Play3 is an initiative started by GameTruck to advocate smart, social and safe gaming by getting the parents involved in children’s gaming. This initiative will assist in educating parents and children on gaming. Below is information on game ratings, game content, positives on gaming, assistance setting parental controls, and most importantly the brochure and agreement to assist parents in starting the game time discussion. The brochure will assist parents in becoming an at home GameCoach to facilitate smart, social, and safe gaming in the home.
Be Your Own GameCoach
Be Your Own GameCoach is a part of the Play3 initiative geared towards helping parents get involved in in their children’s gaming behaviors. It includes a brief but informative page on what it means to “Be Your Own GameCoach” as well as an agreement designed to start the conversation on healthy gaming and establish guidelines and rules. Click here to download.
ESRB Ratings
The below rating symbols are found on the front of each video game. There will be a rating symbol for age appropriateness based on the content of the game
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EARLY CHILDHOOD Titles rated EC (Early Childhood) have content that may be suitable for ages 3 and older. Contains no material that parents would find inappropriate. |
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EVERYONE Titles rated E (Everyone) have content that may be suitable for ages 6 and older. Titles in this category may contain minimal cartoon, fantasy or mild violence and/or infrequent use of mild language. |
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EVERYONE 10+ Titles rated E10+ (Everyone 10 and older) have content that may be suitable for ages 10 and older. Titles in this category may contain more cartoon, fantasy or mild violence, mild language and/or minimal suggestive themes. |
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TEEN Titles rated T (Teen) have content that may be suitable for ages 13 and older. Titles in this category may contain violence, suggestive themes, crude humor, minimal blood, simulated gambling, and/or infrequent use of strong language. |
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MATURE Titles rated M (Mature) have content that may be suitable for persons ages 17 and older. Titles in this category may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content and/or strong language. |
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ADULTS ONLY Titles rated AO (Adults Only) have content that should only be played by persons 18 years and older. Titles in this category may include prolonged scenes of intense violence and/or graphic sexual content and nudity. |
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RATING PENDING Titles listed as RP (Rating Pending) have been submitted to the ESRB and are awaiting final rating. (This symbol appears only in advertising prior to a game’s release.) |
Content Descriptors
On the back of each game there are content descriptors. These indicate what content the game has that justified the rating symbol on the front of the game. These descriptors are found on the back of the game.
Alcohol Reference - Reference to and/or images of alcoholic beverages Animated Blood - Discolored and/or unrealistic depictions of blood Blood – Depictions of blood Blood and Gore – Depictions of blood or the mutilation of body parts Cartoon Violence – Violent actions involving cartoon-like situations and characters. May include violence where a character is unharmed after the action has been inflicted Comic Mischief – Depictions or dialogue involving slapstick or suggestive humor Crude Humor – Depictions or dialogue involving vulgar antics, including “bathroom” humor Drug Reference – Reference to and/or images of illegal drugs Fantasy Violence – Violent actions of a fantasy nature, involving human or non-human characters in situations easily distinguishable from real life Intense Violence – Graphic and realistic-looking depictions of physical conflict. May involve extreme and/or realistic blood, gore, weapons and depictions of human injury and death Language – Mild to moderate use of profanity Lyrics – Mild references to profanity, sexuality, violence, alcohol or drug use in music Mature Humor – Depictions or dialogue involving “adult” humor, including sexual references Nudity – Graphic or prolonged depictions of nudity Partial Nudity – Brief and/or mild depictions of nudity Real Gambling – Player can gamble, including betting or wagering real cash or currency Sexual Content – Non-explicit depictions of sexual behavior, possibly including partial nudity Sexual Themes – References to sex or sexuality Sexual Violence – Depictions of rape or other violent sexual acts Simulated Gambling – Player can gamble without betting or wagering real cash or currency Strong Language - Explicit and/or frequent use of profanity Strong Lyrics – Explicit and/or frequent references to profanity, sex, violence, alcohol or drug use in music Strong Sexual Content - Explicit and/or frequent depictions of sexual behavior, possibly including nudity Suggestive Themes – Mild provocative references or materials Tobacco Reference – Reference to and/or images of tobacco products Use of Drugs - The consumption or use of illegal drugs Use of Alcohol – The consumption of alcoholic beverages Use of Tobacco – The consumption of tobacco products Violence – Scenes involving aggressive conflict. May contain bloodless dismemberment Violent References – References to violent acts
If you have any further questions on game ratings or content descriptors please visit the ESRB website at www.esrb.org.
Parental Controls
At a GameTruck party and at home, you can exercise your parental control. At a GameTruck party, simply let a GameCoach know what you do and do not allow in terms of gaming. At home, follow these steps to set up parental controls:
On XBox360:
To see the settings go to My Xbox, open System Settings, and select Family Settings, Console Controls. Once in here you can regulate the Game Ratings, Video Ratings, XBOX Live, XBOX Live Membership Creation, XBOX Live Marketplace Content, Family Timer, Set Pass Code, or Turn off Family Settings.
On Nintendo Wii:
To make adjustment to the parental controls on your Wii, access the system settings. To access the system settings go to the Wii Chanel menu, use the Wii Remote to move the cursor over the Wii button in the bottom left corner of the screen and press A. Use the Wii Remote to move the cursor over the “Wii Settings” option. Click the blue arrow to move to the Wii System Settings 2 menu options. Chose Parental Controls and select yes. Enter the 4-digit PIN. Once in the parental controls you can change Game Settings, PIN, Internet Channel, News Channel, Online Communication and User Created Content, Use of Points. If restricted items are attempted to be accessed a request to enter your PIN will come up. If the proper PIN is entered the settings can be overridden.
On PlayStation:
In the XMB home menu, go to Settings (Settings icon), and select one of the options on the menu. In the settings you are able to change password, BD Parental Control, BD/DVD Parental Control Region Code, Parental Control, Internet Browser Start Control. In parental controls you will set a level of restriction that will be applied to games and content. If a game that is being played is restricted a password will be required. The level of game content is set by the publisher and do not correspond to the ESRB ratings. They can be rated from levels 1-11. The lower the value the greater the restriction. You also have the option to turn off all parental controls if you chose.
For more detailed instructions please visit the below websites:
Xbox Family Settings:
www.xbox.com/isyourfamilyset www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/wii/en_na/settingsParentalControls.jspPlayStation Family Settings:
www.us.playstation.com/supportThe Positive Elements of Gaming
Familiarize yourself with the games your kids play, and understand how certain games can have vast positive effects.
Skill Development
Video games are not only a source of fun and entertainment for kids; they can also play a substantial role in skill development and education. They help to increase hand-eye coordination, spatial awareness, problem solving and logic skills. Because many of the logic-based games involve following directions, they also help children become focused, especially when presented with a difficult task. Because children are aware of the amount of time they have to get to a good stopping point in the game, kids will generally give their undivided attention to the game, improving attention spans and patience. The skills developed in gaming can even broaden career opportunities. For example, spatial awareness could be of assistance in careers such as architecture and engineering, and hand-eye coordination could be of assistance in surgical careers.
Physical Activity
Nintendo Wii games have the additional benefit of physical activity. Although they are not a replacement for regular, outdoor physical activity, children certainly burn more calories playing Wii than watching TV. Playing the Wii games allows kids to get a taste of competition outside of sporting events and gets them up and moving.
Social Interaction & Collaboration Skills
Video games are a great tool for social interaction. Though gaming has a reputation for being a solitary, isolating activity, the increase in multiplayer video games gives a unique new opportunity for social and cooperative behavior. Many multiplayer games not only have gamers playing against one another, but with one another, working together to achieve a goal or objective. Working with friends to come to a common goal allows children to learn good sportsmanship and can help with communication skills. They learn to effectively communicate pertinent information in a timely manner. Video gaming can also be used as a family activity. If you get the family involved in a video game night the family will have fun while improving communication and teamwork. This is also a way to demonstrate to children that parents have interest in their activities.
The bottom-line is that games are an entertainment medium. Like books and movies, the content of them widely varies and should be monitored by parents.
