When you think of a ‘gamer’ you might imagine someone slumped on a sofa with a bag of crisps, constantly absorbed by some bizarre virtual world and never seeing any outdoor life. In some cases that may be true.

But I think it’s fair to say that the stereotypical ‘gamer’ life has evolved. Let’s be literal and look at how gaming has become physical. For people with PlayStation Move (an extra form of remote that you can get for the PS3 that recognises your movement), PlayStation games go from stationary to mobile.

Equally, the Nintendo Wii is fully designed to be physical, with its adaptable ‘nunchucks’ that mean you can virtually play golf, tennis and boxing. Not to mention 10 pin bowling, which is my personal favourite as it’s very hard to get a gutterball... which is what usually happens when I go to my local bowling alley. Not my best sport to say the least.

The Wii also has the Wii Fit board – a movable platform similar to a set of scales – that measures your ability to practice yoga, Pilates and other exercises, while calculating your BMI and assisting you with weight loss. This is actually brilliant if your lifestyle is too hectic for a gym membership. In my opinion, the best extra for any console is the Xbox Kinect. It’s a relatively large device with a number of inbuilt cameras that sits in close proximity to your TV and watches you while you dance, ski, surf or whatever the game allows you to do. It can even put you into the game and let you watch just how crazy you look on your own TV.

Word of warning – don’t play this in front of your windows – you may draw unnecessary attention to yourself. But if you let your partner film you while doing the hula hoop challenge or a skateboarding mission, you can get yourself a nice £250 from You’ve Been Framed...

On the other side of evolved gaming, it has become much more interactive. In my opinion there is nothing like a microphone and headset to boost a game of Call of Duty. With adaptable keyboards available for messaging, headsets that allow you to chat to other players when online and even webcams, you can make gaming as interactive as you’d like. And with the new PS4 expected to have an ability to record gaming as you play and then upload live to the network for other people to watch, it’s set to get even more interactive in the future. So we know that games are now better for our health and social life than before, but are they also better for our minds? I would say so. Games are generally much more challenging now, with logic, strategy and spacial awareness all developed through modern gameplay. Not to mention the Nintendo DS – seen as one of the most educational pieces of kit around. Games on this handheld console include Brain Training – a collection of challenging puzzles that are scientifically proven to keep the brain active and focused – as well as classic crossword puzzles, spot the difference and sudoku. The Nintendo DS is a great console for all ages, not just for gamers. So I think it’s safe to say that although gaming should still be enjoyed in moderation (much like a good wine), it’s a lot less isolating, a lot more intelligent and a lot more physical than when we were young and the only exercise that occurred then was when we threw our controllers in frustration.

Reviews:

  • Title: Disney Infinity
  • Platform: Xbox 360
  • Genre: Action
  • Price: £52.99

This has to go down as Disney’s most ambitious video game initiative, ever. Infinity, pictured, introduces an all-new game universe in which a spark of imagination can unlock a fantastical world. Players have ultimate freedom and the endless opportunity to create their own stories and play experiences starring the much-loved characters from the Disney and Pixar repertoire. The starter pack price of over £50 may cause some parents to baulk when the kids come calling, but there’s a plethora of content in the three bundled playsets – Pirates of the Caribbean, Monsters University and The Incredibles. Each is activated by placing the toy figurine on the Infinity base, and opens you to the story-driven campaigns, each with a very different play experience, from platforming to stealth to all-out action. Everything unlocked here then becomes available for mixing and mashing in the Toy Box arena, a sandbox game creator that will consume kids for hours as they pull unlikely contemporary characters together in the unique adventures of their own making. Of course, this is only the start; with even more character figurines (and associated worlds) available for purchase, and once you start, you and your family may not be able to stop...

  • Title: Saints Row IV
  • Platform: PS3
  • Genre: Action
  • Price: £29.99

There’s a window of opportunity to suck open-world action gamers into the world of Saints Row once more, ahead of the much-anticipated release of the daddy of sandbox playgrounds, GTA V. Saints Row IV advances the story of the Third Street Saints by upping their status to the highest level – the leaders of the free world. After a catastrophic alien invasion, where the aliens transport the Saints to a bizarro-Steelport simulation, you’ve got to fight to free humanity from the mental grasp of alien granddaddy Zinyak by utilising gargantuan superpowers. And here’s where the fourth iteration catapults SR4 into the stratosphere. The addition of superpowers is a masterstroke, and though many of the mission structures, territory expansion and in-game buying options will feel familiar to fans of the series, the new location and out-of-this-world talents you can apply to your characters puts everything in a brilliant new perspective. It’s fabulous fun, and a fitting current generation send-off for this crazy world.

  • Title: Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Blacklist
  • Platform: PC
  • Genre: Shooter
  • Price: £29.99

So, another opportunity to unleash the force of the most lethal agent ever to exist. Once again, you are Sam Fisher, and you’ve been granted the ultimate license to protect innocents against an array of global terror attacks known as Blacklist. It’s the freedom to use limitless power, to bend or break virtually every law, and to rise to the level of the world’s most lethal operative. And so begins a return to the stealth approach that served 2005’s Chaos Theory so well.

You have the option to go all-out run and gun, but Splinter Cell is best played softly, softly; your ‘in-the-shadows’ approach will be rewarded by tallied achievements and the in-game currency that can be used to purchase more advanced weaponry and hi-tech gizmos.

One for your wishlist, not your blacklist.