But while I’ll admit to being an eager participant in such gore-fests as “Gears of War” and “Call of Duty,” I’m not a fan of letting little ones join in the M-rated fun.

The good news for parents with pint-sized gamers (and I will be one of those parents very soon, by the way) is that all the big-name consoles—including the Nintendo Wii, the PlayStation 3, and the Xbox 360—come with a full arsenal of parental controls that will lock out specific games according to their ESRB (Entertainment Software Ratings Board) ratings.

What’s an ESRB rating? Similar to MPAA ratings for movies (you know, “PG,” “PG-13,” “R,” and the like), ESRB ratings are assigned to video games depending on their content, ranging from EC (Early Childhood) all the way to AO (Adults Online). In-between, you’ll find E (for Everyone), T (Teen), and M (Mature).

Related: The 10 hottest holiday video games: a cheat sheet for parents

While the gentle action in a new Mario Bros. game will surely arrive with an E for Everyone rating (for, say, “cartoon mischief”), a game like “Uncharted 3: Drakes Deception” will warrant a T rating (for “language” and “violence”). Meanwhile, last year’s fun (for adults) but blood-soaked “Battlefield 3” merited a well deserved M rating, for “blood and gore, intense violence” and “strong language.”

Set your game console to block games rated “T” or higher, and your kids will have no trouble playing Mario Bros. on the Wii or the adorable LittleBigPlanet for the PS3—but they’ll have to enter a PIN to blow things up in “Call of Duty.” No PIN? No explosions. (Of course, setting the parental controls on the console in your living room won’t stop determined tykes from playing violent games at a friend’s house, but that’s another story.)

All right, so how do you activate parental controls on the Wii, the Xbox 360, or the PS3? Just follow these steps.

Nintendo Wii

• From the main Wii menu, tap the Wii button and select “System Settings,” then click the blue arrow to browse to “Wii System Settings 2.1.”
• Select “Parental Controls” button, then follow the prompts to create a passcode and a security question (in case you forget your PIN).
• Next, click the “Game Settings and PIN” option and “The Highest Game Rating,” then select the maximum game rating you’d like your kids to be able to play.
• All set? Click “Confirm,” then “Settings Complete” (or “Other Settings” if you’d like to change the parental controls for other content on your Wii).

Sony PlayStation 3

• Turn on your PS3, then navigate to Settings on the main menu; scroll almost all the way down and select Security Settings, then choose Parental Control.
• Next, enter your PIN. (If this is your first time setting parental controls, enter “0000” as your PIN code.)
• Now, you’ll have to pick a security level, ranging from 1 to 11. How do the level numbers correlate to ESRB ratings, you ask? You can find the decoder ring here, but I’ll go ahead and spell it out for you. (Why didn’t Sony just list the ESRB rating equivalents in the on-screen setting menu? Great question.)

• Level 2: EC (early childhood)
• Level 3: E (everyone 6 and up)
• Level 4: E10+ (everyone 10 and up)
• Level 5: T (Teens 13 and up)
• Level 9: M (Mature, 17 and up)
• Level 10: AO (Adults 18 and up)

• Once you’ve picked a level, a page will appear confirming your choice.
• You’ll also get the option to block and game without a rating; check the labeled box to enable to option.

Microsoft Xbox 360

• Fire up your Xbox 360, then navigate to Settings, Family.
• Up at the top of the next screen, turn the Content Controls setting to On.
• Next, select Change Pass Code, Set Pass Code (to create your four-digit PIN and a security question), and then follow the prompts. Once you’ve set up your PIN, select Done to return to the main Content Controls menu.
• Next, select Ratings and Content, Game Ratings, then choose the maximum allowed rating for your kids, from EC to M.
• Click your game controller’s “B” button to back up to the main Content Controls menu, then select Save and Exit—or, to set parental controls for other content, select “Ratings and Content” again.

Have more questions about the parental controls in your gaming console? (There are many more settings, by the way, regulating everything from movie rentals to web browsing.) Let me know.

Note: This updated and revised post was first published in June 2011.

The post How to turn on parental controls for your PS3, Xbox 360, or Wii (updated) appeared first on here's the thing.

The official Xbox Support account on Twitter posted an update Wednesday afternoon that some gamers “may see issues” logging into Xbox Live following the massive update, which now lets users with the Kinect motion-control camera steer their way around the Xbox 360’s Dashboard interface by waving their hands and saying things like, “Xbox, Netflix!” (It’s a neat trick, when it works.)

Indeed, I’ve been having plenty of trouble with Xbox Live myself today, with the network initially refusing to let me sign on, and later insisting that I wasn’t a paying “Gold” member of the service. Luckily, everything seemed to be working again later in the afternoon—fingers crossed.

So, how can you tell if something’s amiss with Xbox Live—or whether your own console is to blame?

First step: check the Xbox Live status page, which will give you a detailed breakdown of which Xbox Live services and apps are up and running—and which aren’t

Another good idea: Follow the Xbox Support feed on Twitter, which posts real-time alerts on Xbox Live service disruptions and other snafus. You might also want to follow Larry Hyrb, a.k.a. Major Nelson, Microsoft’s spokesperson for Xbox Live.

Last but not least, you can test your Xbox 360’s connection to your local network and Xbox Live itself. From the Dashboard, navigate to the Settings menu, then select System, Network Settings, pick your local network from the list that appears, and select Test Xbox Live Connection.

The post How to check the status of Xbox Live appeared first on here's the thing.

Yes, meet the R2-D2-ized version of the Xbox 360 from the Limited Edition Kinect “Star Wars” Bundle, complete with the same white-and-blue panels, circular “eye,” and even the little red dot (what is that for, anyway?) that decorate our favorite glob of grease.

Tagging along with the Xbox R2-D2 360: a gold, C-3PO-colored Xbox 360 controller. Of course!

Other goodies in the “Star Wars” Xbox 360 bundle ($449, on sale starting December 31—yeah, that’s a bit of a wait) include a 360 GB hard drive and an off-white Kinect motion-control camera (which matches the R2-D2-themed console).

Also in the box: the upcoming “Star Wars” Kinect game, which lets you duel Sith lords with your lightsaber and pilot a hurtling pod racer (among other interstellar activities and mini-games) by waving your arms in the air.

The post R2-D2-themed Xbox 360 is the droid—er, console—you’re looking for (eyes-on) appeared first on here's the thing.

Among the other findings from the Entertainment Software Association’s survey: the average gamer is 37 years old, about 42 percent of gamers are women, 55 percent of gamers are playing games on their phones (“Angry Birds,” anyone?), and 45 percent of parents say they play games with their children (hopefully kid-friendly games like “LittleBigPlanet” rather than “Call of Duty”).

So, fellow grown-ups: Do you consider yourself a gamer? Do you play games mostly on your cell phone, or do you prefer a game console like the Nintendo Wii, the Xbox 360, or the PlayStation 3? Last but not least, do you worry about the video games your kids are playing, or do you trust them to avoid “Grand Theft Auto” and the like?

Leave a comment below, or send me an email right here.

Source: Entertainment Software Association (via CNET)

The post This just in: Video games aren’t just for kids appeared first on here's the thing.

It’s welcome news, especially for anyone who’d rather not plug their credit card number into Xbox Live after last month’s disastrous hack attack on Sony’s PlayStation Network; that said, you’d still need to trust PayPal with your precious digits. Nope, you can’t win.

P.S. The Xbox 360 system update, which should arrive on your console any day now, will also add an power-saving feature that will put your system to sleep after it’s been idle for an hour (and yes, you can disable the auto-sleep feature if you like).

The post Console update to enable PayPal purchases directly over Xbox 360 appeared first on here's the thing.

I’m expecting my rental copy of “L.A. Noire” to arrive any minute, so stay tuned for hands-on details. Got an initial impressions to share? Fire away in the comments.

The post Cinematic “L.A. Noire” for PS3, Xbox 360 hits the streets appeared first on here's the thing.