids alike.

[password]

that's a good idea. we were thinking of buying the family a new console for Christmas. we were wondering about what games to get. but a gamefly gift card would solve that problem. I went to their site and found the gift card link.

http://www.gamefly.com/giftcert/giftbuy.asp