HOWZAT

With increasing worries about childhood obesity, games have been blamed for turning children into couch potatoes. But new games, particularly on the Nintendo Wii, rely on movement, and parents have seen games as an alternative way to keep children active.

This has been backed up by some studies, with one published in the journal Paediatrics last year, finding that children burnt three times as many calories playing “active” video games compared with traditional hand-held video games.

Family campaign groups have also noted the trend towards family gaming. They believe, however, that many titles remain inappropriate for children and say that greater regulation is needed.

John C. Beyer, the director of Media Watch UK, a lobby group campaigning for socially responsible broadcasting and against offensive and harmful content in the media, said: “Games have become a form of family entertainment and I think that a lot of the people that have grown up with video games are now adults themselves, and they are now playing games with their children.

“Our concern is that very young children are gaining access to 18-rated games, and that is a very serious problem. What concerns us – parents and the Government – is that the extremely violent adult games are being accessed by children.”

However, some parents suggested that by making gaming a shared experience, they could keep a closer eye on what content their children were using.

Richard Pinchen, who plays with his son Daniel, 7, said: “I make sure that I control and monitor what kind of game my child is playing. I have games like [the extremely violent] Grand Theft Auto– but I would never let him anywhere near it.”

Father and son were found taking a look at the PlayStation 3 display at the huge HMV store in Oxford Street, Central London, which has recently expanded the area that it devotes to games to keep up with increasing demand.

Mr Pinchen seemed to be more excited about the potential of the new console than his son. For him, playing video games occasionally with his son is a fun way to spend time together.

He said: “We play snowboarding and Mario, games that we can play together. I just love the graphics.”

David Hutchinson, 35, a designer who lives in London, said that playing games such as Little Big Planet with his two children, Solomon, 5, and Felix, 3, had become a valuable bonding experience.

“We don’t let them watch that much TV, maybe an hour a day at a maximum,” he said. “But it’s just an activity they’re engaging with, and they prefer it because they have interaction with the characters.”