If you are here right now, you probably are looking to buy a video game for someone whether it's their birthday, graduation, Christmas, Chanukkah, or any other special occasion. So you decide on a video game...now what? With so much to choose from, its hard to decide. Maybe this guide will make it easier for you to pick the perfect gift.

1.) Know what system the child has. The most important thing you should know is the child's video game system you are buying for. Whether it be Playstation 2, Playstation, XBOX, XBOX 360, GameCube, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, or just the standard personal computer.

2.) Know your price range. One important factor in determining the quality and sincerity of a video game is the price. For example, typically Playstation 2 games are known to go from $20 to $50 retail. $20 is definitely a bargain but your getting just that, a cheap game at the bottom of the barrel of other games. Just think, for a second, "Why would a game be this cheap?". Remember video games take research, time, and expensive equipment to develop and test. Its always best to find reviews online to find the video game that is worth what you pay for.

3.) Know the video game's ESRB rating. I'm not a strong advocate on this one, but today's parents seem more interested in how violent a video game is than ever before. I still believe that buying a video game is based on the child's maturity but the parents will never be too happy that you bought a game made for people 17 and over for your 8 year old grandchild. So the ratings go like this:

Early Childhood- 3 and up

Everyone- 7 and up

Everyone 10+- 10 and up

Teen- 14 and up

Mature- 17 and up

Adults Only- 18 and up (there still hasn't been a publicly marketing game with this rating except for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas for the ability to unlock a sexual scene)

4.) Always judge a game by its cover. If you are browsing for a video game, something catches your eye and you look to the back to see more information and there are 2 lines of information a small picture and a little review. Not very assuring. The whole idea of the box is to market your product. Unfortunate many developers tend to not put so much infomation about the game, so you are pretty much getting a preview that the game is going to be bland and likely to be returned (if you bought it from the store).

5.) The last tip about buying a game is the deteriorating quality. Something I have always noticed about video games is their tendency to lack in quality and impact following the release date of a future system by the same company. During the last run of a system with about a year to go for the new update to be out, games start getting cheap looking and not very pleasing. If you know the person you are buying for has a newer system buy the game for the new system rather than the old one.

So there you have it, now you know how to buy a video game for a special (or not) someone. Remember that the kid you are buying for is going to know about the game just by looking at it so make sure you check out the reviews first. But always remember, "When in doubt, buy a gift card".