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Family-Friendly PC Games

Overview

Like any other form of entertainment, video games are made with specific audiences in mind. This sometimes means that a game is designed to be played by mature or adult audience, complete with content that is very inappropriate for children. To help make it a little easier to find games that the entire family can enjoy, I've put together this list of family-friendly titles.

Simply click on a game's title to view the full review.

Games in this List

0 - B C D - F G - J K - M N - R S T - Z

The Deer God

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Ages 6 and up
Genre:	Platformer
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A late night hunting trip goes terribly wrong when a hunter accidentally shoots a faun and angers the mighty Deer god. Now transformed into a deer himself, the hunter must survive long enough to redeem himself and earn the respect of the forest deity.

Brief thoughts: While there are supernatural forces (such as the titular Deer god) and some mild violence, this game's just too unstable to really enjoy.

Dig Dog

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Arcade
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The title really says it all: this is a game about a dog who digs around in randomly generated worlds in the hopes of finding bones.

Brief thoughts: Similar to older arcade games like Pac-Man or Galaga, characters "pop" when defeated. Other than this, there is nothing to be concerned with in this game.

The Disney Afternoon Collection

ESRB Rating:	E10 - Everyone (Ages 10 and up)
My Rating:	Ages 6 and up
Genre:	Platformer / Shoot 'em Up
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This is a collection of six NES games that were based on popular cartoons from the Disney Afternoon programming block. In these games, you'll be helping Scrooge McDuck gather treasure, guiding the Rescue Rangers through two adventures, defending St. Canard as Darkwing Duck, and assisting Baloo as he makes his unusual deliveries aboard the SeaDuck.

Brief thoughts: There is some fairly mild violence, as defeated enemies simply get bounced off the screen.

Also, while Disney's penchant for magical mischief appears to some degree in nearly every title, it stays very tame and never gets more spooky than the cartoons the games were based on.

DLC Quest

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Ages 6 and up
Genre:	Platformer / Parody
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A lot of games these days seem to be sloppily made, rushed out the door, or so heavily loaded with paywalls and other aggravations that they don't really seem worth it. Enter DLC Quest, a game that takes every possible opportunity to mock and poke fun of every one of these modern frustrations. Of course, there's no actual DLC for this game; everything is "bought" with the coins you find hidden throughout the game's world.

Brief thoughts: There is a very small amount of violence. So little in fact, that warning readers about it seems silly.

Donut County

ESRB Rating:	E - Everyone
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Puzzle
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In this quiet puzzle game, you'll use BK's tablet to deliver donuts around the world, meet interesting people, and toss their garbage down the hole. The catch is, BK doesn't really understand the different between garbage and someone's belongings...

Brief thoughts: This game is fairly tame, with the main issue being that a raccoon called BK is dropping people and animals down a portable hole. Despite the long fall, nobody appears to be harmed by this.

Draw Puzzle

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Puzzle / Other
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In this coloring game, you're tasked with connecting dots of varying lengths instead of simply coloring in pixels with a specified color. This can make it a little challenging to earn all three crowns on a puzzle, as you can only make so many mistakes!

Brief thoughts: There's nothing to worry about here, as this is basically a video game version of a coloring book.

Drop the Number

ESRB Rating:	E - Everyone
My Rating:	Ages 6 and up
Genre:	Puzzle
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This game is free, but contains advertisements
Have you ever played 2048? This game takes that simple concept and mixes it with Tetris styled gameplay, creating a fun new spin on adding up numbered blocks!

Brief thoughts: The only issue with this game is the presence of advertisements and in-game purchases. The former can be permanently removed for a one-time payment of $4.

Dwarfs?!

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Ages 6 and up
Genre:	Real Time Strategy
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This game is completely free!
You rule the roost as the Overseer of a new Dwarf colony. Guide your dwarfs to riches, protect them from dangerous hazards, and fight vicious monsters as you aim for a place on the leaderboards!

Brief thoughts: The biggest concern about this game is that it features fantasy creatures (etc, Dwarfs and Goblins) fighting each other. Everything is shown in a very tame and family friendly way, however.

Dynomite! Deluxe

ESRB Rating:	E - Everyone
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Puzzle
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Time to crack some eggs! As stacks of colored eggs are lowered down the playfield, you need to toss more eggs at them in an attempt to hit groups of three or more. This knocks them off the stack, and earns you some points - but it could also make Mama angry!

Brief thoughts: The closest thing to objectionable content this game has to offer is that the eggs you're smashing sometimes hatch, but to be very blunt, I get the impression that's not meant to be taken seriously.

Escape Goat

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Ages 6 and up
Genre:	Platform Puzzler
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The Master of Chains has imprisoned a goat for the crime of witchcraft. But, while the goat has no actual powers, their desire for escape and puzzle solving skills leads them to partner up with a mouse that does, and the jail break is on!

Brief thoughts: Although the story claims the goat is involved with witchcraft, nothing too serious actually appears in this game.

Escape Goat 2

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Puzzle Platformer
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The sheep you freed in the previous game have found themselves trapped in another dungeon, so it's once again up to a magical goat and a courageous mouse to solve the riddles and free their friends!

Brief thoughts: There are references to magic and ghosts throughout the game, with a monster appearing in the final levels. While this sound a little spooky, everything is still fairly tame and isn't likely to be much of a problem.

Everyday Genius: Squarelogic

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Puzzle
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This is what happens when you mix the basic rules of Sudoku with math problems. Whether that's a good thing or not depends greatly on the player -- this is a nice way to relax and kill time, but it's still more or less a niche title.

Brief thoughts: This game doesn't have any offensive content - it's just a collection of increasingly difficult math-based puzzles.

Faerie Solitaire

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Card game
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Faerie Solitaire is exactly what its name suggests: it's a card game that centers around a world where faeries and other magical creatures exist. All is not well in this world, as there is an evil force threatening the faeries, and each round of solitaire you complete helps save the world a little bit more.

Brief thoughts: While this game is filled with magical creatures - mostly faeries, as the title suggests - this mainly serves as a backdrop or theme for the actual game, and therefore isn't something to worry about.

Faerie Solitaire Harvest

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Card Game
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Free faeries, collect materials, and raise magical pets by clearing boards in this quiet solitaire adventure. Unlike many similar games, you remove cards in pairs of equal rank and can gain special perks to help you solve each hand.

Brief thoughts: Although this game is themed after faeries and other magical creatures, none of this really features in the gameplay.

Farming Simulator 2013

ESRB Rating:	E - Everyone
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Simulation
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Simulating real work doesn't sound like much fun, but it's surprisingly rewarding to see your crops grow and your farm prosper. Exactly how you play is up to you, and there's a devoted fanbase to help you get even more out of your time on the farm.

Brief thoughts: There's nothing offensive in this game, and it's good fun.

Fez

ESRB Rating:	E - Everyone
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Puzzle Platformer
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After accidentally breaking the all-powerful Hexahedron, Gomez finds himself on a quest to retrieve the 32 cubes needed to restore the Hexahedron and save reality as we know it.

Brief thoughts: There are a few spooky sections later in the game, but none of these really warrant much concern.

Findamajig

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Hidden Object
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This game is free, but contains advertisements
This simple game is little more than a digital version of the popular "I spy" game children play with each other. But being simple doesn't mean it's a bad game; just don't expect to spend long sessions playing it.

Brief thoughts: There's nothing offensive about this title - it's just a simple game about finding things.

Five Nights at Freddy's

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Ages 10 and up
Genre:	Other / Horror
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In this game, players take on the role of a night shift security guard at Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria. This sounds simple enough, but it quickly becomes apparent that the restaurant's history is overshadowed by some horrible past tragedy - one that threatens to claim you by the end of the night...

Brief thoughts: While this game functions like an evil jack-in-the-box (in that players have limited control over the monsters popping out at them), the larger issue is the backstory, which suggests the robot puppets (animatronics) are possessed by the spirits of dead children.

FLY'N

ESRB Rating:	NR - Not Rated
My Rating:	Everyone
Genre:	Puzzle Platformer
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FLY'N is a puzzle platformer that revolves around various World Trees trying to deal with the antics of a bully named Dryer. As if dumping hot metal garbage on the peaceful worlds wasn't bad enough, he's also stealing their Helys for his own purposes. This has led each World Tree to defend themselves by creating a unique "bud" to chase Dryer away.

Brief thoughts: The main antagonist is little more than a bully who makes life difficult for everyone else. However, he has his reasons for lashing out at everyone, and eventually comes around.

Forager

ESRB Rating:	E10 - Everyone (Ages 10 and up)
My Rating:	Ages 10 and up
Genre:	Sandbox / Crafting
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In this game, you'll start out on a small island with only a pickaxe, and slowly build up your little empire by gathering resources, creating machines, and exploring the world around you.

Brief thoughts: Although there's some family-friendly combat and different types of magic in this game, there's not really anything serious enough to concern Christian players.