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Home >
Feature Articles > Features > GamerDad Holiday Guide '05 - 14+
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by GamerDad Staff
December 01, 2005
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Format For Printing | Tell A Friend
GamerDad picks the games your teens will be glad to get this holiday season!
Your teens are watching PG-13 films and have more independance than ever, but you want to be sure that you know what content is in the games they are playing. GamerDad has all of the best holiday game gifts for these older kids - and lets you know what to expect from the game.
Each listing includes some comments about what makes the game appropriate or inappropriate for certain age groups, and some context to guide parents in evaluating the games. For more detailed information about the game, click the 'Read the Full Review' link for the game.
| Battle for Middle Earth
Platform Reviewed: PC
Real-Time Strategy
Quick Summary: Real-time strategy in the world of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, featuring exclusive voice work from the movies' actors.
From the Kid Factor: There's nothing really offensive here that you won't find, much more violent and graphically, portrayed in the Lord of the Rings movies battle scenes. The graphics make the battles even more intense and the lack of a speed slider means your kids will have to learn to think tactically and strategically to solve problems on the constantly evolving battlefield. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Battle for Middle Earth for PC
Browse other "Lord of the Rings" themed games |
| Battlefield 2
Platform Reviewed: PC
Shooter (FPS)
Quick Summary: This team-based FPS portrays modern combat like no other game before it.
From the Kid Factor: Older teens will probably be very excited to get their hands on this game. It encourages teamwork and lots of shouting at each other which you can do using the in game Voice Over IP. The game looks very realistic (even without blood) and therefore it's probably best to keep younger kids away. Read Full Review...
4 1/2 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Battlefield 2 for PC
Browse other "Battlefield" themed games |
| Call of Duty 2
Platform Reviewed: PC
Also available for: XBox360
Shooter (FPS)
Quick Summary: Return once again to the European Theater of World War II with this first-person shooter sequel, this time with better graphics and even greater intensity.
From the Kid Factor: Call of Duty 2 is an extremely intense and violent first-person shooter that uses scripting and a new graphics engine very effectively to make you feel immersed in World War II. You are in constant peril, and the enemy onslaughts are frenetic and will have you scrambling for survival. The blood is minimal, but the indicators on screen as you become more injured cause much more emotional reaction than watching your health bar approach zero. This is definitely a game for older teens and adults. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
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| Dangerous Waters
Platform Reviewed: PC
Simulation
Quick Summary: The deep submarine simulation is almost like going to submarine school
From the Kid Factor: This non-retail release doesn't have an official ESRB rating, but if it did, it would probably be E for Everyone with violence as the noted caution. However, the game's complexity makes it inappropriate for younger children. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
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| Fight Night 2
Platform Reviewed: XBOX
Also available for: GC, PS2
Sports
Quick Summary: Easily the best pugilistic translation gaming has ever seen.
From the Kid Factor: The blood is realistic, but this is a fighting simulation that'll show kids that there are consequences to combat. That the human body suffers and that heroism can be as harrowing as it is thrilling. Read Full Review...
4 1/2 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Fight Night 2 for XBOX
Browse other "Fight Night" themed games |
| Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
Platform Reviewed: GC
Strategy RPG
Quick Summary: This game takes the stellar strategy gameplay mixed with a fair bit of role-playing, great graphics, a superb musical score and even a great story found in the Fire Emblem GBA games. With the move to consoles comes a 3D game engine and some new additions to the already great gameplay.
From the Kid Factor: This game is a marvelous way to show people how a Teen rated game can be far more adult than anything rated Mature. People die in this game, and they do it in a way that's mostly realistic and sometimes followed by callous remarks and even real grief. The story is intelligent and seriously divulged through well-written text. In some ways, it's even more a game for adults than something like the silly posturing in a Dead or Alive game. It fits squarely into the Teen rating it receives and even though younger kids could watch it and even play it, the text is sometimes brutally honest about death, anger and evil. It's great to find a game that doesn't need angsty, poorly clothed women to be more mature. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance for GC
Browse other "Fire Emblem" themed games |
| Half-Life 2
Platform Reviewed: PC
Shooter (FPS)
Quick Summary: One of the most anticipated games in recent years, when it hits its stride it is breathtakingly exciting and fun.
From the Kid Factor: A violent game with rampant death and blood, and an intensity that can be somewhat overwhelming, but none of that goes beyond a PG-13 movie. Read Full Review...
4 1/2 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Half-Life 2 for PC
Browse other "Half Life" themed games |
| Heretic Kingdoms: The Inquisition
Platform Reviewed: PC
Action RPG
Quick Summary: This is a well-executed Diablo-clone with some innovations that gives us a fantasy world where God is dead and religion is heresy.
From the Kid Factor: There is violence, but not extreme bloodshed or language. The isometric angle provides a strategic distance from immersion in the violence as well. Anyone who has played a normal T-rated game would be more than ready for Heretic Kingdoms. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Heretic Kingdoms: The Inquisition for PC
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| Metal Gear Ac!d
Platform Reviewed: PSP
Puzzle
Quick Summary: A surprising card-battling entry in the Metal Gear world, but one that rewards players patient enough to learn its gameplay.
From the Kid Factor: While a card game, it still has lots of violent sequences. Blood is shown when characters get shot, and while the argument can be made that the impact is lessened by the player not being in complete control of the character, it can still look intense as the screen shows you unloading an automatic weapon into the bad guy. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Metal Gear Ac!d for PSP
Browse other "Metal Gear" themed games |
| Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath
Platform Reviewed: XBOX
Action Platform
Quick Summary: An interesting action game that has you shooting enemies with live aliens ammunition!
From the Kid Factor: It works well as a teen title, primarily due to a game design which rewards players for choosing less-violent solutions and for innovative problem solving. From a violence standpoint, Stranger's Wrath is predominantly a First Person Shooter, and the game centers on the Stranger's use of a crossbow to either kill or incapacitate his enemies. The language in the game can run a little on the coarse side – about what you'd find in a "not-quite-R" PG-13 movie. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath for XBOX
Browse other "Oddworld" themed games |
| Psychonauts
Platform Reviewed: PS2
Also available for: PC, XBOX
Action Platform
Quick Summary: 3D platforming adventure with a totally unique style that breathes life into the genre.
From the Kid Factor: While the violence is mostly Looney Tunes cartoonish stuff, Psychonauts is still definitely a Teen rated game. Crude humor, a few curse words, and some slightly scary and warped scenes are the usual culprits. However, I can imagine a mature preteen in the 10-13 age range being OK with playing it, especially if they are already allowed to watch TV shows like The Simpsons and Invader ZIM. Read Full Review...
4 1/2 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Psychonauts for PS2
Browse other "Psychonauts" themed games |
| Ratchet: Deadlocked
Platform Reviewed: PS2
Action
Quick Summary: Rachet returns (sans Clank) in a battle-centric game light on plot and heavy on action.
From the Kid Factor: Previous games in the series included Ratchet and Clank fighting interstellar bad guys, but also contained a significant amount of discovery, item collection, and unique challenges. Parents should be forewarned that this is not the same Ratchet we have grown to know and love. Although all four Ratchet and Clank titles carry a Teen rating, the crude humor in this one targets it toward older teens. This is a weapon-centric game based on the destruction of just about everything in sight. Granted, the "everything in sight" is always bloodless and mechanical, and is blown away with fictional, wacky weapons, but to say there is not gratuitous, satisfying, cartoon violence would be a big stretch. Parents who abhor violence should definitely pass on this one.Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
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| Shadow of the Colossus
Platform Reviewed: PS2
Action Adventure
Quick Summary: An interesting game in which 'boss battles' are central to the story and gameplay.
From the Kid Factor: The ESRB has hit the rating square on the head with a T for Teen rating. The giant colossi bleed when you stick them, and as they act like giant animals, their reaction to combat can be rather disturbing. When a colossus is defeated, dark energy flows out of it back into the player in what looks to be a very disturbing and painful experience. Finally, the nature of the hero's motivation is quite dark, making the game quite heavy with mood. Younger players might gloss over the somewhat macabre theme and find a great mobile-platform style game, or they might be somewhat disturbed by having to dispassionately kill off these gentle giants. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
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| Sims 2: University
Platform Reviewed: PC
Simulation
Quick Summary: An add-on for the massively-successful people management game takes your Sims to school.
From the Kid Factor: Despite the Teen rating, the Sims does deal with real life in a frank manner and this is College life, so it's a bit "realer" than some parents may be ready for. It isn't immoral, it's maybe amoral. Expect streaking, pillow fights, parties involving alcohol, lots of flirting and other Collegiate shenanigans I somehow largely missed while in College myself. But also expect the usual tongue-in-cheek manner the series is known for. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Sims 2: University for PC
Browse other "Sims" themed games |
| Soul Calibur III
Platform Reviewed: PS2
Fighting
Quick Summary: Featuring some of the best graphics on the PS2 and gameplay that is accessible to seasoned fight game veterens as well as new players, this game is loads of fun and will keep you entertained for many hours.
From the Kid Factor: It's a fighting game, so of course there is violence. No blood, but some of the moves the characters do to each other look really painful! There is some light cursing and scary situations in the story mode. Plus some of the outfits of the female fighters, original characters, and ones you can create, can be rather revealing. Soul Calibur III definitely earns its T for Teen rating, although mature preteens with adult supervision would probably be OK with playing this game. Read Full Review...
4 1/2 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Soul Calibur III for PS2 |
| Tekken 5
Platform Reviewed: PS2
Fighting
Quick Summary: The solid fighting series gets a significant graphical boost and lots of unlockable extras.
From the Kid Factor: It's a fighting game, so naturally it's violent. There's no blood, just purple and red flashing cloud things when you hit each other, but the moves are pretty painful looking. There's also light cursing, scary images, and sexual themes (some of the lady fighters' outfits are rather revealing). Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy Tekken 5 for PS2
Browse other "Tekken" themed games |
| World of Warcraft
Platform Reviewed: PC
Also available for: MAC
MMORPG
Quick Summary: It's THE online role-playing game that is keeping millions of people from being productive.
From the Kid Factor: The game itself is quite tame with very little blood and gore, even though killing humanoids or animals play a large part of the game. Female characters tend to show an unrealistic amount of skin when armor-clad, and the night elf women have somewhat suggestive dancing animations, but for the genre the graphics are rather tame. Due to the unknown of playing with internet strangers and the danger of addictive play habits, I'd recommend the game to kids high school or older. Read Full Review...
4 1/2 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy World of Warcraft for PC
Browse other "World Of Warcraft" themed games |
| WWE Day of Reckoning 2
Platform Reviewed: GC
Fighting
Quick Summary: It's no Smackdown, but it's a good alternative for Gamecube owners who crave some pro-wrestling action.
From the Kid Factor: When you first run into things like bra and panties matches, the blood flowing freely from someone's face and see some of the dialogue, it's baffling how this game didn't get an M. Everything about the male-female relations in the game is suggestive. All that said, it really is stuff most teens can handle and are probably watching on the WWE TV broadcasts. Keep it for the teens or skew it a little older if you just aren't comfortable with all the sex and violence that helps sell the WWE to a wide array of people. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy WWE Day of Reckoning 2 for GC
Browse other "WWE" themed games |
| WWE Smackdown! vs. RAW
Platform Reviewed: PS2
Fighting
Quick Summary: The Smackdown series continues to provide the best portrayal of World Wrestling Entertainment, and this one is no exception.
From the Kid Factor: With controller in hand, this is no longer a spectator sport. Your child is the participant, with options such as "clean" or "dirty" wrestling styles (is there a difference?), and the actual administering of slobber knockings. The kids not only watch the bra and panty matches, they're stripping the clothing off reluctant females. They actively issue the pummeling until blood is drawn. Not to mention the amoral storylines, the completion of which rewards the player an evening with one the game's starring divas. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy WWE Smackdown! vs. RAW for PS2
Browse other "WWE" themed games |
| X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse
Platform Reviewed: PS2
Also available for: GC, XBOX
Action RPG
Quick Summary: X-Men fans will love more of the action-RPG gameplay that made the first one a hit.
From the Kid Factor: The cutscenes can be quite intense - witness Wolverine running a guard through with his claws. You can see them coming out of the guard's back. The actual game play is not as violent as some other games however, and they actually removed the ‘blood spray' effect present in the first game. If you are comfortable with your kids reading the comics and watching the animated series or the movies, there is no reason for them not to play.Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
Amazon Links:
Buy X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse for PS2
Browse other "X-Men" themed games |
| X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse
Platform Reviewed: PSP
Action RPG
Quick Summary: X-Men fans can now get some handheld action as the high-quality console series comes to the PSP
From the Kid Factor: As noted in the console review for this game, the T rating is earned through the cutscenes more than through the gameplay. The violence is not extreme, nor is it particularly graphic or gory. But the attitude from the opening carries through the whole game—this game is based more around the PG-13 movies than the Saturday morning cartoon, and the style is designated for a teenage audience. Read Full Review...
4 stars out of 5
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Be sure to check out all of GamerDad's other Holiday Shopping Guides!
Unplugged Guide
Dr. Matt Carlson provides a virtual cornucopia of board and card game goodness for all of your Holiday shopping needs!
Holiday Shopping Guide for Kids Under 5 years old
GamerDad looks at some of the best games for the littlest of GamerKids to enjoy!
Holiday Shopping Guide for Kids 6 and older!
There is an amazing variety of games of all types good for young kids that continue to be great for teens and adults! GamerDad runs down the best of these games and gives the details of what makes them tick!
Holiday Shopping Guide for Kids 10 and older!
As kids approach their teen years, figuring out what is appropriate becomes more difficult. But GamerDad is up to the task - check out our list of games and read about the content to make an informed decision.
Holiday Shopping Guide for Adults!
There were a bunch of great games for adults released this year as well that would make a great gift - here's GamerDad's list!
Comments? Chat about it in our forums!
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Feature Articles > Features > GamerDad Holiday Guide '05 - 14+
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