At what age do you think it's safe for kids to play online? My daughter used to play Mario Kart on the Wii and sometimes she'd play online with other players...which is pretty cool and it was safe as far as my standards were concerned. There wasn't any interaction involved. At the same time I worry about when she becomes interested in playing online games and her safety. What are your thoughts on this?
As long as they are over 18, they should be able to decided for themselves what and when they want to play. I wouldn't let my kids play games like GTA V before they are at least 18 years old.
I think anywhere around 14 or 15 would be fine but really just as long as you can explain what to expect to them I think they can handle pretty much anything at an earlier age.
These days it's really hard to figure out what is safe for kids and what isn't. I remember hearing about an application that was supposedly designed for young kids. It had a cat and it would tell them to feed it, bathe it, pet it, etc. Then it would say things like, "Take your clothes off." My kids, thankfully, never played it. It's just scary to not know what phone apps are safe.
I wouldn't let my kid play online until they were 15 or 16. I think it depends on how mature they are and how they handle people being rude to them. They will probably get trolled and someone might call them a "little B----." So it really depends on how they can bounce back from that.
i feel as if i was qualified as a kid to play online but i guess it doesnt pertain to everybody. i guess it depends on the person because i always knew that people act differently online as compared to in person. if your kid takes it to heart dont let them play from the start
I think it depends on the kid and his/her maturity level. I started playing games online when I was like 12, but I knew better than to talk to anyone "sketchy" or give out any personal information, so I never had an issue. Other kids, however, may not know boundaries since online gaming is new to them.
It really honestly dependt on their maturity level. For example one 12 year old my be able to easily handle GTA 5 whereas another one wouldn't. I also think It's fine for the most part as long as you don't give the kid a mic. Never give a kid a mic until they are at least 14-15
I started playing Mortal Kombat at a pretty young age. It was pretty violent, but it didn't bother me. It sure bugged the heck out of my mom though. She walked right in when Scorpion was doing his fatality. Not good!
I think anytime after 14 or 15 is okay, I that age I think are able to understand what is dangerous and what is not. They have gone through the training, and experience enough to figure out that maybe I shouldn't share this information...
Children are very active online nowadays and it is completely impossible to stop them from playing. This approach could only have the opposite from the desired effect, so I wouldn't recommend it. Perhaps trying to engage into a conversation with your child about things not connected to school or games can be a good way of motivating them to spend less time playing and more talking, but that's about it. Games are violent, true, but not playing them when for example everyone else in the class does could alienate a child from the peers - that too is a potential problem.
Depends on the game really. Some games kind of teach kids to be inappropriate. But again, it really depends on the game. It's better that they ignore the communication until they learn to communicate properly and appropriately.
You should control some of what your kids play up to a certain age. Let them preserve their innocence until this world of ours sullies them.
But to what extent can you limit their choices? If they get a feeling you're doing that, they'll start to rebel. Compromise is not a best option either. Someone had said that it's a decision with which neither party is happy. Innocence... hmm. Interesting point raised. William Blake wrote ''Songs of Innocence'' for children, but I don't really find them innocent at all. Same is with fairy tales. They're full of violence. I know I never liked reading the part about ''eyes being pecked out'' from Cinderella to my younger cousins. I always worried. But then I realised that for children it only matters that the evil is punished and that the good prevails. They understand its just fantasy in a way we adults don't simply because we overanalyse things and once we're finished, we do it again. It's different with children. Games are a part of growing up. We have to realise that our youngsters are no longer as young as we see them. In our eyes, they will always be little and helpless, but it isn't so. Children can really surprise us, we only have to let them.
To me it all depends on the type of game. If the game is suitable for my children I will let them play online, but for bloody war games, I am going to wait until they become teenagers and that goes for online or offline playing.
15 or 16 might be okay. Well, it depends of the game they are playing. For example: Call of Duty, the game was made for mature audiences and I will never let my children play the game until they reach the age.
At this day and time in technology I think the earlier the better. Video games are a multi billion dollar industry where both the game developers and the players have the ability to make a lot of money. I have a 6 year old daughter who plays a lot of games on and off line. From plants versus zombies to DotA and Counter Strike. I do not hold her back in any way. The better she is the more chance she has to be one of the best gamers in the world when she grows up. If that is something she chooses to do. Even my 2 year old son is already beginning to understand how the computer works and always wants to play with the mouse and keybord. I love it because he watches me so intently as i play DotA 2 and i can see him hitting the keys on the keyboard and moving the mouse just as if he were playing the game. For me I always said i would not censor my children, I will teach them right from wrong but what is the whole purpose in censoring a child, what use is it. they are going to see that stuff eventually so why hide it from them. For me censorship is just as deceitful as lieing and teaches them to hide things or to cover something up. you may want to ask yourself how you would feel when they start censoring what you know about them and what they are doing behind your back. When it happens you have to remember you were the one who taught them how to do that.
At this point in society, it depends really. It really does depend on what game it is. Sure, Mario Kart is a kid orientated game so logically speaking, it's fine with her playing online. I'm not sure with her talking with other people online however, because people can get very harsh with how they talk especially when over online where the person receiving the hate cannot see the person saying it. Kids around 13-14 should be able to be talk over online with friends but honestly, people that age play Call of Duty and many people playing the game will commentate on how it's "mature" game and that the person shouldn't play and such. Be logical in thinking what age is appropriate to talk to people over online, especially in games like Call of Duty.
I agree. Different kids have different personalities and maturity levels so it really is up to the parents to determine when the best and safest time would be. Some kids just get way too over emotional in games while others realize it's just a game.
I think at any age as long as they are playing with their own age group. Most kids will get picked on especially if they are using a headset and talking to adults.