Get Your Game On with Plays.Org

We're now entering the third week of my son's school break, and as expected, he's spending most of his time playing video games. I really don't mind if he plays video games for hours, after all, he's now on vacation and he deserves this break after finishing seventh grade with flying colors. Besides, with the pandemic and all, and the strict quarantine guidelines here in the Philippines, kids can't go anywhere and are required to stay at home all the time. Playing video games is their way of coping with the pandemic, and connecting with friends (think Fortnite, Minecraft, and Roblox) whom they haven't seen face to face for a long while.

Aside from the usual games on Playstation, Yue also plays games on his smartphone and on his desktop. (Yes, video games everywhere, on all platforms, haha!) Just recently, he discovered plays.org - a treasure trove of fun and free browser-based online games. The site immediately caught his eye not only because of the graphics, but also because of the plethora of games to choose from.

Well someone's having fun on plays.org! (Excuse the faded keyboard letters, lol)

Plays.org currently has over 150 games in their catalog, with one or two new games being added everyday. You can see some of the more popular game titles on the site's homepage, and you can check out the different game categories when you scroll down towards the site's footer. The site has pretty much everything - from classic arcade games to simulation games, puzzles and pattern games, even logic and word search games that can help sharpen the brain and improve your memory. What's even great about this site is that you don't have to download or sign-up anything. You simply play the games on your browser. There are no annoying ads or pops-up, too, which can be very annoying and bothersome when you're in the middle of a game.

Archery Stickman.

Some of the games that Yue found really fun and interesting are Super Knight Adventure and the Archery Stickman Game. The latter, as the name implies, is a basic game with stickman figures. You simply need to shoot the other stickman with arrows before he shoots you.

Super Knight Adventure.

Meanwhile, Super Knight Adventure is a beat-em-up game where you battle against zombies and collect coins and gems while you're at it. The objective of the game is to defeat the zombie and obtain the key to the treasure chest. You move on to the next level once you open the treasure chest. Yue enjoyed this game so much that he was able to finish all ten levels in fifteen minutes (maybe less). 

I played some of the games myself, and the geek that I am naturally gravitated towards the word games and the puzzle games. I love the Waffle Word Finder Game because it is reminiscent of my all-time favorite word game Boggle. 

Waffle Word Finder.

Find the Hidden Pug, on the other hand, is a cute and simple game inspired by Where's Waldo, where you need to find the pug hidden in a sea of dogs. There's a time limit, of course, so you have to find the pug as fast as you can.

Find the Hidden Pug.

I had a lot of fun browsing through the collection of games, and my son seems to have made it a goal to try each and every one of them, haha! Yue's playing time can go on for hours, but as long as he's done with his household chores (he's now in charge of watering the plants and vacuuming the house), and he doesn't skip meals or lose sleep over video games, then I'm cool with it. Being cooped up at home for more than a year now can definitely take toll on our kids, and these video games can help them get through the isolation and madness of this COVID-19 pandemic. 

7 Best Playstation 4 Games for Kids.

For the longest time, I had been against my husband's idea of buying a gaming console for our son. 'I don't want gaming to affect his studies' and 'we don't need another addictive gadget at home' were my usual reasons for refusal. Yue didn't seem to mind that I wasn't buying his Dad's idea, until he discovered all these 'cool games' (as he puts it) through videos on YouTube. That includes Fortnite, the insanely popular action survival game played by his favorite YouTuber, DanTDM, and most of his friends at school.

Since then, he became hell-bent on having a console, even coaxing his grandmums (my Mum and my aunt) to buy him one - lol. My Mum, who has great negotiation skills, struck a bargain with Yue - if he maintains his 'high honor' status by the end of the school year, she'll buy him a console. Yue did just that and more - he even won first place in Reading Comprehension and got two bronze medals in his first national karate tournament. And with that, Yue finally got what he wanted and what he deserved - his very own Playstation 4.

All smiles! He finally got his reward from Grandma. :)

So what comes next after finally owning a game console? Choosing video games appropriate for my son's age. The games that came with the PS4 Hits Bundle are all rated M (Mature 17+), so it's imperative that I buy new games suitable for my 10-year-old. Although majority of the PS4 titles are geared towards adults, there's also a great deal of kid-friendly games playable on Sony's console. Here are some of them:

Minecraft.
Recommended for age 7+

Minecraft 
One of the most popular games to date, Minecraft is a virtual sandbox that gets your creative juices flowing. The gameplay in Minecraft is whatever the player wants it to be - a world trying to rebuild after a zombie apocalypse, or a kingdom inspired by your favorite bedtime story. Players customize their worlds and the creatures in it and how they choose to interact. There are infinite possibilities, and your only limitation is your imagination.

Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy.
Recommended for age 7+

Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy
This game brings back a lot of childhood memories - after all, Crash Bandicoot was one of the first few games that my sibs and I enjoyed playing on our Playstation 1. Now, our favorite marsupial is back with a remake of his first three adventures - Crash Bandicoot, Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back, and Crash Bandicoot Warped. These classic games from the 90s have been 'modernized' with colorful graphics, streamlined animation, and updated gameplay, but you'll still be hit with a wave of nostalgia as you go through the tricky levels. More often than not, you'll be asking yourself, "How did I go through this when I was a kid?"

Lego Worlds.
Recommended for age 7+.

LEGO Worlds

Like Minecraft, LEGO Worlds allows players to build constructions in a 3D procedurally generated world. Players can create anything and everything one brick at a time, or use large-scale landscaping tools to create vast mountain ranges or tropical islands. It's like building Lego creations without the fear of stepping on actual Lego bricks.

Lego Marvel Super Heroes.
Recommended for age 10+.

LEGO Marvel Super Heroes

LEGO Marvel Super Heroes features an original story where players take control of Iron Man, Spider-Man, the Hulk, Captain America, Wolverine and many other Marvel characters as they unite to stop Loki and a myriad of other Marvel villains from assembling a super-weapon capable of destroying the world. With the entire Marvel universe contained in this Lego-fueled action adventure game, this game guarantees hours of fun for both kids and kids at heart.

Overcooked 2.
Recommended for age 7+.

Overcooked 2

If your kid has a knack for cooking, then Overcooked 2 is the perfect game for your chef-in-the-making. Like the original Gourmet Edition (aka Overcooked 1), this second course is a fun and family-friendly co-op game that requires you to serve as many dishes as you can under time pressure. With new ingredients added and new recipes to choose from, Overcooked 2 guarantees twice the fun and the challenge as the first installment.

Just Dance 2019.
Recommended for all ages.

Just Dance 2019

Work up a sweat and groove to the beat with the latest release of the 'ultimate party game'. Just Dance 2019 comes with 40 hot tracks - from chart-topping hits to family favorites, and even K-pop songs such as Blackpink's 'Ddu-du-ddu-du' and Big Bang's 'Bang Bang Bang'. Players get a more personalized gaming/dancing experience with the latest addition to the Just Dance franchise, as the game learns your dancing habits and suggests songs that you might like. You don't even have to buy a PS Move to play this game - all you need is your smartphone and the Just Dance Controller app and you're good to go!

Hasbro Family Fun Pack.
Recommended for all ages.

Hasbro Family Fun Pack

Family time, fun, laughter, and learning are some of the reasons why board games are important. With the Hasbro Family Fun Pack, classic board games such as Scrabble and Monopoly become more exciting with the 3D experience, and more interactive with new game modes and online PVP options. It's a great way to fire up your competitive streak, get your neurons working, and bond with your family.

You might be wondering why I didn't include Fortnite in this list. In case you're not familiar with it, Fortnite is an online third-person shooter game in which 100 players parachute onto an island, and the last player alive wins. You need to kill the other players to survive, though there isn't much blood and gore in the animation, and the violence is 'cartoon-like'. The game is actually recommended for ages 13 and up so technically, it's not age-appropriate for my son. I only let him play it under my supervision, just to be sure that he doesn't come across weird strangers online.

Fortnite: Endgame, available for a limited time only.

Do your kids play Fortnite, too? What video games do you and your kids play?