The Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) is the annual video game trade show where most major publishers showcase their biggest and best games for the upcoming holiday season in beyond. Despite the fact that the 2012 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles highlighted moregory and violent games than in years past, we were still able to find more than 25 family-friendly games and accessories which we liked enough to call our favorites.  A few of these are available now, and most will be here by holiday 2012. We can’t wait to bring you more info on these as they are released.

Here are the FamilyFriendlyVideoGames.com E3 2012 favorites, separated by category.  We’ll start with our overall favorites first.

 

Best overall family-friendly games at E3 2012

Skylanders Giants – Activision – If you’re not up to speed on the hottest toy/video game crossover, then here’s a crash course. Skylanders are real-life collectible figurines that come to life within the Skylanders video game when placed on the included “Portal of Power.” This year’s Skylanders Giants is the follow-up to the franchise’s debut in 2011, and features more than 40 new collectible characters, including 8 all-new “Giant” Skylanders which are bigger and more powerful.  It may sound like a gimmick, but it actually works so well because Skylanders gameplay is spectacular two-player co-op fun.  And the Portal of Power makes it easy to quickly switch characters whenever you want. 

Nintendoland – Nintendo – We couldn’t be more excited to recommend Nintendo’s new Wii-U console for families, and launch titles like Nintendo Playland are the perfect illustration of the possibilities the new GamePad tablet controller will provide.  Nintendoland will feature 12 different games based on well-known Nintendo franchises like Donkey Kong, Legend of Zelda, Animal Crossing, Luigi’s Mansion and more.  Each game asks at least one player to utilize the GamePad in a unique way, and often require lots of team work and cooperation in order to best help each other play.  For example, up to four players may try and collect candy around a map which they can only view a part of at a time, while the player with the GamePad tries to catch them and “tag” them and always has a view of where everyone is.

Wonderbook: Book of Spells – Sony Computer Entertainment America – Wonderbook is a genius idea from PlayStation, in that it’s a real-life book that has AR codes all over it which come to life when placed in front of the PlayStation Move camera.  Harry Potter’s Book of Spells from JK Rowling is the first title to be released for Wonderbook, and let’s player learn and practice actual spells from Hogwarts, while watching themselves do it on screen.  It’s a magical experience, and one that blends books and interactive entertainment.

Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two – Disney Interactive - Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two is the best two-player game families can look forward to this holiday season.  With bright and colorful gameplay and gorgeous graphics on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, the game is an improvement over the first Epic Mickey, which featured some dark themes and technical issues that helped prevent it from being a runaway family hit.  Families will play side-by-side as Mickey and Oswald as they use a combination of paint and thinner to battle the evil forces which are tearing apart many classic Disney backdrops.

Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes – WBIE – This cooperative Lego game starts 50 characters from the DC universe of comic book heroes, such as Batman, Robin, Superman, Wonder Woman, the Flash and more.  It’s got the classic Lego sense of humor, dozens of hours worth of replayability with hidden collectible items, and is bound to be a cooperative blast for families this summer.

 

Best games for families with preschoolers:

Kinect Nat Geo TV – Microsoft – Many families made the switch from Wii to Kinect in 2011, and they now have a new breed of Kinect game to look forward to with these TV style offerings due out in time for the holidays. Filmed with real Nat Geo TV hosts, Kinect Nat Geo TV plays like a real television episode, but with action sequences in between educational moments.  For example, kids and parents will need to get off the couch and eat fish like grizzly bears after learning how they gobble them with their mouths as they jump out of the river.

Kinect Sesame Street TV – Microsoft – We’re so intrigued and excited by the new breed of Kinect TV games that we had to include two on our list.  Kinect Sesame Street TV features 8 full episodes of Sesame Street that were actually filmed in conjunction with this past season that aired on PBS.  But thanks to the Kinect Camera, kids and grown-ups can interact with characters and familiar scenes in silly and fun ways that make learning interactive, educational and hilariously fun.

Just Dance Disney Party – Disney Interactive – The wildly successful Just Dance formula is getting the Disney treatment, with songs and routines to Disney movie classics as well as tunes from the current lineup on the Disney Channel.  Elementary-aged kids will also love Just Dance Disney Party, including the extended freeze mode which requires kids to stand perfectly still for extended periods – no small feat!

Nickelodeon Dance 2 – 2KPlay – This sequel to last year’s Nickelodeon Dance is designed for preschoolers, starring Dora, Kai-Lan, the Fresh Beat Band, Team Umizoomi, the Bubble Guppies and the Backyardigans. Songs from all these favorite Nick Jr. shows are here in Nickelodeon Dance 2, with easy dance moves for kids that also provide good exercise. And while many adults find the Fresh Beat Band to be over-the-top on the cheese scale, this chance to hear their songs as they stand on their own may surprise.

 

Best games for families with kids & tweens:

Where’s My Perry? – Disney Interactive – We couldn’t help but include this awesome app that is basically a mash-up of the smash hit Where’s my Water with the Phineas & Ferb universe.  Featuring a heavy dose of Dr. Doofenshmirtz and evil lasers, as well as inside-jokes based on Phineas & Ferb, there’s no doubt that Where’s My Perry is the must-have app for summer vacation, all 104 days of it.

Rayman Legends – Ubisoft – The beautiful hand-drawn characters and backgrounds are only one reason we love Rayman Legends for Wii-U. We also love the cool use of the GamePad tablet controller that requires teamwork and strategic timing in order to help the action on the main TV screen progress.

Harry Potter Kinect – WBIE – Featuring highlights from all eight Harry Potter movies, this Kinect game places kids alongside Harry, Ron and Hermione as they progress their way through Hogwarts and ultimately to the final battle with Voldemort.

Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time – Sony Computer Entertainment America – Longtime favorite Sly Cooper is back in a game being designed by folks who are probably bigger fans of the series than you are. This means they’re lovingly paying attention to all the right details and gameplay elements in this single-player adventure that sees traveling through time to help fix the time problems his long-lost ancestors (such as Sir Gallacooper) are having.

Smart As… - Sony Computer Entertainment America – Bringing brain-training to Vita, Smart As…uses all the Vita features to test Logic, Reflexes, Arithmetic and more. What’s really cool about Smart As… is the way that statistics can be quickly tracked and compiled to help compare different groups across your own personal network, countries and even continents.

 

Best family-friendly games for teens

Quantum Conundrum – Square Enix – It may look like a first-person shooter, but it’s really all about shifting dimension and utilizing the objects around you (usually boxes of some sort) to progress through a mad professor’s mansion.  Need a heavy object but only have a cardboard box?  Shift to heavy dimension.  Need to float across a chasm but only have a safe.  Throw it, switch to slo-mo dimension to jump on top of it, and then alternate between gravity and no-gravity dimensions as you ride it across long distances.  Quantum Conundrum requires lots of thinking and precise timing.

Dance Central 3 – Harmonix – Learn to dance from the pros, as celebrity choreographers such as Usher climb aboard the Dance Central 3 train to include real-life moves they perform on their tours and in their videos.

New Super Mario Bros Wii-U – Nintendo – Although it essentially plays nearly identically to New Super Mario Bros. U, that’s not a bad thing at all.  What is new is the use of a “helper” player holding the GamePad tablet that can place objects and stun enemies to help up to four players play through the level on the main screen.

Sony PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale – Sony Computer Entertainment America – This brawler is perfect for competitive minded teens, providing detailed arenas based on popular PlayStation franchises as a backdrop for four-player brawling action.  There’s a mixture of characters from E-, T- and M-rated franchises here which gives us a bit of pause, but ultimately these characters perform actions that are age-appropriate for this likely T-rated game.

Scribblenauts Unlimited – WBIE – Using the Wii-U GamePad as the input device, Scribblenauts Unlimited lets players devise nearly anything they can imagine by simply spelling it out, and then inserting it into the game to see if it solves the problem.  Need to cross a giant chasm?  See if a red iguana might help you (spoiler: it probably won’t).   We love Scribblenauts for its ability to allow players and families to stretch their creativity to solve problems.

 

Best games for playing together:

Rabbids Land Wii-U – Ubisoft – The zany Rabbids, with their surprisingly endearing loud-mouth, potty-humor-loving antics, are back in this board-game style title which sees players use Wii-U enhanced mini-games to try and progress through the game.  It’s perfect for family game night or simply playing with your friends.

Just Dance 4- Ubisoft – The cool thing about Just Dance 4 is the game’s “DJ” mode which allows a player to hold the Wii-U GamePad tablet to select the upcoming dance moves for up to four other players.  It means no dance is ever the same, and that Just Dance will continue to be a great title for any sort of gathering.

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed – SEGA – Sonic and friends are taking their cart-racing to the land, air and sea, complete with numerous items and tracks that are all based on popular SEGA franchises.  Fans of Sonic and more will love seeing the attention to detail in each level as they fly through the air or take to the water.

Game & Wario – Nintendo – It’s another collection of games for Wii-U, and we’re not complaining.  These activities are based on the WarioWare characters, and can even provide for multiple players to participate while simply watching the screen while one player uses the GamePad tablet to try and fool them.  There are all sorts of permutations for multiplayer fun with Game & Wario for Wii-U.

Little Big Planet Kart Racing – Sony Computer Entertainment America – Little Big Planet and cart racing are a match made in heaven, with fully customizable tracks, items and more that make even user-generated experiences feel like they were made for developers – and vice versa.  Little Big Planet kart Racing is a must-have game this holiday season for any PlayStation owning family.

 

Most innovative family-friendly games:

NBA Baller Beats – Majesco – We’ve seen motion controls and even no controls, but now we’ve seen a game that uses a basketball as the control. If you can get past the obvious hesitation and concerns with encouraging dribbling basketballs inside a house, you’ll find a rhythm game in which each dribble, crossover and head-fake must be done in time with the music.  Even after just playing NBA Baller Beats for one song, you’ll notice your ball-handling skills improving.

Dice + - Dice +- This accessory uses Bluetooth to connect to nearly any device, whether it’s a tablet, TV or smartphone, and uses special apps to serve as a gameboard while you roll the real-life Dice + to either move the action along or choose an item.  The Dice + comes with 9 apps available for download, and looks to be a cool way to have a high-tech family game night where you are all gathered around a table and interacting, but in a very modern way.

Sphero – Sphero – This is another Bluetooth device for smartphones and tablets which has a number of functions which make it an interesting consideration for families.  Not only can use a free app to control like a remote-controlled car, you can also use a different free app to program and create your own sequences, which can later be shared with other.  Pick up the Sphero or put it on a table and it becomes a game controller for even more free apps.  It’s got a hefty price tag – more than $100 – but it’s worth keeping an eye on as an innovative way that families can play together using technology.

Unfinished Swan – SCEA – We’re tempted to call this the blank slate video game, as players are given minimal actual gameplay instruction outside of a storybook-style intro about a boy who is magically inserted into his grandfather’s painting.  Players will need to figure out all the controls and objectives on their own, and as they do so they’ll unravel the story and feel a great sense of power and validation from deciding everything themselves.

Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz – SEGA – With the abundance of Super Monkey Ball games for nearly every platform, you’re family is likely familiar with the franchise and may be surprised to see it here as innovative. But the VITA version does something really cool that we can’t wait to try ourselves.  You can take a picture of any object and after a few seconds of thinking, Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz will generate a level based on your photo. It means that even for players that complete everything they can in this game, there’s literally a world full of levels for them to create and explore.  How’s that for replayability?

 

Johner Riehl is the founder and editorial director for FamilyFriendlyVideoGames.com.  He's also a freelance writer focusing on all areas of families and technology, and is a regular contributor to TechSavvyMag.com, Zui.com and Wired Moms.  He's also a featured writer and co-author of Scott Steinberg's Modern Parent's Guide series.  TWITTER: @FmlyFrndlyVdGms & @FamilyTechDad