14 Ways to Use Video Games to Spend Quality Time with Your Kids
By Kristen Mulrooney
March 19, 2020
CaptionMillennials and young Generation Xers grew up during the original boom of home gaming systems. Now we’re all grown up with kids of our own—and still gaming. In fact, more parents are playing video games than ever before, according to the Entertainment Software Association. Unlike staring at our phones or obsessively checking our work email, video gaming screens don’t have to take us further from our loved ones. Here are 14 ways you can use gaming to get closer to your family.Getty ImagesEven a shooting game like Halo can lead to deeper discussions of emotions and morality if you play with your kids, Sesame Workshop’s Shapiro writes in Forbes. He once sat side-by-side with his sons while the boys played Halo: Combat Evolved, and it led to a pretty deep talk. Once gameplay was over, the three of them talked about why it might be okay to shoot imaginary aliens, but not people. “We thought about what the aliens might represent in a kid's life: anxiety, frustration, anger, etc. I asked them what, in their own emotional experiences, comes on like a monster—uncontrollable, scary, overwhelming,” he wrote. Ultimately, Shapiro felt like he was able to turn the game into a life lesson in emotional intelligence.
