It’s so simple it almost seems like a no-brainer. Would a child rather receive a piece of candy for Halloween, or a twenty-dollar video game? If you guessed the video game, congratulations, you’re not an out-of-touch old fool yet. PopCap Games and the American Dental Association today presented the data backing their efforts to reduce tooth decay in children at an event in Times Square.

Dubbing the project “Stop Zombie Mouth”, PopCap is working alongside the ADA to offer trick-or-treaters copies of their hit game Plants vs. Zombies as an alternative to picking up that extra piece of candy. According to their research, the average child receives 91 pieces of candy while trick-or-treating. This leads to weeks of sugary consumption that, when combined with poor brushing and flossing, can only lend to the increased occurrence of cavities.

Luckily, the children are on board with the project. According to their survey of children between the ages of five and thirteen, 67% of children stated that they received too much candy during Halloween. A rough statistic, considering that they likely only see half of the grand total after their parents pick off the good stuff from their children’s candy coffers. (Don’t think that they don’t know…)

The research went on to state that 93% of children would rather receive a free video game than a piece of candy during Halloween. It’s is a good touch, but a little unsurprising. I’m actually more stunned at the idea that 7% of children aren’t able to objectively quantify the value of a game with replay value and a single Snickers mini. The 93% figure is comparatively dominant to the mere 75% of parents that chose the video game over the piece of candy for their child.

I don’t know, maybe that specific survey question lacked context. Maybe parents thought their kids were going to stumble upon the collector’s edition of Kill the Hookers IV. Either way, they can rest easy that PopCap is offering a family-friendly game to kids. Dentists around the country will have collectible card packs available from October 30th to November 10th, complete with a download code for PvZ, redeemable Stop Zombie Mouth website. The code is universal, so parents can pick up their own copy as well. All in all, a way better alternative than apple slices and carrot sticks. (What, they're lame. There, I said it.)

You can check below for the associated music video and trading card images. I'm going to go brush again.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/PakDzaJZR8o