Video Games That Teach Responsibility
Petz and Babyz teach responsibility and are fun for young children. Maybe a little better than anything with blown-off heads.
My brother is fourteen and of course, loves head-exploding, violent video games. I would have a problem with this, except for the fact that he doesn’t act violent or separate from society in real life. But when he was younger (like 5) he and I would play a game together which allowed you to adopt your own dogs and cats. You can have the dogs and cats have babies. You have to feed them correctly or they get fat, or run away. And you need to make sure you take care of them. It was called Petz.
Most of the games from this line (Ubi Soft Imagine) are for girls. But there are a few, like Petz, that little boys can enjoy too. Other Ubi Soft games for kids include other Petz versions where kids can adopt horses, pigs, sheep, you name it, Babyz, where kids can adopt simulated infants and teach them how to walk and talk, and take care of them. While playing Babyz, you can also make mistakes–not take care of your children, feed them too much or too little, or leave them in a dirty daiper. These games teach responsibility in a fun way. I played them for hours as a kid.
Just some examples of the pets you can create.
Image via Wikipedia
You can even work with genetics in these games!
Image via Wikipedia
Other video games for young girls are available at this site: http://imagine.us.ubi.com/ Their most recent development is the addition of a “family doctor” game, where young girls can act as the family doctor for an entire town. So while they can play mommy, they can also get involved with more career-oriented games. Other games include a wedding dress design game, a fashion design game, a rock star game, a teacher game, and other fun simulation games where young girls can develop new skills and feed their ambitions.
As for young boys, they may not enjoy a game where they are designing wedding dresses, but they will enjoy Petz. Boys around the age of five would enjoy raising their own animals and taking care of them. Too often, young boys are forced to be aggressive. But actually, when I was about ten, a good male friend of mine (who turned out to be a perfectly “normal” red-blooded male) would play Petz for hours, trying to breed the smallest dog possible, or playing fun games with our virtual cats. These games have gone overlooked, and I know if they are still around when I decide to have kids, I am going to buy them.
If you are considering these games, here are some demos for you to enjoy:
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