As summer arrives, I thought I'd ask.

I'm not talking about the occasional "LAN Party" where a bunch of friends might come over and Halo Deathmatch through the night. I'm talking about every day, chore-skipping, coma-inducing play. Then when kicked off, whining for a while and then plopping in front of the TV set.

How much do your kids play? Are you happy with their extra-curriculars?

I try not to let my kids play more than a couple of hours a day. With action figures, bikes, swings and trampolines, they have plenty of other things they can do.

I'd rather my kids play a video game... than play on a TRAMOPOLINE!

I think 2 hours is plenty... but here it's the minimum? A lot of people would say it was too much... what's up with this poll??

2 hours is plenty if they have nothing else they need to do. My kids tend to be doing other things for the bulk of the day (Basketball Camp, Vacation Bible School, Cub Scout Camp, etc.). We also have a pool which they spend several hours in. After all that (and us making them read and do math to keep up their skills) 2 hours of video games is the least we can do for them. If they have friends over and are playing multi-player games we may let them play longer especially if they are spending the night.

I wonder how you thought of this thread, Y2K.

1 hour a day, or 2 hours every other day.

cheapskate, start up a new & improved poll please...

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seriously, 2 hours a day is too much... maybe 1/2 hour.

I wish you were in charge of moderating Y2K's stepson's play time

I remember with myself during the summer i could play games before 11 am and after 6pm. i thought that was okay, and that way i got some sun

If I had a kid I'd draw the line at 6 hours. That's what I did.

I've had to restrict the video games pretty heavily on my son. Too much of that and not enough playing outside. Bad thing is all of his friends are doing the same thing so its hard to get any of them to go outside in the sun. During the school year it was weekends only for a few hours.

For the summer its 2 hours a day every other day tops. If he gets bored I will take him to the library and ruin his summer completely.

If I had a kid, I would give them 2-3 hours a day during the week in front of the TV set. Whether they play video games or watch television is their choice. I'd be a little more lenient on the weekends and during the summer, and of course when they're sick at home.

What about playing their Gameboy? Does that count, or would it be a seperate thing (as long as they didn't play it at home)? If the kid just plays it while riding in the car or something, that's fine... but if he seems to not be able to put it down wherever he goes, then I'd start counting it as part of his daily gaming allowance.

My nephew is restricted from playing during school nights. On non-school nights, a couple of hours. However, the parents try and get him to do outdoor things as much as possible when weather permits as they live in the Northeast and good days are far and few.

I don't have kids, but I'd be inclined to say about 1 hour to 90 minutes a day. Even I restrict myself to only one hour gaming sessions so I don't get the thousand yard stare.

I would let my kid play for an hour or hour and a half. But Id be flexible. If he was in the middle of a level and his time was up, I wouldn't just shut it off, like my mom did to me!

2 hours per day during the week, 4 for the entire weekend. We limit our daughter (who is not a gamer) to 2 hours of internet per day, and have it cut off at 9pm nightly.

I'm a lifelong gamer, and I'm going to be a father in September. I fully plan to introduce my kid to gaming as well as sports and other activities that I enjoy.

I think of gaming and tv time as the same thing. I'll limit my kid's TV/Gaming/Computer time to a set amount, probably about 2 hours per day. How they want to spend it is up to them.

I hardly watch any television. I spend the time that most people watch prime-time television on gaming or on my computer doing things. I would rather participate in an interactive story, solving puzzles and using strategy, than be a passive observer of a television show. If my kid wants to do that too, more power to him.