PS3 Family Games

Oh, the PS3. What a frighteningly expensive system with such a troubled past. Maybe Sony can turn that around, and start turning a profit from it. But now is not the time to talk business strategies--it's time to talk about games.

PS3 and Xbox 360 (and even the PSP) are designed with older audiences in mind. That's not to say it doesn't also have some games your family can enjoy. Here are some suggestions you can look into for the holidays. Remember to look for online reviews or even test these games at a videogame retailer before you buy.

To look at an official catalogue of PS3, PS2 and Playstation Portable games, click here to look at Sony's online catalogue. It's got lots of nifty filters for narrowing your search.

Click on the "+" plus-sign next to a game title, to view its average review score on GameRankings.com.

All games are retailed at $59.99 unless otherwise mentioned.

+Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction -- E for Everyone
Quirky weaponry and gameplay as now-famous heroes Rachet and Clank travel the universe fighting evil. All of this, thrown onto a story about friendship. Awww.

+The Eye of Judgment -- $69.99 (price includes Playstation Eye camera) -- T for Teen

Remember Yu-Gi-Oh? That cartoon where the cards came to life and duked it out on a playing field? This is the exact same concept, except in real life and with different rules. You use physical cards and game board, and the Eye camera takes all of that in and presents it in its full-fledged fantasy form of dragons, monsters, etc. You'll definitely want to read through some reviews before committing to buy this one.

+Skate -- T for Teen

+Rock Band -- $169.99 for bundle (guitar, drums, microphone, game)/ $59.99 for game only --T for Teen
Pricey, but promisingly fun. Think of this as Guitar Hero with the rest of the band.

+Guitar Hero 3 -- $99.99 for bundle (game, guitar)/ $59.99 game only -- T for Teen
Not only does GH3 offer more songs, you have to duel rock legends to work your way through the set list. Not too mechanically different from it's predecessors, but it's definitely a little more difficult.

+Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga -- E for Everyone
Just fun. Everyone I know who's played these games have loved it and/or become addicted to it.

+DiRT -- E for Everyone
+MX vs ATV Untamed -- E for Everyone
+MotorStorm -- T for Teen
The three above titles are racing games, which you really can't go too wrong with as far as family gaming.

+LocoRoco Cocoreccho! (Downloadable Game from Playstation Store)
An well-rated action game dubbed the "interactive screensaver. If you've got access to the PS3's online store, pretty much all the games offered there are family-friendly. They also have some Playstation1 or 2 games available for download, but some of those may not be so nice (like Twisted Metal).

+Katamari Damacy / We Love Katamari -- Playstation 2 -- $29.99 / $19.99 -- E for Everyone
(^the slash separates two different games) A well-loved, quirky, cutesy little puzzle game series. Object of the game: rank objects' size and roll them into a ball collecting items from smallest to biggest. Eventually, your ball will grow big enough to pick up trees, houses, mountains and islands along for the ride. And the music is faaaaantastic.