As a gamer myself, I understand how difficult we can be to buy presents for, especially if you don’t follow games yourself. To try and make it a little easier on everyone involved, I decided to make a series of lists for each console manufacturer and PC, highlighting what I consider to be some of better titles available for purchase this Holiday Season. The only proviso with titles is that they be relatively easy to purchase and gift, meaning many digital games were not included.
This is by no means a definitive list, and some tough decisions were made on titles that missed out. Due to the high costs involved Rock Band 4 missed out on entry, as did Lego Dimensions for a similar reason.
Have a read, see what I suggest for Playstation 4, 3 and Vita gifts this year, and stay tuned for the PC Christmas Guide which will go live in the early evening on Tuesday December 7th, as well as my Xbox Christmas Gift Guide.
Exclusive Games
Title: Bloodborne
Platform: Playstation 4
Genre: Action Roleplaying Game
Rating: MA
Modes of Play: Single Player, Online Invasions
Family/Kid Friendly: No, Bloodborne is a horror themed, gruesome action game that is not suitable for younger players.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 4.5/5
Title: Disgaea 5: Alliance of Justice
Platform: Playstation 4
Genre: Strategy Roleplaying Game
Rating: M
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: Discretion advised. The violence in Disgaea 5 is highly stylised and not confronting, however some of the jokes and character outfits aren’t recommended for younger players.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: N/A
Title: Persona 4: Dancing All Night
Platform: Playstation Vita
Genre: Rhythm Game
Rating: M
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: Discretion advised. There’s no violence to speak of, however there are some sexual references and sexualised character outfits.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: N/A
Title: Tearaway Unfolded
Platform: Playstation 4
Genre: 3D Platformer
Rating: G
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: 100%. Tearaway Unfolded is built to be accessible and appropriate for all ages.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 4.5/5
Title: Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection
Platform: Playstation 4
Genre: Third Person Shooter
Rating: MA
Modes of Play: Single Player, Online Multiplayer
Family/Kid Friendly: No. The Uncharted games in this collection feature a lot of violence, coarse language and themes that aren’t appropriate for kids.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 4/5
Title: Until Dawn
Platform: Playstation 4
Genre: Horror Adventure
Rating: R
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: No. Lots of scary moments and heaps of gruesome violence reminiscent of horror films of the 80s and 90s.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 3.5/5
Multiplatform Titles
Title: Assassin’s Creed Syndicate
Platform: PlayStation 4
Genre: Victorian-era Third Person Action Adventure
Rating: MA
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: No. Assassin’s Creed Syndicate features exactly what the name implies, many assassinations and deaths.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: N/A
Title: Batman: Arkham Knight
Platform: PlayStation 4
Genre: Batman Third Person Action Adventure
Rating: M
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: Discretion Advised. Batman: Arkham Knight is a very physical title, with lots of hand to hand combat, however there is no dismemberment or particularly gruesome scenes.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 4/5
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Title: Call of Duty: Black Ops 3
Platform: PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3
Genre: Futuristic First Person Shooter
Rating: R
Modes of Play: Single Player, Offline Multiplayer, Offline Co-op, Online Multi-player, Online Co-op
Family/Kid Friendly: No. In this case, Call of Duty’s R rating mostly speaks for itself. The game includes especially gruesome violence, with enemies exploding, being burnt alive by abilities and other acts.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: N/A
Special Note: The PlayStation 3 version does not include the story mode that is contained in the PlayStation 4 version.
Title: Destiny: The Taken King
Platform: PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3
Genre: Online Only Science Fiction First Person Shooter
Rating: M
Modes of Play: Online Only Single Player, Co-op and Multiplayer
Family/Kid Friendly: Discretion Advised. Like other titles in this list, Destiny’s genre means that there is some inherent violence included, however there are no gruesome executions and what is included is not confronting.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 4/5
Title: Disney Infinity 3.0
Platform: PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3
Genre: 3D Platformers and Action
Rating: G
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: Yes. As with Disney films, Disney Infinity 3.0 is specifically built to a be a title for all ages.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 4/5
Title: Dying Light
Platform: PlayStation 4
Genre: Survival-based Zombie-Apocalypse Action Adventure
Rating: R
Modes of Play: Single Player, Online Co-Op
Family/Kid Friendly: No. This is another title where the R rating should largely speak for itself. Chock full of confronting violence, dismemberment and x-ray vision shots as you break bones.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: N/A
Title: Fallout 4
Platform: PlayStation 4
Genre: Post-Apocalyptic First or Third Person Shooter
Rating: MA
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: No. In Fallout 4 the most common recurring theme is your enemies heads of arms coming off their bodies as you shoot them, it’s not exactly the sort of thing children should see.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 4/5
Title: Guitar Hero Live
Platform: PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3
Genre: Guitar Simulator
Rating: M
Modes of Play: Single Player, Offline Multiplayer, Offline Co-op, Online Multi-player
Family/Kid Friendly: Largely, yes. The M rating for Guitar Hero Live comes from the language used in some songs included in the game.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: N/A
Title: Just Cause 3
Platform: Playstation 4
Genre: High Octane Third Person Action Shooter
Rating: MA
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: No. The violence isn’t as high impact as other shooters, however the sheer amount of it, as well as the giant explosions, means it’s not suitable for kids.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 4/5
Title: Lego Jurassic World
Platform: PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3
Genre: 3D Platformer and Adventure
Rating: PG
Modes of Play: Single Player, Offline Co-op
Family/Kid Friendly: 100%. The combination of family friendly action, easy to learn controls and split screen co-op makes Lego Jurassic World potentially the most family friendly title on this list.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score:
Title: Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
Platform: PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3
Genre: Third Person Stealth Shooter
Rating: R
Modes of Play: Single Player, Online Multi-player
Family/Kid Friendly: No. Metal Gear Solid V deals with many themes that are inappropriate for younger players, include child slavery. Along with the level of violence present, it is not recommended for children.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 4/5
Title: Mortal Kombat X
Platform: PlayStation 4
Genre: Hyper Violent Fighter
Rating: R
Modes of Play: Single Player, Offline Multiplayer, Online Multi-player
Family/Kid Friendly: No. X-ray shots as you break bones and burst internal organs, decapitation and heaps of blood make this a definite no-go for younger players.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: N/A
Title: Shovel Knight
Platform: Playstation 4
Genre: 2D Platformer
Rating: PG
Modes of Play: Single Player, Offline Multiplayer
Family/Kid Friendly: Thematically, Shovel Knight is fine for kids, however the game may be a tad difficult.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: N/A
Title: Skylanders Superchargers
Platform: PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3
Genre: 3D Platformer and Action
Rating: G
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: Yes. Skylanders Superchargers is specifically built to a be a title for all ages.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: N/A
Title: Star Wars Battlefront
Platform: PlayStation 4
Genre: Science Fiction Star Wars Shooter
Rating: M
Modes of Play: Offline Multiplayer, Offline Co-op, Online Multi-player, Online Co-op
Family/Kid Friendly: Discretion Advised. As with the Star Wars films, Star Wars Battlefront comes with a non-confrontational level of violence. No decapitation, no gruesome deaths, but of course laser guns and shooting are still involved.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 3.5/5
Title: Steins;Gate
Platform: Playstation 3 and Playstation Vita
Genre: Visual Novel
Rating: MA
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: No. The themes included in Steins;Gate are highly inappropriate for kids.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: N/A
Title: Tales of Zestiria
Platform: Playstation 4 and PlayStation 3
Genre: Action Roleplaying Game
Rating: PG
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: Yes, Tales of Zestiria’s stylised violence and themes are fine for younger audiences.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 3/5
Title: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Platform: PlayStation 4
Genre: Action Role Playing Game
Rating: R
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: No. Nudity, sexual themes, as well as violence make The Witcher 3 an adults-only affair.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: 5/5
Title: Transformers Devastation
Platform: PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3
Genre: Character Action
Rating: M
Modes of Play: Single Player
Family/Kid Friendly: Another title where the onus is on you. With cartoon visuals reminiscent of the 1980’s cartoons and stylised violence that doesn’t include any blood, Transformers Devastation is potentially fine for kids.
Rocket Chainsaw Review Score: N/A
