Curbing attraction to violent PC Games

Last, find alternative programmes. Rather than deny the child’s desire for high action, search for what we call ‘high action, low violence’ alternatives, such as sports and racing games. Examples include:

· Racing Games: Need for Speed II; Motorcross Madness; Monster Truck Madness
All offer great 3D graphics and lots of action.

· Sports: NBA Live; Hardball; Madden NFL; NHL2000 (our favourite)
All bring sports to a new level in terms of visuals and fun – and they're easy to play.

· Strategy: Age of Empires; Command and Conquer series
Avoid these if you don’t want any violence, but you’ll have to admire the detail in these games – they actually do require strategic thinking.

Guidelines will vary from family to family. In our house, we’ve banned games promoting up-close, graphic violence just for the sake of a cheap thrill. We don’t condone close-up views of bodily harm (blood, guts and dismemberment).

On the other hand, elements of violence are permitted if they're not graphic (more of the cartoon character, bop-over-the-head type).

A good example is the game Command and Conquer, in which you manoeuvre tiny soldiers, tanks, ships and planes over a vast landscape. You can shoot soldiers and blow up buildings, but this is a low-level violence in the scheme of today’s games.