It's that time of year when everyone starts making their lists, and checking them twice. And we know that many families and friends are exchanging lists with one another that have one or more of the hot game consoles and hand-helds right at the top. We know this because we've written some lists of our own, and we've been handed some lists by our favorite little ones that we'd like to fulfill (as they have been pretty good this year).

So this season we will be right there along with you. Looking for the best deals on gaming systems, and looking for great games to play on them. Luckily we've got a big head start on that last part. There are already many games that we have profiled in the time since we launched this site earlier in the fall.

But, as you well know, game publishers love the drama and excitement of launching a big title during the holiday shopping frenzy. So we've been doing our best to keep up with the madness, and to find and profile those amazing game gems; the ones that not only offer hours and hours of fun and exciting gameplay, but also some real challenge and learning value.

The good news is that we have been very busy indeed, as more and more developers are realizing that more and more of us are looking to get more out of our game time than just fun. (And we're not knocking fun here. No way. Big fans of the fun, we are.) 

So grab your eggnog and get comfy, because there is a lot here to see.  We hope that you find a game (or few) to get excited about on the game machine of your choice.  Or maybe you haven't decided on a system quite yet, and our game lists can help you make up your mind.  Either way, we wish you happy shopping, happy getting (gimme gimme), and the very best part...Happy Giving!

By Guest Blogger Andrea Rennick My kids have been gamers since as long as they can remember. Computer use was early in our house, and games were a staple. I am of the opinion that if it is a good game with loads of play value, then it is also an educational game.

Buried in a drawer somewhere is a picture of our oldest daughter, Sarah. She is child number two out of four. In the faded photograph she can be seen standing on a chair and reaching to the side of an older computer to turn it on. This was back in the days before Windows, when DOS ruled and you actually had to type in commands. I made a quick batch file that started up her favorite game whenever she typed in her name. The game was a simple keyboard basher kind, where a large letter was shown on the screen, and when the correct letter was pressed on the keyboard, the screen would animate, music would play, and it would show the next letter.

In the picture, my daughter can be seen wearing a diaper. She was not even two.

These days, the same daughter can be seen involved in a couple of large websites as an administrator, has a scary typing speed, lightening-fast logic and some awesome graphic design skills. I can't say computer gaming has harmed her any.

Every kid wishes they could be like Ash, traveling from city to city, capturing Pokemon, competing in Gym battles and learning a lot about friendship and loyalty. But other kids have to go to school, where they also learn many important things about how the world works - including things that would help Ash out a lot!

With Pokemon Learning League, Ash is going to find out interesting things about math, science, language arts and even life skills - and it's up to dedicated and resourceful students to help him out, brushing up on their own knowledge in the process!

Each animated installment features Ash, May and their friends encountering some kind of problems that requires a bit more than just knowledge about Pokemon, so they call up their friend at the Learning League Lab for advice on the appropriate topic, such as fractions, the lunar cycle, pronouns, percents or brainstorming! After a quick illustrated lesson it's up to Ash and friends to put their newly gained knowledge to work - with some direct help from the student!

Never before have kids been able to so closely interact with the adventures of Ash and friends. The installments are web-based, so all that's needed is a web browser with Flash installed,  PC and Mac users are welcome. 

Kids can click here to see the video, and parents and educators can click here to learn more.  And best yet, you can sign up your child for a free 30 day trial.

Pokemon USA, Inc. has won the Distinguished Achievement Award given annually by the Association of Educational Publishers to recognize the most outstanding materials in the field of teaching and learning.  The  Pokemon Learning League earned top marks in the Science Instruction/Technology/Websites (K-5) category for its science lessons.  Not bad for some goofy little pocket monsters!

By Guest Blogger Shannon Entin   I received a press release today touting a device that automatically turns off any electronic device at the time you set. I laughed, as this PR person obviously did not know me very well.  

We don’t limit screen time in my house. In fact, you might say we encourage it to some extent. Our entire family utilizes screen time – the television, video game console, and computer – as an educational tool. From the classic Sesame Street to PBS’s new (and awesome) Word World to Schoolhouse Rock… From Tetris to Major League Baseball 2K7 to Star Wars Battlefront… From Clifford’s Reading Adventure to Learn to Play Chess with Fritz & Chesster to Lemonade Stand … There’s something to be learned from it all.
 
I homeschool two children, ages 3 and 9. Two children who spend a good portion of some days in front of TVs and computers. Two children who I have watched learn at an amazing rate when they are self-motivated to do so.

Use BrainPop to help teach science, math, English, social studies, health, arts and music, and technology. Each subject has hundreds of easy to understand, standards-correlated, interactive animated films.

And while the awards list for BrainPOP is impressive, it is the entertainment and the learning that keep the millions of subscribers coming back week after week.  

The video below is a very short BrainPOP segment that was made for last year's American elections, featuring Russell Simmons encouraging kids to get their parents to vote.  Visit BrainPop (grades 4-12) & BrainPopJr.(K-3)

BrainPop: 

The Wild Divine Project has a special offer for Super Smart Games users.  From now until October 31st, you can get 20% off their newest whole-body wellness game/training program, Healing Rhythms.  It is the first biofeedback program to bring together the leaders in the field of health and wellness – doctors Deepak Chopra, Dean Ornish, and Andrew Weil.  In this unique adventure game, players wear three finger sensors that track your body's heart rate variability and skin conductance, as you navigate around a beautiful realm learning to use the power of your thoughts, feelings, breath and awareness to:  Increase relaxation, reduce stress and anxiety, restore balance and vitality, and improve physical & mental wellbeing.   

This week's site of the week is a blog written by Michael Abbot.  The Brainy Gamer is fairly new, and is a blog (and podcast) devoted to thoughtful conversation about video games. As Michael puts it: "I hope to provide a useful link between the game scholar and the game player".  And to that end we think he's really on to something. Some of his recent posts include:

• What if gamers got to choose what's on TV?
• War games may not be violent enough.
• What language should video games speak?
• Here come the grassroots creators.
• Where to find the best indie games. 
• Why don't the mainstream media get video games?

The Brainy Gamer offers a great read, and great food for thought on the sometimes more serious side of video games. Please check it out.   We're sure you'll be glad you did.

Super Smart Games recently had the opportunity to pick the brain of game developer Ben Harrison.  Ben is the founder of the Big Brainz game development studio, which is the creator of the wildly successful multiplication game, Timez Attack.

He also talks about the very personal reason behind his decision to develop educational games, and why he feels that the genre is still waiting for it's first masterpiece. 

Super Smart Games:  Hi Ben!  We'll get to Big Brainz in a minute, but first can you tell me how you got started in the video games industry?        

Ben Harrison:  The Jurassic Park dinosaurs are certainly to blame.  We take such incredible visual effects for granted today, but back in ’93 we’d never seen something so extraordinary brought to life.  By the mid-nineties these CG tools were trickling down to the masses, and as soon as I stumbled across 3D Studio Max I was hooked.  Since I had zero training, I couldn’t get a job in CG, so I quit my real job, bought a computer, and started my own company.   Over the years we developed a good relationship with Sony and had the opportunity to work on some fantastic titles with them.

This video is a short (8 minutes) version of the George Lucas Foundation's documentary on educational gaming. Two of the games that are mentioned in the video are listed here on Super Smart Games.  If you are interested, you can visit the Civilization IV page, you can learn more about Immune Attack, and if you'd like you can visit the George Lucas Foundation's website.