TOP 4 GAMES MY SON IS CURRENTLY ENJOYING
Reading Time: 2 minutes
Working from home is a blessing but when you have a school-going child with you, it has its challenges. Even with students now ‘back-to-school’, when they come home, you’re still “at work”.
Whether you like to admit it or not, our kid’s screen time has increased significantly from what it was 12 months back. We find our son playing more online games now on his PlayStation and/or his iPad, either solo or with a classmate than was ever the case.
Here are some of the games he’s jumping between when he isn’t attending school or on an online lesson at the end of the day.
FORTNITE
Age Rating 4Yrs+
‘Fortnite’ developed by Epic Games and released in 2017. Fortnite Battle Royale, in which up to 100 players fight to become the last person standing, is one of our son’s favourite game modes.
The game can be played on multiple platforms like Windows, macOS, PlayStation and Xbox One. He gets to play with our mates kids across the globe and nationally, so he interacts with other kids virtually.
AMONG US
Age Rating 9Yrs +
Among Us is an online multiplayer developed and published by American game studio, Innersloth and was in released in 2018. You can play it on these platforms Windows, macOS and Android devices even allowing for play between these operating systems. I believe there are plans for it to be released for Xbox One in 2021.
The game takes place in a space-themed setting where the aim is for players to each take on one of two roles, most being Crewmates, and a predetermined number being Impostors. The goal of the Crewmates is to identify the Impostors, eliminate them, and complete certain tasks. The Impostors’ goal is to covertly sabotage and kill the Crewmates before they complete all of their tasks. Players suspected to be Impostors may be eliminated via a plurality vote, which any player may initiate by calling an emergency meeting (except during a crisis) or reporting a dead body. Crewmates win if all Impostors are eliminated or all tasks are completed whereas Impostors win if there is an equal number of Impostors and Crewmates, or if a critical sabotage goes unresolved.
Plans for Among Us 2 was announced in August 2020, but have since been canned!
MINECRAFT
Age Rating 7Yrs +
Minecraft was the original favourite for our son, his introduction to the world of gaming. It was developed by Mojang and released initially for personal computers in 2009. The game has since been ported to several other platforms and is considered the best-selling video game of all time, with 200 million copies sold and 126 million monthly active users as of 2020.
Players explore a blocky, procedurally-generated 3D world with infinite terrain, and may discover and extract raw materials, craft tools and items, and build structures or earthworks. Depending on the game mode, players can fight computer-controlled “mobs”, as well as cooperate with or compete against other players in the same world.
PLANTS VS ZOMBIES: BATTLE FOR NEIGHBOURVILLE
Age Rating 5Yrs +
This is a third-person shooter developed by PopCap Games and played on platforms for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. It is the third instalment in the Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare, a spin-off series of Plants vs. Zombies. The full release of the game was in October 2019.
