I just read that the Nintendo Wii outsold the Sony Playstation 3 by a ratio of 4 to 1.   I am very familiar with the game console systems since my sons (10 and 7) are real gamers.  They have the Wii, Playstation 2, GameCube (the Wii's predecessor), PSP (handheld), Nintendo DS (handheld) and the old Nintendo GameBoy Advanced, along with a computer (Dell's XPS) that was specifically designed to play games. Did I just list 7 different gaming systems for my kids?

What happened to playing outside with your friends? Now it's play dates or gaming and there is also the hybrid - a play date that includes gaming. I know Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft are making buku bucks from selling these systems and there are some really interesting games, but how did this happen? And why are we enabling this?  I even know 2 adults who work all day and then play some online game all night long.  I know other adults who are gaming junkies.

I miss the days when, as kids, we would pick up a ball and bat and play baseball all day long with all the rest of the kids in the neighborhood.  Or football or basketball or soccer or tag or some other active, competitive game. Now it's the Wii or PS3 or computer games.  Not that there aren't competitive video games and not that the kids don't break a sweat (I actually saw my sons sweating from boxing on the Wii).  It just seems like this is fundamentally wrong.  But just try taking it away from the kids and they cry about how all of their friends have systems and why they will be ostracized for not having the latest and greatest games.

Maybe I can take a negative and create a positive.  Maybe I can contact Sony and Nintendo and Microsoft and see if my kids can become beta testers for the games.  And maybe I can bill them out as gaming experts.  Maybe we can make extra money and put it away for college.  Or maybe I can use the money to buy that flat screen TV with the great graphics that I have my eye on. That would work great with my Xbox…