The good of the games

As the fight rages on, it becomes obvious that Pagan, the sexy mistress of the black arts, is no match for Ahau Kin, the Aztec priest. Ahau Kin lunges forward, throwing a kick to the head followed by two punches that leave his opponent dazed, standing in place swaying back and forth as if half asleep. At Ahau Kin's command an altar rises from the ground beneath Pagan. Kin forces her to the altar, then slices her open and pulls out her heart. As Pagan's body fibrillates beneath him, Ahau Kin eats her heart, finishing another happy little victory in "War Gods," a video game from Midway.

"There is a very strong body of evidence that children who watch violent TV shows or movies are more likely to be violent themselves," says U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn. "It seems logical that kids who play violent video games and get rewarded for all sorts of violence at a young age have a probability of growing up to be more violent."

Providing America's youth with safe sources of entertainment is important to Lieberman. In 1993, he chaired Senate hearings into video game violence. His hearings resulted in the adoption of rating codes by the video and computer game industries. "We're dealing with millions of kids, some are not going to be bothered at all, that's their make up," says Lieberman. "Others may be on the edge and this stuff can send them over."

"The rating system has not stopped game producers from putting out some very violent games," admits Lieberman. One of his goals in creating the rating system was to cause game manufacturers to lessen the extreme content of their games by getting them to re-examine how it affects the kids who buy them.

Lieberman has also taken another step in his fight against violent games -- for the last two years he has published annual lists of games that parents should avoid.

To do this, he has worked with Dave Walsh, Ph.D., the head of the Minneapolis-based National Institute on Media and the Family -- a non-political organization that monitors the content and effects of television shows, video games and movies.

This year he's also publishing a list of non-violent games. It is at this point that I have to remove my objective reporter's cap and admit to a little freestyle participation. Sen. Lieberman asked me to prepare the list of non-violent games that children would enjoy.

The good news about preparing a list of sure-hit, non-violent games is that nearly every sports game qualifies for the list. Even football and hockey games, which are based on violent sports, are quite clean when compared to fighting and shooting games.

After looking at sports games, the selection process became a bit more subjective. Super Puzzle Fighter Turbo, my favorite strategy game of the year, has martial artists battering each other in the background. The game is not violent, but it was still unsuitable for Lieberman's list.

In the end, an extremely violent game made it through the selection process. "Gettysburg!," Origin System's magnificent recreation of the Civil War's most famous battle, made the list because Dave Walsh agreed that the violence in this game was not romanticized and that it was needed to teach about a very significant historic event.

Here is the final holiday list of non-violent games that kids will like:

Sony PlayStation titles

"PaRappa the Rapper"
Sony Computer Entertainment
Ages 10 and up

In this unique game, players help a puppy through several difficult situations by tapping rap music beats using the buttons on their game controller. Because of its unusual style of play, PaRappa may not appeal to many younger gamers, but those who try it will love it.

"Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back"
Sony Computer Entertainment
Ages 10 and up

Players help Crash Bandicoot, a Tasmanian devil in long pants and tennis shoes, run, jump, and ride bear cubs and jet skis, and spin his way across polar landscapes and through electric eel-infested caverns in search of crystals.

"NFL GameDay 98"
Sony Computer Entertainment
Ages 12 and up

Possibly the finest football simulation ever made, "NFL GameDay 98" is a challenging game that lets players manage a professional football team through a season or play a single game against a friend.

"Bravo Air Race"
THQ
Safe for any age

Bravo Air Race is an airplane racing game in which players fly a variety of non-combat planes around various tracks.

"Moto Racer" (also available on PC)
Electronic Arts
Ages 10 and up

In Moto Racer, players ride motocross and unrealistic turbo-boosted motorcycles on a variety of tracks. This is a good game for one or two players.

"Hercules the Action Game"
Virgin Interactive (PlayStation), Disney Interactive (PC)
Safe for any age -- especially good for ages eight to 11

Based on the Disney movie, "Hercules the Action Game" is a classic side-scrolling adventure in which players steer Hercules as he saves Thebes, a.k.a. "the Big Olive," from destruction at the hands of Hades and his minions. Created using artwork provided by Disney Studios, this game actually looks like the movie.

"Cart World Series"
Sony Computer Entertainment
Ages 12 and up

CART World Series is an intense racing game in which players sit behind the wheel of an Indy car in some reasonably realistic races.

Nintendo 64 Titles:

"Diddy Kong Racing"
Nintendo
Safe for all ages

In Diddy Kong Racing players control cuddly animals as they race along fantasy tracks in carts, hovercrafts and airplanes.

"Blast Corps"
Nintendo
Ages 12 and up

In "Blast Corps," players must destroy buildings and other obstacles that block the path of a runaway truck carrying two disintegrating nuclear missiles that will blow up on the slightest impact.

"NFL Quarterback Club"
Acclaim Entertainment
Safe for all ages

Despite some problems with its catching and game controls, "NFL Quarterback Club" will please most computerized football fans with its unbelievable graphics.

"International Soccer"
Konami
Safe for all ages

Fast, smart, attractive and fairly easy to control, "International Soccer" is one of the finest soccer games ever made. Players can learn to control this game in a matter of minutes, but beating it takes time.

"San Francisco Rush"
Midway Games
Safe for all ages

Players race cars through downtown San Francisco. This fanciful game features hidden shortcuts through buildings and alleys.

Sega Saturn titles:

"NHL All-Star Hockey 98"
Sega of America
Safe for any age

"NHL All-Star Hockey 98" captures the non-stop action, the friction-less motion and the exciting confusion of hockey. This game does not romanticize fighting, but it does include fighting as a facet of hockey.

"Worldwide Soccer 98"
Sega of America
Safe for any age

One of the best-made sports games on the market today, "Worldwide Soccer 98" features easy-to-learn controls that offer a wide variety of moves for players who take the time to master them.

"Croc: Legend of the Gobbos"
Fox Interactive (also available on Sony PlayStation and PC)
Safe for any age -- especially good for ages eight to 11

"Croc," an adventure game set in a vivid three-dimensional world, is the story of a young crocodile who must save a friendly kingdom of helpless fuzzy animals from an invasion of magical, evil reptiles.

"Sonic R"
Sega of America
Better for younger players ages eight to 10

Sonic the Hedgehog, Sega's bad-attitude rodent superhero, enters a video game foot race against a number of cuddly friends and enemies.

"World Series Baseball 98"
Sega of America
Safe for any age

Good controls, attractive graphics and realistic action make "World Series Baseball" stand out in the very competitive category of computerized baseball simulations.

Computer titles:

"Risk"
Hasbro Interactive Ages 10 and up

The "Risk" CD is an excellent computerized version of the popular board game that allows players to play faraway friends and enemies using their modems.

"Star Wars Monopoly"
Hasbro Interactive
Ages 10 and up

"Star Wars Monopoly" is an excellent remake of the board game Monopoly using characters and locations from the

"Star Wars" movies. "Riven"
Red Orb
Ages 10 and up

This very challenging addition to "Myst," the most popular computer game of all time, is a beautifully illustrated puzzle adventure.

"Gettysburg!"
Origin Systems
Ages 12 and up

"Gettysburg!" is a challenging and dramatic recreation of the battle of Gettysburg. Players will learn about history and

logic as they play this game. "Nightmare Ned"
Disney Interactive
Ages 10 and up

"Nightmare Ned" is a comic horror game in which players solve puzzles as they help a nerdy kid through a maze of comic nightmare creatures.

"Monkey Island"
LucasArts
Ages 12 and up

"Monkey Island" is a comic pirate adventure, the latest in a long line of smartly scripted games from LucasArts that involve exploration and a good sense of humor.

"Creatures"
Mindscape
Safe for all ages

"Creatures" is a game in which players create and train new forms of artificial life using a humorous virtual laboratory.