In years past, we have provided parents with a list of games we recommend for kids in addition to a list of games that you should make sure kids avoid. This year our list has been expanded to include brief descriptions as well as a list of game for younger children and a list for teens.

Blitz The League II is not your friendly football video game. Players can target which part of their opponent they wish to demolish. Steroid and drug use is encouraged, and wins are celebrated with hookers in a hotel room. The game is rated M for blood and gore, strong language, suggestive themes, use of drugs and violence. Available on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Dead Space is one of the latest titles in the survival horror genre of video games. The setting is hundreds of years in the future after mankind has used all of earth’s natural resources. During the mission players, stranded on a crippled vessel, must destroy nightmarish creatures while trying to rescue any survivors and escape the ship. If caught the creatures will not just kill you, but dismantle your limbs and decapitate you. Dead Space is rated M for blood and gore, intense violence and strong language. Available on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Fallout 3 is set in a post-nuclear world. The survivors must navigate their way through a world with giant insects, raiders, slavers and super mutants. Player’s kill whatever is in their path with guns and explosives. This game is rated M for blood and gore, intense violence, sexual themes, strong language and drug use. Available on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Far Cry 2 is set in an unnamed African country being torn apart by two warring groups. The gamer’s mission is to kill The Jackal, an arms dealer who is supplying to both sides of the conflict. Blowing peoples heads off is a regular occurrence in this game. The game is rated M for blood, drug references, intense violence, sexual themes and strong language. Available on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Gears of War 2 finds Marcus Fenix and the Delta Squad battling the Locust Horde for the survival of humanity. The game’s main weapon is the Lancer Assault Rifle, which combines a rifle with a chain saw. The game is rated M for blood and gore, intense violence and strong language. Available on Xbox 360.

Left 4 Dead finds the player in a city where a new and highly powerful rabies virus is quickly spreading. Victims become grotesquely disfigured and launch vicious attacks on the uninfected. In this co-operative multiplayer action game the gamers fight for survival. The game is rated M for blood and gore, intense violence, and language. Available on PC and Xbox 360.

Legendary is the story of Charles Deckard, a thief who breaks into a New York museum and opens what turns out to be Pandora’s Box, unleashing all of the world’s evil and destroying all humans in its path. Deckard must defeat the newly unleashed beasts and reseal Pandora’s Box to make society safe once again. Legendary is rated M for blood and gore, and intense violence. Available on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Resistance 2 finds Nathan Hale fighting the same Chimera alien race he did in the original Resistance game. This version is set in the United States instead of Europe. The Chimera obliterates cities and kills civilians by the thousands. The game is rated M for blood and gore, intense violence and strong language. Available on PlayStation 3.

Saints Row 2 is the second edition to the open-world, gang-affiliated, shoot ‘em up game series. This game has expanded with new locations to explore and new vehicles to steal including motorcycles, boats, helicopters and planes. In the game, the player can choose to beat up strippers, slit rival game members throats, shoot cops and more. Saints Row 2 is rated M for blood and gore, intense violence, sexual content, strong language and use of drugs. Available on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Silent Hill: Homecoming is a “first-person shooter” game. The gamer plays Alex Shepherd, a recently discharged soldier who returns home to Shepherd’s Glen. He finds that people are disappearing, the streets are shattered and strange creatures are roaming the town. Near the end the player is faced with a choice to shoot his mother in the head or let the rack rip her in half. The game is rated M for blood and gore, intense violence, language and sexual themes. Available on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.