The newest addition to the Prince George Public Library collection has got game.
Starting on Dec. 11 at 5:30 p.m., library users will be able to access a collection of video games for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii. Teen librarian and acting public service manager Amy Dawley said the library currently has 126 titles for the three systems and plans to add more in the future.
"I think this is something that is a long time coming," Dawley said. "[We want]... to ensure the library is being relevant to young people. Video games are a part of young people's lives."
The Prince George library already carries collections of movies, music, television shows and graphic novels, Dawley said, so adding video games isn't a stretch. Other libraries have been adding collections of video games for years, she added.
"I spoke with a teen librarian at [the Greater Victoria Public Library] who said, to the best of their knowledge, they were the first in Canada -and that was back in 2007," Dawley said.
Bringing video games to the library has been on the wish list of the library's youth advisory board, she added.
The library had the opportunity to work with a master's student at UBC's School of Library, Archival and Information Studies who researched the viability of introducing video games to the library's collection.
"Overwhelmingly, when we asked the question, 'do you think the library should start carrying video games?' people said yes," Dawley said.
With the near-extinction of video stores that rent video games, the library's collection will fill a niche in the community, she added.
The game collection is geared toward teens and young adults, she said, with a smaller number of titles for younger children. Library staff will work with parents to understand the rating system used by games -the Electronic Software Rating Board (ESRB) system -so parents can decide which games are suitable for their children to play, she said.
Parents will be able to search the catalog of games by rating to find age-appropriate games, Dawley added.
The game titles available can be viewed online at www.lib.pg.bc.ca/videogames. Customers will be able to take out up to three games at a time per library card, for up to one week at a time.
The library will look to add new titles, and support for new game systems, as demand and available funding allows.
"We will be collecting the new game systems when enough people have the systems in their homes to make it worthwhile," she said.
