Video games can strengthen numerous skills, create shared experiences, and help children manage their emotions, but many modern titles are deliberately designed to keep players engaged for as long as possible. Expert recommendations therefore focus not on banning games altogether, but on reasonable time limits, carefully chosen experiences, and active parental involvement.
Whenever the question of how many hours a child should spend gaming each week comes up, someone will usually argue that video games are being demonized again, while television and books rarely receive the same treatment. Part of the difference is that movies and books are generally not built around dark patterns, meaning design techniques intended to make a child or adult continue for just a little longer. That distinction does not mean video games are inherently harmful.
Games create identity and culture, offer a refuge, help people process emotions, and can support attention, reading, mathematics, and planning skills. The games children play today are nevertheless very different in certain respects from those available to earlier generations, making a thoughtful introduction and parental guidance increasingly important. The essential question is therefore not whether children should be allowed to play, but how much they should play, which games they should choose, and under what conditions.
General Guidelines Exist, but Every Child Is Different
Research by Dr. Jesús Pujol indicates that video games can provide children with several meaningful benefits, but only two hours of play per week may be enough for those positive effects to emerge. The same research also found that spending more than nine hours per week gaming could be associated with a greater risk of behavioral problems. This does not mean games simply change children or make them “crazy”; excessive time spent playing may instead prevent them from developing social, physical, and other important abilities through additional activities.
Two hours per week is equal to approximately 17 minutes per day, while nine hours comes to around 77 minutes per day. Dr. Nancy M. Petry has suggested that 30 minutes per day can serve as a useful general recommendation, but that does not mean a child must play every single day. The time limit should function as a flexible reference rather than an inflexible rule measured down to the second.
Psychologist, doctor, and UNIR professor Rocío Gómez recommends selecting games that help children regulate emotions and frustration while also encouraging planning and patience. Parents should ideally sit beside their children, remain curious about what they are doing, and pay attention to how they respond to events inside the game. A child may become angry after losing or being told that the session is over, and those reactions provide valuable information about emotional maturity.
If tantrums become frequent, it may be helpful to stop playing, take several days away from games, shorten future sessions, or move gaming to the weekend when a parent can remain present. Some children can turn off a console and move on without difficulty, while others struggle with losing or stopping. The rules should therefore be adjusted according to each child’s reactions, maturity, and individual needs.
In certain cases, even a 30-minute session may need to be shortened, while other children may benefit from having their playtime distributed differently throughout the week. Games might also be temporarily withheld until the child develops stronger emotional regulation, but this should not be framed as punishment. The objective is to provide support that helps children establish a healthier relationship with gaming rather than making them afraid of the activity or its boundaries.
If anger and overstimulation continue, a different type of game may be more appropriate. Highly stimulating experiences such as Fortnite constantly encourage players to begin one more match, making it especially difficult for younger children to stop at the right moment. They can be replaced by games with calmer rhythms that do not bombard the player with a continuous stream of intense rewards and demands.
Gómez mentioned Splatoon Raiders as one possible example, while classic titles such as Secret of Mana may also be more suitable. Helpful games can operate at a pace somewhat similar to chess, requiring decisions while still giving the player time to think, wait, and process consequences. The subject matter and age rating are therefore not the only relevant factors, since the rhythm and intensity of the experience also matter.
The specialist originally recommended this approach for children on the ADHD spectrum, but the same method can also work well for neurotypical children. Splatoon Raiders, for example, requires a longer pause before the child can continue firing, while the turn-based battles and slower pace of Pokémon naturally encourage patience. When used as shared experiences, these games can do more than keep children occupied; they can help them practice waiting and emotional regulation.
When a game clearly overstimulates a child, the best response may be to end the session and choose something else. That does not mean parents are doing something wrong whenever a shared gaming session lasts longer than 30 minutes, since an adventure or difficult boss encounter can easily push a special occasion past the suggested limit. Conscious involvement and awareness of the child’s reaction matter far more than a rigid ban.
The suggested 30 minutes per day should therefore be treated mainly as a point of reference, and gaming does not need to be scheduled every day. Parents should sit beside their children, play with them, learn more about them through the controller, and avoid leaving very young players completely alone, particularly with smartphone games. Shared adventures can soon lead to new conversations and a stronger parent-child relationship, because one of gaming’s greatest strengths is its ability to create lasting experiences and meaningful connections.
Source: 3DJuegos
