Hello!
I’ve purchased a couple Choice of Games stories for myself, but I’d like to find something that’s family-friendly to read to my kids and have them help choose the story. They’re both in middle school (6th grade). I’ve looked through the list of stories a few times, but I don’t see anything that seems like a sure-fire child-friendly story.
Do you guys have any recommendations for a family-friendly Choice of Games story? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Off the top of my head, my number one suggestion would have to be Sixth Grade Detective. It’s only a coincidence that it happens to line up with your kids’ age. 
I’m at work right now, so I’ll have to let others voice more suggestions until later!
I thought Sixth Grade Detective was meant to be family friendly. I think First Year Demons was meant to be educational? I’ve not played it though.
I remember reading something about a parent reading Choice of the Dragon with their kids too.
How old are sixth graders?
It is probably noteworthy that if you download them via your phone, the app stores actually have content ratings. These can tell you more about what specifically you might not want to read.
Thanks so much for the recommendation!
I think this line in the summary scared me off:
“Sixth Grade Detective” is a 109,000-word interactive young-adult novel by Laura Hughes
Looking at it more deeply, I think you’re right about this being a good fit. Thanks so much. 
Actually, you shouldn’t have to download them. The information is on the store page of the various apps (of course, yes, the forum is also a great place for the information, the store page is just another option).
e.g. Sixth Grade Detective on iTunes and Google Play both have the ratings visible before you download. iTunes has also the reason why it’s given the rating listed.
I’m in the same boat. I have a 5th grader who knows about Daddy’s game (but is not allowed to read it!) and I’ve been considering which other HGs and CoGs are appropriate for that age.
I vaguely recall that Choice of Star Captain being pretty clean. Google Play has it rated “Everyone, ages 10+”
But yes, there’s a limited number of titles with limited (or no) cursing, adult situations/themes or violence, but really the more significant problem is that most titles are written for adults, meaning they use adult-level vocabulary, assume an adult-level of reasoning and understanding and life experience, and can take hours to read. Many kids might lose interest. I think more kid-friendly titles would be shorter, incorporate some art, and tone down the vocabulary just a bit.
Sixth Grade Detective is “cute” and age-appropriate, although I feel the kids in the book acted a bit older than 6th grade (they were out and about, all over the town, etc) and the main character may explore/encounter some same-sex flirting, etc. (it’s tame) I only mention that because some parents would want to know just in case that spawns a discussion with the kiddo. All that being said, my daughter has read it like a half dozen times and enjoys getting different endings.
Defiantly ones to avoid with pre-schoolers
Can we get ratings on these games? Has this been considered at all? Just a friendly question is all but it would help to know what contains what, or at least a sound warning.
Hey can someone answer me, the non-American, please.
How old is a 6th Grader?
A 6th grader is usually around 11 here in the U.S.
And how is that any worse than opposite-sex flirting? 
But, yeah 6th Grade Detective is nice, light, and fluffy with nothing worse than a few hurt feelings. It’s also written in (mostly) self-contained chapters, so it would be easier to put down and pick back up again than quite a few other stories.
Hehehe, 11 here in England, but I was “left behind” on my social education. I left at the age of 12 anyway.
Aha! Thank you!
Okay I probably won’t be too much help then. The last 11 year old I saw reading was reading Twilight.
And I was reading the likes of Brave New World and 1984 when I was 11. (Definitely not age appropriate.) I’d already read Lord of the Rings when I was 10. I read a whole bunch of stuff.
I think @RETowers suggestion of making use of the ratings the games get in the store is a very good one.
I was reading Watership Down. Don’t let the fluffy rabbits fool you; it’s dark. I also read Shardik, by the same author, at about that time, and it’s even darker (slavery, war, people getting mauled by a giant bear, etc).
I started to make a list of everything Apple rated 9+ and then I started to frown at said list, and what’s on it and what isn’t on it didn’t seem to make much sense to me.
@ParrotWatcher I loved Watership Down so much! I think I read it slightly earlier. It was one of the few books I actually owned (and still own) and I reread it so many times. And yes it’s dark. there’s dark elements in many children’s books.
Huh, I think the ratings might not be the best marker. Just checked and wizardry has a mature rating on Android when there’s really just light fantasy violence at the most. (Nothing graphic at all, no swearing or explicit scenes either).
How about cog dragon. That was pretty harmless from memory?
That’s the one that begins with your MC eating a princess, right? It’s done in a humorous manner, but it is actually quite dark.
I think there is a child friendly cog book in development now…Fillpe femeur, which is a good thing since it will introduce children to this site and shall join our ranks in our glorious army to take over the IF world MWUHAHAHAHA *cough *cough, I need to sit down…
Lol When I read this all I could think is I need to have a shirt made that reads “Warning: Lesbian” 
@Lizzy, I really hope you and @ParrotWatcher weren’t offended or anything. That wasn’t my intention. I was just stating something that I still believe is true; that parents might want to know that a book their 10-11 year-old is reading explores issues like sexual orientation.
I don’t know if you two are parents or not (sometimes I feel I’m one of the only parents on the boards) but I strongly feel it’s optimal for a parent to have a little “advance notice” if a certain book, tv show, movie, etc., may contain content that is likely to spur conversation afterword. Yes, my daughter asked me questions about why her MC might end up flirting/kissing with JJ (or whatever the best friend’s name was) and yes we ended up having a good talk about it. It was a positive experience all around, but I was also very prepared for it.
Parents can be a very fickle lot when it comes to their kids. I STRONGLY think that CoG/HG should continue to push new releases for kiddos, but I’d prefer, if possible, to avoid parents saying, “I really wish I would have known that such and such content was included.” With books geared to kids, I think a greater level of transparency is wise, especially since their kiddos “become” the main character and become ‘more active participants’ in what happens.