Ape Escape 2 - PS2

We rented this game for my son about a year and a half ago. He, and my wife, loved this game! This was all that we played for a long time. We extended the rental twice, and then went and bought the game. Though, that took some doing since it was such a hard game to find. This was a non-stop event. My wife lost hours and hours of sleep.

This game was worth the money and effort to find. Even today, we still play this game. This game starts off pretty easy. You start off with a net, and you go around and capture these silly monkeys. Your health indicators are cookies. You have to sneak up on monkeys to capture them. There are 20 levels, 8 bosses, and over 300 monkeys to catch. You'll eventually have 12 gadgets to use to help catch those pesky monkeys.

There are 3 mini-games that you can get as the game progresses. These mini-games can have 2 players. This is the extent of the multi-player capabilities. Dance monkey Dance, was by far, my most favorite mini-game.

This game is not a game that a young child will be able to beat. With the book we finally bought at the store, and hours and hours of playtime, we finally got through the last level, which was by far the hardest. Oh, and the boss levels, are very hard too. The in-between levels, a young child should be able to do without much problem.

When I asked him what he thought of the game, my boy said:

GOOD!
I liked it when I got close to the monkeys and their light turned yellow before I got them. I also liked the dinosaur level and the T-Rex on it.
There were levels where the piranha where in the water and you had to fly over it instead of swimming in it. I really liked capturing the funny monkeys. It was kinda easy to catch the fast ones, especially when they tripped. There were hard parts and easy parts.

Playable ages: 4+ (I'm pretty sure my son was playing this game at 4 1/2)
Difficulty: Medium (Lots of easy areas, as well as medium and Hard areas)
ESRB Rating: Everyone (Comic Mischief, Mild Violence)
Overall Rating: 8.7

You can learn more about this game from PlayStation and UBISOFT

Jimmy Neutron Boy Genius - PS2

Jimmy Neutron Boy Genius was a nice fun game for my son. I could see this being a pretty good game for kids 5 to 8 or so. It was a relatively short game with only 6 levels.

It was loosely based on the original Jimmy Neutron Boy Genius Movie. You had an idea of where you were at in the movie, but did not actually perform any of the steps that were seen in the movie.

There was at least one voice that was not the same as the cartoon (or even close). That was one of the things about this game that bothered me, but did not seem to phase my boy who was almost 6 when we played it. He really enjoyed playing this game.

When I asked him what he thought of the game, my boy said:

It was good because there were no hard places. I had fun at Jimmy's house cause you got to hit the GooBots with a baseball bat. I also liked it when Goddard turns into a pogo stick and you could jump on top of a GooBot to open it up.

When you cross the chicken spot, and when you battle the King were the only two hard spots, that was it.

In short, if you can find the game for under $20 and it is for someone in the 5 to 8 age group, it will probably be worth the money.

Playable ages: 5+
Difficulty: Easy
ESRB Rating: Everyone (Comic Mischief)
Overall Rating: 7.2
You can find more information about this game from Playstation.

Monsters Inc - PS1

This is a game that I've not played. My son had played it at my sister's house and he loved it. He loved it so much, my mother went crazy trying to buy it for him.

This is a nice, fun easy game that your children should enjoy.


When I asked him what he thought of the game, my boy said:

GOOD! No hard places at all! I mean none! All the spots were Easy. I really liked scaring the Robot NERDS so bad that they just BLAM opened up and all the pieces came out of them.

Playable ages: 4+
Difficulty: Easy
ESRB Rating: Everyone
Overall Rating: 7.5

Find information about it at the Official Site and Playstation.

Bionicle - PS2

Bionicle was nice fun game to play with my young son. He really enjoys this game, however, there are defiantly parts of this game that are too difficult for him and he needs help. (Ok, it even took me a few times to figure them out).

Bionicle was loosely based on the Bionicle movie Mask of Light, but like other movie games, you don’t really get to do anything you saw during the movie.

I see this game being a really good game for kids 6 to 10. There are some parts that are very challenging. We first got this game when my son was 5 and he really enjoyed playing it. That was all he wanted to do every night.

The game pretty short. With my help, I think we finished the game in less than a week.

Also, there was no 2 player capability, so that was a slight drawback for me. Especially when my son wants to me to play with him.

When I asked him what he thought of the game, my boy said:

It was good.
It was kinda easy, but there were some hard spots.

Playable ages: 5+ (6 or 7 would require less help from others)
ESRB Rating: Everyone (Fantasy Violence)
Overall Rating: 7.3
You can find more information from Playstation

Ape Escape Pumped and Primed - PS2

My first review will be for Ape Escape Pumped and Primed.

I got this game for my wife for Christmas, and once we opened it, it's rarely not been the game in the PS2.

This game is a 1 to 4 player game, of course, to get more than 2 people on, you will need a multi-tap. There is a Story mode and a Multi-player mode. In story mode, you can play 1 or 2 people. The other 2 people are computer players. In multi-player mode, you can have between 1 and 4 players.

We have Ape Escape 2, and when this was bought, I thought it would be along the same lines. Boy was I wrong. This misconception almost cost me the enjoyment of this game. Once I got past that, I started to really enjoy this game.

You start the game with basic tools/weapons. You have a sling-shot, a baton, a RC car, a flyer, a dash hoop, a tank, a water mech, and a boat.

There are 44 levels and 8 boss battles in the Story Mode.

This is a good game to play with your kids. Especially as you go through the game the first time and unlock the levels.

We have played this game for a couple weeks now, and it's still going strong.

The game is Rated Teen, but I find that a bit of a stretch. You do hit people with your club, shoot with a sling shot, etc. but that is it. The characters are cute, and appropriate for a children's game.

Once he got the hang of it, he has been able to beat many of the bosses by himself. There are still spots though that he needed help with.

When I asked him what he thought of the game, my boy said:

It's good.
I like you can be a bunch of different people.
You can be up to 6 different people.

Playable ages: 5+
ESRB Rating: Teen (mild violence)
Players: 1 - 4
Overall Rating: 8.0

Find information about it at Ubisoft and Playstation.
Have questions? Ask, and I'll try to answer them.

Welcome

Welcome to Playstation Games For Kids.

Here I plan on reviewing games that my son and I have played, and give you some info on what we thought. Mainly, these are games for the Playstation 2. Occationally, they will be games for the PS1 that you can play on the PS2, and eventually, when it comes out and my wife will let me buy it, for the PS3 as well.

As a parent, I found it very frustrating finding games that were not only suitable for my son to play, but also playable for my son.

As you may, or may not know, just because a game is rated E, doesn't mean a 5 year old was able to play it.

I hope to update this site often, but as of right now, I couldn't tell you how often that will be. What I would really like is to do at least weekly posts of games We've been able to play. Initially, some posts will come faster since there are several games we have already played, and already have a feel for.

Please leave me comments of what you think of this idea. I've searched the net looking for information to this effect, and could not find it. So, where there is an information void, someone will eventually fill it. Guess this void is mine.

Come on it, and take a look around.