Here is one of my baby pictures. I was a dirty boy!! (Courtesy of my mother)

I often wake up and think wow I don’t feel like an adult. Even though by legal definition I am a so called “adult”, I question whether I am really adulting properly. Then again I was always that kid (and still am) who said I will never grow up! Like look at that kid in the picture above. Does it look like he ever wants to grow? No! He loves the stinking mud!

Overall, I think I have done a pretty good job of keeping my inner child alive.

These have definitely played a part! (This website has tons of Mario icons iconarchive.com)

I am not here to lecture you on my childish behavior. I am here to present a serious and deep question that will rattle your brain cells and keepyou up at night pondering the meaning of life.

I was recently reminded that Plants Vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2  is set to release next week. I jumped for joy! How could I have forgotten?

Hot damn that looks nice! (I took this from www.playstationlifestyle.net)

I am so excited to jump in the garden, but that is when the question hit me. Is this game too childish? I pondered it for a while…”naaaaah!” It is gonna be freaking awesome!

See that’s the thing when you look at the game industry you can see a pretty direct split of adult content and child content. Now a lot is focused on violence and realism and strangely enough it seems as many children as adults play those games. You gotta love it when you encounter a five year old dropping the F-bomb as you run on walls in Call of Duty.

Then on the other side of the spectrum you find stuff like Plants vs. Zombies and Mario Kart which are absolutely fantastic.

On a scale of enjoyment these games stand toe-to-toe with big M-rated AAA titles. I know I am going to take a lot of heat from this but often the childish games appear more creative and innovative from a gameplay stand points. These games need to figure out how to make something fun but also enjoyable and suitable for all audiences. Yet often enough they still offer a deep and immersive experience. Call of Duty  is great in what its does as an e-sport and as one of the biggest game franchises ever, but in the end we kind of know what to expect each year.

Where as next Tuesday, “Holy crude guys I get to be a sunflower, yes!” I have watch gameplay and I still don’t know what to expect.

So yes, I am a child at heart and I love crazy creative kids games, but isn’t it nice to see the child like creativity reflected in games. Not to mention the world of Mario which is definitely one of the most creative universes ever created and I think all of the game industry has grown up playing the series and still does today.

When it comes down to it, and I hear someone try to explain a game as childish, I have to disagree. Some games may lack complexity and are not as interesting as other options, but I think you are never to old to play any game. As has be proven in the game industry, ratings and age barriers mean nothing so there is no reason that people cannot see the reverse. Don’t be shy. Go! Play your Skylanders until your hearts content, collect as many studs as possible in the countless and fantastic Lego games.We live in a world where growing up is encouraged too much, we all have an inner child and it is important for us to unleash it.

In the words of Yoda, “Truly wonderful, the mind of a child”. It is true! Kids are hella creative. Don’t let yourself be stifled by not enjoying all of the creative video games out there. If you don’t know what I am talking about or don’t like so called “childish” games, give it a try. I think you would be surprised.

Ollie, gardening gamer (Mentally prepares to be a sunflower)

Featured image from babygaga.com