Why the kids are all right

After school, 12-year-old George immediately turns on his Xbox at home in Mid-Levels. An invitation to play Call of Duty: Black Ops flashes on his screen; his friend Adam in Oxfordshire, Britain, is waiting. George accepts, puts on his headset, and the two start chatting and planning strategy while they wait for their friend Joe in Pokfulam to come online and join the team.

It's the modern equivalent of meeting your friends at the mall; but here's the irony: while today's parents know exactly where their gaming children are, they're more concerned than ever about what they are doing.

Hong Kong resident Laurie Constantinides is all too aware of the negative effects of video games, having been a high school teacher in the US: 'I saw kids losing sleep, not doing any physical activity or failing in school because of gaming. Parents have to take control of the situation.'

That's why she sets firm guidelines on how often her 13-year-old son, Ben, may play.

Most parents share her concerns, fuelled by a slew of reports about the anti-social, violent and stupefying effect of video games. It's certainly a hot topic, but some experts in this relatively new field argue that such games can actually play a positive role in how children learn, develop and work collaboratively.

James Paul Gee, a professor of literacy studies at Arizona State University, leads the charge. Describing games as problem-solving exercises, he goes so far as to argue that children who don't play computer games may be at a disadvantage.