Computer games play an important part in Danish children and young people’s lives. A recent survey on Danish people’s cultural habits from The Danish Ministry of Culture shows that, 84% of children who use a computer in their spare time, use it to play games.

Danish children and young people play computer games alone, with friends, at home or at the net café.  They also play with or against friends with online games.

In Denmark, online gaming is gradually becoming an organised form of gaming. Online communities with hundreds of users participating in discussions and tournaments are created, and computer game clans are set up by young boys and increasingly also young girls that perceive online gaming as a new form of competitive team sport.

To stir up the public debate about children and young people’s use of computer games and money games, the Danish Media Council, Children’s Welfare and The Centre for Compulsive Gambling held a conference on the 11th of November 2005. The conference addressed both positive and negatives elements of children’s gaming habits and sketched an image of the future of games for children and young people. 

The conceptual point of departure was an attempt to achieve a thorough understanding of children and young people’s use of games and the Danish gaming and gambling environment. Thus, an internet spot test about gaming and gambling habits was conducted among 4828 children and young people. And young people at two Danish high schools were interviewed. The result is a short film which is now available at the Danish Media Council’s web page.

The Danish Media Council for Children and Young People moreover has a website with advice, information and educational material about children’s use of computer games. Here, one also can find information on the PEGI rating system. Online games do not yet have PEGI ratings.