Features

• For kids age 8 and older
• A new chess adventure with Fritz, Bianca, and Chesster
• Covers openings, middle-game tactics, endgames, and more
• More than 20 mini games within the game for practice
• Powered by "Fritz", the world's leading chess software

Features

• Join SpongeBob and Patrick on an epic and comedic quest to unexplored territory
• 3 playable characters: SpongeBob SquarePants, Plankton, and Mindy (new)
• Make the perilous journey to Shell City; huge 3D worlds based on the movie
• Authentic voice talent and special cameo appearances
• Non-linear game play allows players multiple paths for completing main objectives

Amazon.com Review

Forget the cat litter, all-hours dog walks, and outrageous vet bills; Barbie Pet Rescue features some of the most realistic, adorable animalswe've ever seen in a computer program--and without all the work involved inowning a real-live pet. Visit Barbie and her kid sister Stacey at the Pet RescueCenter, where you'll wait for rescue missions, explore in the playrooms, or tendto pets in the Care Center.

Rescue missions come in over the phone or via e-mail; after learning which petis missing where, travel with Barbie on her scooter to one of three differentenvironments in which to search for one of eight lost pets. In many missions,you'll have to use your wits to figure out how to entice scared animals to cometo you, or how to retrieve pets trapped in trees or other sticky situations. Ifyou get stuck yourself, Barbie's full of helpful hints to send you on the rightdirection. With each successful mission, you'll receive a printable Paw & PurrAward that hangs on the PRC wall.

Rescued pets come back to the Pet Rescue Center with you and Barbie to wait fortheir owners and receive a little TLC. Nurse them back to health in the Care Center, where you'll give recovered pets water, treats, vitamins--evenbaths and brushings; sometimes you may also need to bandage a hurt leg or pickburrs from ruffled fur. After creating a file for them in the computer andgiving them a name you select from a list of suggestions, the animals go to oneof two playrooms to wait for their owners.

In the meantime, you can play with them, plus all the other pets already in theplayroom--a kitten, bunny, hamster, puppy, and even a turtle--in what is perhapsthe best of the game's activities: petting! Select which animal you'd like topet, then use the cursor to stroke an animal's head or back, or perhaps scratchher under the chin. The animals respond to your attention as they might in reallife, by licking, rolling over, purring, or barking. It's the next-best thing toa romp in the park with a real-live kitten or beagle.

There is a related game for each kind of animal--Kitten Keepaway, Puppy Treat Toss, Hamster Trail, etc.--and if you do well enough, you'll see theanimal do something especially cute. A few of the games test kids' logic andspatial aptitude, but mostly they challenge players' mouse mastery and hand-eyecoordination; a speedy "click" finger yields frequent success.

Our only complaint: once players have completed all eight rescue missions andthe activities in the playrooms, there's not a lot more to do. It's always funto pet the animals, but it's not likely to hold kids' attention for frequentreplay. That said, this graphically rich program is a real treat for any animallover. We plan on keeping this game around for those moments when wereally wish we had a dog around. (Ages 5 and up) --Leah Ball ... Read more

Reviews (41)

ATTENTION ALL KIDS 3-9 YEARS OLD
This is the perfect way for children to help other things like abanded pets,and to adopt pets. It is a very cute game. I really love it. I think it is a great game for girls or some boys that are pretty young. It's great for kid's who love animals or have pet birds, cats, dogs, turtles, and bunnies. It encourages them to start to help out more with their pet (if they have one) I'm not making the choice, you are, I can only recommend you to get it, anyways all I'm saying is it's a wonderful game! To wrap it up(my opinion): my advice is: JUST GET IT ALREADY!

A Nice Game
This game was quiet enjoyable and the graphics were very good. You rescue different animals -- dogs, bunnies, cats ect. -- during the game. After rescuing the animals, you take them back to the 'PRC' (Pet Rescue Center) to give them a check-up and name them.
One of the things that's kind of annoying is that the animals Barbie rescues are always girls. I'm a girl, so it really shouldn't matter, but that makes the game pretty un-realistic.
Also, you'll find the animals in odd places that they couldn't get to or trapped in in real life. The adventures you go on to rescue the animal are always the same. And, Barbie will rescue turtles, which she really shouldn't be able to tell whether they are pets or wild.
Anyway, it was a nice game all around. I recomend it for eight and under. If your son or daughter likes animals, this would be the game for them!

What A good Game
This game is great and I love all the games except the kitten keep away. But otherwise the game is the coolest and I am hoping to by one know and it would be so cool if you could send me one for free. Much love Britney.

Okay for a rainy day
My mom got me this game for christmas and I loved it. Now that was two yrs ago. Now I only play it when i'm really bored which is like never. One you get all your paw and purr awards it is just the same rescues over and over again.And also the thing that annoys me the most is that you can never keep any parrots once you rescue them. Also how do you know if the turtles were not wild to begin with? On the positive side the puppie kittens and rabbits were so life like. Overall a good game but play only if you are really bored and you need to pass the time.

from a person that loves animals
I love this game! In it you get emails or telephone calls saying that different people need your help because they saw or lost an animal, and they need you to go help them. You don't have to go on these missions if you don't want to though. The thing that I don't like about it though is that there are only about fifteen missions to go on. Once you rescue an animal, you take them into the vet area to take care of them. You give them a bath, feed them, and do other things with them. There are some great games that you can play, like a turtle obstacle course/race, a game where you try to get the treat into the puppy's mouth, and a hamster maze. Sometimes the hamster gets out and you have to try and find him. Once again, I love this game! ... Read more

Reviews (8)

XP issue
My son's had this game a while (I'm assuming it's the Hasbro Interactive branded game) and recently we upgraded his PC to XP.

Of course the game didn't work, but by selecting Properties on the game icon you can move to a Compatibility tab and run the game in 98/ME mode - Works fine like that.

Ryan's 7 now and the game is simple, but he still enjoys it from time to time, for its attractive graphics and Ringo's familiar naration.

I'd recommend this to anyone with a youngster interested in Thomas. Before we had this Ryan never went near the PC, now he's computer literate above his age (not entirely due to this game, but it piqued his interest).

Dishonest, misleading system requirements
Who runs Windows 98 or ME anymore? Nobody. This software will not run on ANY NT-based OS, including 2000 and XP. I've tried.(..)

For Atari to continue selling this (I don't care who they bought it from) is criminal.

Do not buy this title unless you're running a 9x-based machine. Better yet, don't buy it at all or anything from Atari until they sell software that will run on operating systems that are not five years out of date.(..)

Doesn't work
I've got a dual boot 98/2000 system. It obviously wouldn't work under 2000 but neither would it run under 98. The furthest I've got is the end of the intro movie and it hangs. I went as far as reformatting the OS drive and reinstalling 98 and 2000 so they were both clean but it still doesn't work. Working for a games developer myself I know how little work is involved in ensuring a game is compatable with new OS's and more recent versions of DirectX. Releasing a patch wouldn't be too painful. But then Developers have a different agenda to Publishers. Don't let the Atari monika fool you. This is the same old Infogrames under a new name to try to disguise their past from newbies. Despite the fact this game is still appearing in the shops they won't support it. I don't know what their excuse is. The BBC has at least put in writing why they refuse to upgrade their games past win98/directX 7. Because (apparently) most game players don't use Win 2k or XP. Most game players use 98/ME. Excuse me? Any games player who knows anything about getting the best from their gaming experience will be using 2k/XP, certainly not 98 or the abomination that is ME.

In short ... if you've recently bought a computer for your child, don't expect this or other games in the series from the BBc or Infogrames/Atari to work without a considerable amount of effort.

For small children
My son is almost 3 and this game is much to easy for him. Of course it being Thomas he still likes it, but the other games are much better. If your child is familer with the computer at all and over 2 1/2 dont' buy this, but for a first game it would be great!

Not for a 2 yr. old
We gave this game to my 2 yr old, who loves trains. The game looks and plays well, my 4 1/2 enjoyed it, but my 2 yr old was unable to play it, due to the dependance of pointing-and-clicking. Once the kids master hand-eye-mouse control, then they should enjoy it. ... Read more

Features

• Experience the expedition of a lifetime during the mid-1800's
• Relive a period in time that changed the United States forever
• Hunt for buffalo, barter for clothing, and cross treacherous rivers
• An action-packed adventure the whole family can enjoy
• For ages 7 and up

Reviews (3)

Wagons Ho!
Starcraft, Monkey Island, Medal of Honor, and Freelancer are exceptional games. Oregon Trail belongs among the great games. Oregon Trail II is great for the whole family. I think it would be a great game for teachers to show their students the difficulty the pioneers faced traversing from Illinois and Missouri to Utah and California. You will spend many hours figuring out how to start out as an artist and end up alive and wealthy in California. I suggest you start out as a banker first. Some will enjoy figuring out what medicines and other goods to take and others will enjoy hunting for meat on the trail and deciding which trails to take. I hope to see continued support of this game since my family has had it for years and we never tire of it. The best strategy is to take one of each essential item and then whatever else you can afford. It takes time to figure out what medicines are best for ailments. As for crossing rivers, if they are deep you better caulk the wagon, and if they are fast it is best to double team those horse. If you enjoyed this game you will love Oregon Trail 5. Good luck pioneer!

Trail Mix
This is one of the greatest computer games I have ever played. I put it in good company with Monkey Island, Starcraft, Red Alert, Medal of Honor, and Battlefield 1942. These other games are more for adults or boys where Oregon Trail II is great for the whole family. The video is interesting but the game itself not only is fun but a great teaching tool. I think it would be a great game for teachers to show their students the difficulty the pioneers faced traversing from Illinois and Missouri to Utah and California. You will spend many hours figuring out how to start out as an artist and end up alive and wealthy in California. I suggest you start out as a banker first. Girls will enjoy figuring out what medicines and other goods to take and boys will enjoy hunting for meat on the trail and deciding which trails to take. I hope to see continued support of this game since my family has had it for years and we never tire of it. The best strategy is to take one of each essential item and then whtever else you can afford. It takes time to figure out what medicines are best for ailments. As for crossing rivers, if they are deep you better caulk the wagon, and if they are fast it is best to double team those horse. Good luck pioneer!

HOURS of fun!
This game is the best! You are the "captain" of a train of wagons going out west in the 1800's. You can pick a number of people to go with you and pick their names and ages (I usually did my friends' names or the names of famous people). On the journey you encounter storms, food shortages, sickness, and desicions such as: If a person dies-keep going or have a burial? Where and when to stop and rest? How to spend the money you are given and what to do when you run out? And more. Overall, a great game! ... Read more

Features

• Experience a learning travel adventure with Dora the Explorer
• Valuable skill development for preschoolers, including colorful puzzles
• Popular Dora songs from the TV series--perfect for singing and dancing
• Classic storybook tales throughout Fairytale Land
• Includes bonus Dora figure for kids to take on their own adventures

Product Description

These aren't your typical pint-sized heroes!

Kids will join Spider-man and his friends to help those in need in this fun, interactive and educational adventure. Every activity will feature 3 different super-heroes, each with their own special ability. Children will practice basic pre-school skills in a fun arcade-style environment, while learning problem-solving skills and teamwork in a positive and constructive manner. Spider-Man & Friends features math, language, color and shape recognition with multiple difficulty settings for each challenge. Learning is fun and exciting with Spider-Man & Friends.

Six Marvel super-heroes featured:

• Hand Glider Spider-Man
• Crime Fighting Wolverine
• Air Rescue Captain America
• Skating Spider-Girl
• Laser Blast Cyclops
• Deep Sea Explorer Spider-Man
• Each activity features 3 of the 6 super-heroes

• Air Rescue Captain America can fly
• Deep Sea Explorer Spider-Man can swim

• Math skills: Number recognition, numeral recognition, greater than, less-than, and very basic arithmetic such as addition and subtraction
• Language skills: Letter recognition, upper & lower case letter recognition, and word/shape association
• Color and shape recognition

• Training
• Challenge

Features

• Join Spider-Man, Laser Blast Cyclops, Crime Fighting Wolverine and 3 more of your favorite Superheroes
• Explore vast maps as you help those in need in this side-scrolling adventure
• 2 modes of gameplay: training missions or challenge mode suit different learning levels
• Learning while you play has never been so much FUN: test math skills, language recognition and shapes & color identification

Amazon.com Product Description

Create the soccer team of your dreams with the Backyard Kids and the pros as kids. Backyard Soccer 2004 teams up with Major League Soccer to bring you kid versions of goal-scoring, hard-kicking, tough-running players, and puts you in control of the nonstop action. Create team lineups, customize teams, then take the field to play quick games, single games, or a whole season. Junior versions of pro players include Landon Donovan, Clint Mathis, Cobi Jones, and Brandi Chastain. It's the chance of a lifetime to play with the pros in your own backyard. ... Read more

Features

• Play soccer with the pros as kids, including Landon Donovan and Cobi Jones
• Choose from all 10 Major League Soccer teams
• Play quick games, single games, or a whole season
• Includes 4 new fields
• Track player and team stats

Reviews (65)

Another awesome upgrade to the already great series!
I have seen and played many demos and have read tons of reviews on this product.

I have been a fan of this Junior Sports series since the very first original Backyard Baseball came out. I own 2 of the 3 baseball editions, both of the football versions, my brothers have both of the soccer editions, and we also have Backyard Basketball.

From what I've seen and read this is another great additon to any of your collections of these games. The gameplay is smooth, the graphics are stunning, there are EVEN MORE gamplay options than in BYB 2001, the MLB kids faces are very believable, the players ability to play is slightly exaggerated but hey, that's what makes it so fun.

Being a big fan and player of baseball I follow the majors like nothing else. For that reason I noticed the ratings (Running, Pitching, Fielding, and Hitting) on the players to be slightly off. But if that's the only problem, that's an extremely small sacrifice to make when buying this game.

This game is worth every penny you spend on it. I recommend this game for fans and non-fans of all ages.

The levels of difficulty are set very well for people that play it. I do wish though that they would add an extra "Major League" level of play for us older guys that are looking for some challenging opponents.

I haven't tried online play yet but I'm sure you would find some more challenging people to play against.

This series is getting better with every game and should soon become one of the top sports games on the market. I hope that soon they will expand their games and come out with Backyard Baseball Pennent Race Edition Expansion Pack that will include the new hot rookies in the majors. Who knows? Maybe it's not that far off from now.

In closing I want you to know that this game does not have the new backyard kid design. The new Backyard Hockey has new kids to chose from and absolutely stunning visual effects. I recommend that game also for the Backyard Series fans.

Oh yeah, one more thing, HAVE FUN!!!

Sincerely,
Ian Badeer
A True Backyard Series Fan

Baackyard basketball 2004
I think this game is really good. People say this is too easy but i am 11 and I play on hard mode and I lose sometimes It is deffinetly better then the first backyard basketball because the originial only had two pros and this has ten. This game has good pros and good pro selections but they could have had better people as well like Steve Francis, Baron Davis and Kobe Bryant. Some of the people in there have not very good attributes like Tim Duncan has no outside shot but in real life he is a good outside shooter and Pau Gasol has no outside shot but can make all of the three pointers he shoots. Making a shot is very easy from outside but inside shots are kinda difficult. This game has the same graphics and gameplay as Backyard Hockey which I like the gameplay but the graphics i don't like. I would reccomend this game for 5-12 year olds and if you want the ultimate team I would pick Tracy McGrady, Dirk Nowitzki and Tim Duncan as starters and reserves Yao Ming and Paul Peirce. Other than the bad graphics and the choosing of the pros and pro's attributes this is a very fun and good game.

forced to do setups
From the makers of putt-putt,freddi fish,spy fox and pajama sam comes backyard sports.It's fun but you buy it on software,that's where it gets **** instead of *****.Humongous FORCES you to do their setups BEFORe you can play your game.

The Best Baseball Game Ever!
This game is great and a little challanging! The menus are very simple. There are 2 modes that you can play on. A single game mode and season play mode. In single game mode, if you want certain players on your team you have to get them quickly because your opponent can get them before you do. A cool part of single game mode is that you can play tee-ball and watch a demo! On season mode you pick your players first so you have all the players that you want. Each player has four ratings, Batting, Running, Pitching and Fielding. There are three game levels. (Excluding tee-ball mode) A way that makes the game challanging is that there is pluses and minus'. Pluses make them stronger in a rating and minus' make them lower in a rating.If you want to play season mode I reccomend you first play some single games and watch some demos. Also you should start at easy level and work your way up to medium then hard. Heres a tip. Never get Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds! They get tired to easily and get lots of minus'. A very fun game!

Great game and to me fun to play!
This Backyard Soccer 2004 has my favorite players here.Like Brandi Chastain,Tiffity Milbrett,and Cobi Jones.This is a fun game to play,but the hard level still a piece of cake.You can make your color of your team,but the promblem is you have to choose from some choices instead of naming your team.That's my kinda suggestion.I won the game a hundred times already,but I love it and I keep on playing it!I think this is a 4 star rating for one reason why 4 stars,Way too easy! ... Read more

Features

• Intense space combat set outside the classic Star Trek world
• Pilot 10 unique space craft never seen before
• 19 incredible levels
• Amazingly detailed environments
• For 1 player

Reviews (17)

An innovating and suprisingly fun game, but not without flaw
Truth be told, this game is the first "fighter" game of it's type.

The premis of the game is simple. The USS Excelsior, commanded by Captain Hikaru Sulu responds to a distress call from two federation ships, one being the USS Enterprise..oddly..under the command of Pavel Chekov. Somehow, the Excelsior is pulled into the alternate universe, and runs right into the ISS Enterprise, commanded by an evil Pavel Chekov. Chaos ensues for nearly 20 missions.

This game has many good points. The graphics, sound and music as well as the story line are all top notch, and deserve praise. Many Original Series moments are duplicated in the mirror universe in top form, and the capital ships are very difficult to destroy with a fighter, as they should be.
However....

The games flaws keep it from gaining a 5 star rating. The game is insanely difficult even on easy. the Imperial Fleet seems to be made up of only three classes of ships, the Refit Constitution Class, the Miranda class and an unamed Destroyer class. In all the missions, the capital ships never slug it out, you never see photon torpedos and phasers being fired between the Excelsior and the enemy ships, the only thing they do is take random pot shots at fighters.

Both Sulu and Chekov are voiced by the actors that played them, a big, big plus.

I would recommend this game for any trek fan, but be aware of it's errors before you simply jump in head first without thinking.

Disappointed Star Trek Fan
I love Star Trek in its many forms. I am 38, I grew up with Star Trek. Unfortunately,..

1. This game is difficult enough that the what fun there could have been is sucked out of it. The controller configurations are not intuitive, it takes a lot of effort to get used to them, I finally choose the second configuration. The missions are very very long, and they typically cresendo to very difficult challenges at the end. If you fail, and you will until you figure out the best strategy, you go all the way back to the beginning of the mission. What happened to intermediate save points?

2. Nice graphics but after getting over the excitement of protecting the Federation, I noticed that the missions involved the same kind of action really, and it became boring and incredibly tedious.

3. How many times has this storyline been rehashed. Let it go already.

This game looks pretty for a while, but it takes advantage of Star Trek fans. We deserve better, especially for the money.

I wanted to love this game, but I just cant.

Should have heeded the warnings
I went ahead and bought this game, despite the repeated onine warnings against it.

While I actually enjoyed the ship graphics (the character CG is terrible), I got terribly frustrated. Even with all the cheats, this game is near impossible to complete. I gave it a month, on and off, and finally got rid of it.

Unless you just want the opportunity to blow up original series starships, do yourself a favor and stay far, far away!

A good game...
While this game may not be the best Star Trek related game ever created, (...) it is an entertaining game. Certainly, it is a good starting point for X-Box games.
I will say that the battles are mind-bogglingly difficult. So difficult in fact that you will probably take several hours just to get even the smallest victory out of it. (...) Personally, I find this to be the more entertaining aspect of the game, as Captain Sulu screams at you to quit firing.
Overall, while it may not be the best Trek game ever produced, it does have its entertaining moments which make it worth playing.

Not worth the money
(...)

This game is a real-time space fighter/mission oriented game. The back of the box bills it as more of a Capitol Ship combat game, so lets get that first part straight. There are Trekkers out there who will hate the game because of some inconsitancies in the univers, but that is besides the point.

As other reviewrs have said there isn't any way to save the game mid-mission, so if you screw up or just plain die, you have to start over at the beginning of the mission. This feature [gets really bad] when you get deep into some of the more involved levels.
The individual missions are set not to be challenging, but straight up WAY too hard. I am not exaggerating when I say that I have replayed several of the missions almost a dozen times and I was playing on the "easy" setting.
The environment graphics are quite good, spectacular even. The animations of people however leave quite a bit to be desired.
The controls are quite intuitive and easy to grasp. Not a lot of excess controls that you don't need or never use.
There is a lack of helpful targeting controls (i.e. nearest enemy). Your only options are "Nearest Capitol", "Next Target", "Previous Target" or "Next Fighter".
The cut-scenes are good, but in the middle of game-play (when a ship blows up) is not good, especially when you return from it you aren't in the same place you were. Kind of like the game continued for a couple of seconds after the scene started. This may not sound like much, but when you have an enemy locked on, a cut scene starts, and when you come back you have to track them all over again it really [is not good]!
Also, when new messages come in, parts of your on screen display/HUD (which isn't always easy to translate), is covered obscuring necessary information for several seconds (such as distance to target).
There also seems to be a lack of reference to effective ranges of weapons or minimum distances to avoid being blown-up when a starship goes. These you apparently have to find out by trial and error.

And just incase someone from Jack Of All Games reads this, next time leave the fighters out except as maybe an accessory to the ship (not player controlled other than "attack this", "defend that"). Include a save feature in the pause menu. Make the game about starship vs. starship. Fix the above listed problems of controls and game play. And finally, make it playable head to head either on the same console or also on XBox Live. Maybe turn based real-time combat would be a good idea.(...) ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

Infogrames has improved upon an already excellent franchise with Backyard Baseball 2003. We hope this software doesn't become a victim of its own success: the Backyard Kids are getting so good, it's only a matter of time before they start demanding astronomical salaries and brand-new stadiums.

The pace, strategy, and statistics involved in baseball make it a sport that translates easily to the computer screen. In Backyard Baseball, players can play pickup games, launch a tournament, have batting practice, or just watch the computer play its own game. Options are initially overwhelming, but add longevity to the game as well. Twelve different game fields each exert their own unique influence over play--balls bounce crazily on the gravel lot, while homers are rare in the fenceless field. Games can be tweaked to add errors or include a visible strike zone; even field chatter can be added or eliminated. A wide selection of hits, pitches, and stance possibilities at the plate keep players strategizing, while the occasional power-up or wild pitch serves as a reminder of baseball's unpredictability.

The creative team outdid themselves with character development in this software. The Backyard Kids are quirky and three-dimensional--the research done on the real players was exemplary as well. For example, did you know Randy Johnson of the Arizona Diamondbacks listens to Rush in his spare time? Go figure.

Backyard Baseball 2003 will keep both young and old baseball fans engaged for a good long time. Consider it a way to fill that long wintry gap between baseball seasons. (Ages 7 and older) --Anne Erickson ... Read more

Reviews (65)

Another awesome upgrade to the already great series!
I have seen and played many demos and have read tons of reviews on this product.

I have been a fan of this Junior Sports series since the very first original Backyard Baseball came out. I own 2 of the 3 baseball editions, both of the football versions, my brothers have both of the soccer editions, and we also have Backyard Basketball.

From what I've seen and read this is another great additon to any of your collections of these games. The gameplay is smooth, the graphics are stunning, there are EVEN MORE gamplay options than in BYB 2001, the MLB kids faces are very believable, the players ability to play is slightly exaggerated but hey, that's what makes it so fun.

Being a big fan and player of baseball I follow the majors like nothing else. For that reason I noticed the ratings (Running, Pitching, Fielding, and Hitting) on the players to be slightly off. But if that's the only problem, that's an extremely small sacrifice to make when buying this game.

This game is worth every penny you spend on it. I recommend this game for fans and non-fans of all ages.

The levels of difficulty are set very well for people that play it. I do wish though that they would add an extra "Major League" level of play for us older guys that are looking for some challenging opponents.

I haven't tried online play yet but I'm sure you would find some more challenging people to play against.

This series is getting better with every game and should soon become one of the top sports games on the market. I hope that soon they will expand their games and come out with Backyard Baseball Pennent Race Edition Expansion Pack that will include the new hot rookies in the majors. Who knows? Maybe it's not that far off from now.

In closing I want you to know that this game does not have the new backyard kid design. The new Backyard Hockey has new kids to chose from and absolutely stunning visual effects. I recommend that game also for the Backyard Series fans.

Oh yeah, one more thing, HAVE FUN!!!

Sincerely,
Ian Badeer
A True Backyard Series Fan

Baackyard basketball 2004
I think this game is really good. People say this is too easy but i am 11 and I play on hard mode and I lose sometimes It is deffinetly better then the first backyard basketball because the originial only had two pros and this has ten. This game has good pros and good pro selections but they could have had better people as well like Steve Francis, Baron Davis and Kobe Bryant. Some of the people in there have not very good attributes like Tim Duncan has no outside shot but in real life he is a good outside shooter and Pau Gasol has no outside shot but can make all of the three pointers he shoots. Making a shot is very easy from outside but inside shots are kinda difficult. This game has the same graphics and gameplay as Backyard Hockey which I like the gameplay but the graphics i don't like. I would reccomend this game for 5-12 year olds and if you want the ultimate team I would pick Tracy McGrady, Dirk Nowitzki and Tim Duncan as starters and reserves Yao Ming and Paul Peirce. Other than the bad graphics and the choosing of the pros and pro's attributes this is a very fun and good game.

forced to do setups
From the makers of putt-putt,freddi fish,spy fox and pajama sam comes backyard sports.It's fun but you buy it on software,that's where it gets **** instead of *****.Humongous FORCES you to do their setups BEFORe you can play your game.

The Best Baseball Game Ever!
This game is great and a little challanging! The menus are very simple. There are 2 modes that you can play on. A single game mode and season play mode. In single game mode, if you want certain players on your team you have to get them quickly because your opponent can get them before you do. A cool part of single game mode is that you can play tee-ball and watch a demo! On season mode you pick your players first so you have all the players that you want. Each player has four ratings, Batting, Running, Pitching and Fielding. There are three game levels. (Excluding tee-ball mode) A way that makes the game challanging is that there is pluses and minus'. Pluses make them stronger in a rating and minus' make them lower in a rating.If you want to play season mode I reccomend you first play some single games and watch some demos. Also you should start at easy level and work your way up to medium then hard. Heres a tip. Never get Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds! They get tired to easily and get lots of minus'. A very fun game!

Great game and to me fun to play!
This Backyard Soccer 2004 has my favorite players here.Like Brandi Chastain,Tiffity Milbrett,and Cobi Jones.This is a fun game to play,but the hard level still a piece of cake.You can make your color of your team,but the promblem is you have to choose from some choices instead of naming your team.That's my kinda suggestion.I won the game a hundred times already,but I love it and I keep on playing it!I think this is a 4 star rating for one reason why 4 stars,Way too easy! ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Droid building
You get to build droids even ones in existence like artoo-detoo and c-3po. It uses the Jediknight Dark Forces II engine. The real object for missions is to test your droids on sandy surfaces. The whole game takes place on Tatoonie and it has many dangerous parts. Like falling off a fifty foot drop might explode the droid. I say its great for all ages.

A five-star game!
Star Wars Droidworks has been one of the most addictive games I have ever played. The plot goes like this: The Empire has started the prodution of assassin droids. Assassin droid are tough droids armed with huge blasters and a taste for torture. However, they are dim-witted. Your job is to build a droid to reprogram the assassins into harmless droids. Before doing this, you must build droids to complete eight training missions three times to prove you're worthy and to be rewarded with droid parts. These missions are also to teach you about the science concepts used in the missions. Once all are completed, you get access to the four secret missions. In three of them, you must collect the three Information Crystals, one in each mission. In these three missions, assassin droids are lurking, so you must be careful. After that, you must activate them in the Data Information Facility to get the Data Disk, as well as the location of the Hidden Droid Factory that is producing the assassins. With the Data Disk, you must enter the Hidden Droid Factory, and insert it into the reprogramming slot to reprogram the assassins into harmless dancing droids.

the game is awesome
this game is great you get to build your own droids from star wars and then battle them.

Great game!
This is a great game! A lot of people make the sound mean by talking about the "asassin droids", well all they do is walk up and try to break your droid, there is no shooting or anything in it. First you only have a little bit of droid parts to build with. But first thing's first, you need to go in the Jawa Training thing first. In the Jawa training thing you will learn how to control your droid and make your droid do cool things, you also learn how your droid reacts with the things around it. After you have learned the basics test your skill at the training missions, when you win a traingng mission you get a new droid part. You need to complete each training missions ( I think there are 8) 3 times to get all the droid parts you will need. After you have completed each training mission at least 1 time you will get secret missions (But you should complete all the training missions 3 times so you will get all of the parts you need), you will need to complete all of the secret missions aleasts 1 time to get all the infomation crystals, after you have done that you will need to go to a place were you can seek the infomation inside the infomation crystals by reflecting light into them, after you have done that you will need to go thru the hidden droid factory and reporgram the assassin droids, in the Secret Misions you will find Assassin droids that you will need to outsmart.

Cool things:
1) This is good for education, did I talk about the index? There is a Index thing that is like a cool sceince book! It's really cool!

2)There are really funny jokes in this! Why do Jawas live in the dessert? Because they were looking for a hot spot!

3) There are really great suprizes, Do you know what you can reprogram the assasin droids to do? I am not telling! Your just have to find out for yourself!

4) When you bump into Assasin droids you don't destroy them, you outsmart them!

5) Much much more!

Thinking and fun for boys and girls
Our 8 year old son is the one who wanted it, but we all play with it. The child is the designer of "droids" that he sends on missions. Each droid must meet special mission criteria specifided by the program, but there is plenty of room for innovation, and if the mission fails, well, he can re-design and try again. When he successfully completes a mission, he is rewarded with more and better parts to include in his future droids. As he propgresses, the missions get harder. Unknowingly he is learning about physics, how machines works and about material properties while improving his problem solving skills.

It is fun to be a droid designer and to see one's creations put to work. Kids like it, and we, parents, like it for the creative thinking and learning. So, let them fight over the computer! ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Join Scooby-Doo and the gang in Egypt as they visit Velma's Egyptologist cousin, Thelma. While visiting the pyramids in Giza, they find Thelma is missing and a mysterious mummy is frightening all the tourists away. It's up to the gang to find Thelma and wrap up the mummy for good. Kids help Scooby-Doo and his friends by telling them what to do and who to talk to. Along the way, they'll encounter ghosts, puzzles, and hair-raising adventure.

Kids must solve more than 10 different puzzles and activities to solve each mystery. The adventure is never the same. The mystery changes each time you play, with new clues and a different villain and outcome. Turn up the gameplay and the challenge with three levels of difficulty: Spooky! for ages 5 and 6; Spookier! for ages 7 and 8; and Spooktacular! for ages 9 and 10. The game builds thinking and problem-solving skills by utilizing research skills, deductive reasoning, and logical analysis. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

Zoiks!
My kids ages 5 and 8 loved this game. It flows just like the cartoon show on TV, as we follow Scooby and the gang as they search for clues to solve the mystery. My kids had it completely solved in an hour or so, then played it a few more times to see the different clues and villains, and now they're done with it--not 24 hours since we brought it home! They want to play the next two Scooby games now. "If it hadn't been for those meddling kids..."

Not as good as I expected.
As crazy as my children are about Scooby Doo, I expected this game to be exceptional. Although my 7 year old has played it quite a bit [and I probably got my money's worth] he quickly leaves it to go back to other software games like: Train Simulator, Oregon Trail, Lionel's Trans Con, and Mission THINK. The game advances slowly and the graphics are flat like watching the cartoon. Guess I was expecting more educational basis to this software, but find it's really more like watching the show on TV.

Thank goodness it was a gift!
I wouldn't buy this for my kids. Thankfully it was a gift for my 8-year old daughter. She tried to play it on her own at first and couldn't really figure out what to do, I guess she didn't read or listen to the instructions. The instruction file was enormous and complicated to follow for the specified age group. I played it on my own later to see what in fact this was all about. I solved the mystery and actually enjoyed myself, then my daughters(4&8) played it and the mystery was exactly the same for the next 3 times they used it. Maybe I haven't found how to change the level of difficulty, but I felt that everything was too obvious and not really a "mystery". I felt the kids were being humored and this game was really dumbed down. We haven't picked it up again since then, it has been a couple of weeks now. They'd much rather stick to "Clue Finders" and other such programs or the written word than play this game. They may give it another shot soon. Bottom line, this game just doesn't suit our tastes.

Not as good as I suspected.
This game is rather easy an does not contain many challenges for my 4-year old. The game was very easy to complete. The game becomes boring rather quickly at times because you had to keep going back and forth from place to place to solve the game. Sometimes you get stuck and am not sure where to go next until you explore some of the places again because the scenes change as the game progresses. The game has excellent graphics and sound but a mediocre story. The game needed more action.

OOOOOOO IS THIS BAD! RATHER EAT DOG FOOD
AWFUL AND NO EDUCATIONAL VALUE FOR YOUR CHILDREN ... Read more

Features

• Hours of entertainment with 4 fun-filled games for little girls
• Interactive adventures in Dora the Explorer: Backpack Adventure
• 8 exciting games with Care Bears Care-a-lot Jamboree
• Fun activities in Strawberry Shortcake Amazing Cookie Party
• Get creative with Disney Princess Fashion Boutique

Amazon.com Review

Nancy Drew: Treasure in the Royal Tower is such a captivatinggame that we could barely stop playing long enough to write this review. Thefourth adventure in the Nancy Drew series from Her Interactive finds Nancyvacationing at an old ski lodge in Wisconsin. But, as usual, trouble is afoot.The library has been vandalized (as if someone was looking for something?), aviolent storm has snowed in everyone, and you must play as Nancy to unravel themystery.

Similar to the other Nancy Drew adventures, you get to step into Nancy's shoesand explore the old lodge to uncover clues through objects you pick up along theway and conversations with the other guests. Things heat up when Nancy learnsthat the lodge contains an old tower that has been sealed off. You quickly learnthat the tower was brought over from France, and was Marie Antoinette's hidingplace in her final months before her beheading during the French Revolution.Could Marie's famed treasure be hidden in the tower? Is that why the library wasvandalized? And why is everyone acting so suspicious?

Why do we love this game so much? The first reason is that it gives young girlsan outstanding female role model, the likes of which we haven't encountered inany other kids' games to date. Who else, besides Nancy, is so smart, brave,witty, and adventuresome? The second is that it's hardly dumbed down the waymany girls' games are. We're way above the minimum age range for this game (ages10 and older), but playing in the senior detective mode we were challenged(there's also a junior detective mode for younger players)--it took us hours andhours of thrilling gameplay to unravel the mystery. And yet, it moves quicklyand is satisfying enough to keep anyone playing for long stretches. Lastly,Treasure in the Royal Tower gets girls engaged in history. Theintegration of the Marie Antoinette story and related French history was enoughto make us purchase a book on this intriguing royal figure to learn more.

Other outstanding things about Treasure in the Royal Tower includegorgeously designed backgrounds and 3-D environments, smooth gameplay,interesting and amusing characters, and the ability to use the Second Chancefeature and go back to right before you made a fatal mistake. You can also tapinto the minds of young women around the country on the message boards on theHer Interactive Web site. If you're ever stuck, you can ask this knowledgeableaudience for hints or clues that might help you out of a jam.

We could go on and on about all the great surprises and twists in this game, butthat would just spoil the plot, wouldn't it? Why don't you just check this oneout for yourself... we really can't say enough good things about it. --AraJane Olufson ... Read more

Reviews (436)

"Haunted Carousel" an entertaning ride.
In "The Haunted Carousel," teenage sleuth Nancy Drew is on her eighth case: investigating amusement park "hauntings" in Captains Cove, NJ. One of the park's famed carousel horses has been stolen, and the carousel has been mysteriously starting and stopping on its own. Also, the park's roller coaster stopped suddenly, causing a rider to injure his neck. With the park shut down, Nancy must interview the employees and explore the park to find clues.

"Haunted Carousel" has some nice improvements over past games: the addition of the "to do" list, journal, and cell phone (no more endless running back and forth to Nancy's hotel to call). If Nancy gets stuck, she can call her friends Bess and George and the Hardy Boys. The game has two levels, Junior and Senior Detective, and there are plenty of built-in tips and hints, including a park operating manual with an overview of most puzzle components. "Haunted Carousel" seemed to be one of the easier ND games.

"Haunted Carousel" really draws the player into the park's atmosphere, complete with hotel room service, arcade games, a ride on the carousel (and chance to grab the brass ring), and more. The storyline flowed smoothly, the puzzles were organic (programming an arcade game, switching roller coaster tracks, repairing the carousel's band organ, reading invisible ink), the voice work was above average and the characters had distinct personalities. Music was pronounced, including carnival music for the carousel and ominous creepy tunes for the haunted house.

Nancy must watch her step as always, since someone wants to stop her from finding out the truth behind the hauntings. Along the way she helps someone come to terms with the past, sniffs out an insurance fraud, and digs up long-lost truths and secrets about the park and its employees. This is a lovely adventure with a unique atmosphere that will delight young sleuths.

Not worth the price compared to others in series
First of all, I would like to point out that the editorial review above is not for Secrets Can Kill. It is for one of the other games in the series, and is therefore a better review than Secrets Can Kill deserves. It may be confusing to see the editorial review for the Tower mystery right under the title for Secrets Can Kill.
I love the Nancy Drew series, and I am a college-educated woman in my thirties. I have played four out of the first five games in the series (I have not played Stay Tuned for Danger). The other games have wonderful graphics and storylines. Talking to the other characters is enjoyable, and the puzzles are challenging enough for an adult when played on the senior detective level. I played Secrets Can Kill on the Master level (there are three levels for this game instead of two), and I found that my nine-year-old son was not challenged by the puzzles. Most of the puzzles are easily solved word puzzles that have clues as to the items to gather or hints about the character's secrets. However, most of the puzzles have nothing to do with the game play itself. There is one slide puzzle that allows you to find an inventory item; otherwise, the puzzles are just there for hints. As mentioned in other reviews, this game has cartoon-like characters rather than the 3D-type characters in the other games, and it really does make the game less interesting. The dialogue is uninteresting and the characters become hostile and barely speak to Nancy through most of the game. Overall, the game requires only a few answered puzzles to solve the mystery, and the ending is disappointing, to say the least. I gave this two stars instead of one, which was my first inclination, because I feel that it might be interesting for a child to play, especially if the child has not had very much experience with adventure games for the computer; however, a child would probably still at least want to play on the senior detective level. I recommend the other Nancy Drew games that I have played to players of any age for a nice, relaxing mystery, and I especially recommend the Haunted Mansion game. I cannot, however, recommend Secrets Can Kill.

Very interesting --- Another good mystery
I thought it was very good, only it was a little too complicated. I liked the usually good graphics (for Nancy Drew games) but I didn't particularly like the way you couldn't easily get around. Really well done ghost dogs, very scary. The mystery was a creepy one, and the villain was certainly unexpected. That's all I'll say. Anymore would spoil it.

My favorite ND game so far!
Treasure in the Royal Tower is one of the best computer games I ever played. This is a great starter Nancy Drew game for starting off because it's not too hard nor too easy. If you want a really easy game try the Haunted Carousel.
The story goes that you, as Nancy Drew, are snowed in at a ski resort in Wisconsin with an interesting history. In this game you learn about the French Revolution and Marie Antoinette.
"So, what's the mystery?" you ask. I'm getting to that.
There is a tower shipped over from France and was put back together on Wickford Castle, the ski resort you are staying at. The library at Wickford has been vandalized, and it takes a lot more than barging through the front door to investigate. Later, you hear about Marie Antoinette having a crown worth millions and somehow you figure that the library and treasure are connected. Your job is to find out the story behind the treasure and library.
This game took me about four days to beat. It's quite challenging in parts, like the ski lift, but you can get through it. It's also a little frightening, like the banging noises, but not too frightening that you never want to play it again, like the Final Scene. All in all, Treasure in the Royal Tower is a great game and everyone should buy it.

Not the Best
I've played all of the Nancy Drew Games (except the Final Scene) and this one was pretty good. It was well-written, but I didn't think it was as interesting as some of the other games. I would reccomend the Haunted Carousel or Treasure in the Royal Tower instead. ... Read more

Reviews (16)

Kinda boring...
I bought this game because I love the Little Mermaid and seeing Ariel on the box made me very happy. Sadly, there is not much Ariel in the game. The most you can do is put your princess model into Ariel scenes. I was hoping to put my model into Ariel's mermaid costume, but sadly, there are not many Ariel costume options (just the wedding dress and a pink one that she wears when she is human). All the costume are the classic 'ballgown' princess style, and most of them are ugly, as a matter of fact. I enjoyed putting my face onto these models, but I was disappointed that there were no costumes I really liked to put myself in. A waste of time; if buying this, like me, because you are a fan of Ariel, don't waste your money. Buy 'Ariel's Story Studio' or 'Little Mermaid 2 Activity Centre' instead.

My daughter likes it - I don't
We checked this software out of the library, thank goodness. I'd be unhappy if we'd spent money on it.

My five year old enjoys playing with it but I suspect she will tire of it before it's due back at the library as there is really nothing to do. You can decorate your horse, decorate the show ring, and run around a track. That's about it.

There does not seem to be any educational value whatsoever unless you're trying to teach a child how to click a mouse.

Very Disappointed Royal Horse Show
Don't give your money to Disney for the Royal Horse Show. I'd hardly call this a game, more precise it is a vehicle to promote Disney princess characters. And even the promotion gained from this was probably a waste for them as my daughter's interest in the limited activities wained quickly.

There are only 4 options to choose from.
1-decorate your horse (this is probably the most engaging feature for my daughter but she lost interest quickly as there seem to be dead end options - you are told that you can show your horse in the ring but no path to do so is ever provided)
2-decorate the royal horse ring (my daughter had no interest in this)
3-ride your horse around the ring (the view is awkward - the top of the horse's head blocks most of the picture)
4-in the craft cottage there are the most awkward features of all (an empty scrapbook which you fill with your escapades - this never caught on with my daughter, a growth chart [what this has to do with the game I have no idea and because her computer is not hooked up to a printer the option just caused the game to hang], a box for horse cards to collect [we are still not sure what this is] and the value of any of this is lost on me).

Cute
My 4 yo can operate much of this game. I'd rate it more for a 6 yo though... not any older. It's fun to dress up the horses. Not really a learning game, just for fun.

Perfect for my little Princess
I got this for my preschooler for Christmas and she is loving it! I love the fact that she can design the princess to look like herself or a friend or just about anyone! Designing the dress and jewelry is her favorite part, but she could go all day if I let her! This is definitely a gift that won't lose its appeal soon and also one that will grow with her!!! ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

The stronger and more interesting of two games based on the movie, the eponymous Finding Nemo lets kids reunite father and son deep off the reef in Australia's waters. The game opens with Nemo and Marlin in their respective environments, the dentist's fish tank and the wild waters of the open sea. The two fish are linked by a small button at the bottom of the screen, and players can toggle between them as they complete various puzzles.

The game features all the original cast members, and in addition to classic lines from the film, they improvise new lines. Dory, voiced byEllen DeGeneres, is hilarious, and smaller characters--like Nemo's friends in the tank--get more time to show players their individual, funny personalities: clicking on each fish kicks off a short conversation. Although there's more watching than doing in the early stages of the games, Nemo fans will be enthralled. Later stages involve memory games, like following patterns while jumping on the backs of jellyfish. All the characters, including sharks and sea turtles, make extended appearances in Finding Nemo.

Like Nemo's Underwater World of Fun, this game has two primary issues: computer owners must pay close attention to system requirements (otherwise, movie scenes in playback stutter significantly) and gameplay itself lasts little more than an hour, if kids ace the tasks. Also, one caveat for education-minded parents: this game is clearly only for fun, not for--pardon the pun--schooling. But kids will need to look beyond the obvious to complete the tasks in this game, and it's the possibility for discovery that makes Finding Nemo well worth exploring.--Jennifer Buckendorff ... Read more

Reviews (30)

The other version? Poor Quality Control Problem....
This is yet another pc game that could have been so good...The problem? Like the other 3 disney pc games we have, we had to go on-line to reconfigure our computer!!! It seems to be the SOUND that creates problems.

We bought the version for older kids, after reading the reviews here. Guess what? The voices for Nemo and others cannot be understood. It's as if someone put an old record on the wrong speed...high speed....everyone talks like the chipmunks! What we heard of the music and graphics however looked real good.

We're running these programs on windows XP and unable to get the program to work right out of the package, which is a real drag to an intelligent 5 year old and his mom! Bottom line, you probably have to go on line and get help to make the program work. OR you may have luck calling them...

With the exception of MULAN (has a great majonng game for kids...but you have to go on-line and learn HOW TO MAKE THE program work and reconfigure/disable a sound card or something like that....)We've sworn off of Disney pc games, at least for now....they're not worth the trouble.

Misleading, disappointing, irritating waste of time!
The Nemo's Underwater World of Fun game disk enclosed in with the movie DVD, was a big disappointment. My young kids were very excited then very upset. Until I read user reviews here on AMAZON, I thought I had a malfunctioning game rather than a DEMO disk on which only 2 of the 6 activities were accessible, rendering the prizes unwinable and the main games unplayable. And one of the 2 accessible activities, the Tank Gang music maker, seems buggy! Neither the disk, its sleeve, nor the read-me file indicated that it was only a demo, so my exercise in futility began: I installed and reinstalled it. I called the Disney phone number only to find the voice menu options to be misdirected, and at Disney Interactive on-line found no help nor mention of the demo version. FINE DISNEY, so you don't want to give away a free game, but why waste your ad dollars on such a stunt? Guess what, I've not been enticed into buying the real game, just irritated into a resolution to spend NO money on Disney computer games! (It's not your fault THQ (the game designer) we still love you.) I'm Sooooo glad that wonderful PIXAR's contract with Disney is ending!!!

My son likes it, I can't stand it
We bought this for our five-year-old, who loved the movie. Why is it that all Disney games turn into annoying (and cloying) lead-ins or promos for the movie? Why do we have to watch endless clips of it? The games seem kind of uneven (some way too hard, others too easy), and sometimes the software seems to get 'stuck' (we need to back out and repeat the objective to get it to work). I like THQ and their software in general, I've just noticed that anything Disney-related gets bogged down in their desire to "Plug the movie! Plug the products!" My son does like it when he plays it, but it's been used a LOT less than I had anticipated. Gets 3 stars for good graphic and audio quality, but I'd give the game itself a two.

terrible
I bought the finding nemo software for my daughter today and I sincerely regret it. It is one of the worst games I have ever purchased. The games dont work. You get nowhere. I would advise everyone considering this game to just save your money. My daughter was excited to get it until we installed it and tryed playing it only to find out it is a lemon.

Very cute
I just loved the movie, so naturally I bought the game. My sis and I have had these little, ummm...."problems" with games for kids 4+. We can't win them!! The older kid's games are easier. But that's what makes this game fun. I still can't win the "Surfin' With Crush" level though. "Nemo's Underwater World of Fun" actually has a story to it. Nemo wants to prove to his dad that he can move around just as well as any other fish. So Marlin sets up a "Super Swim Challenge" game, that will test Nemo's swimming skills. It goes from there in that you have to help Nemo win a certain number of "trophies" in each game in order to get up to level 5 in the Super Swim Challenge. After that, you can help Nemo prove to Marlin how good a swimmer he is. I love the games you can play. "Dory's Memory Match", "Surfin' With Crush", and "Tank Gang Sing-alongs" are just a few. Hope you have fun playing! I'm sure the kids will. ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

Disaster takes Mia and her family by surprise when her home catches on fire. By the time the mouse clan can make its escape to safety, the whole house is doomed. Now Mia has only one chance to restore order: Sam Squirrel, who once designed a time machine. If Mia can build the device on his blueprints, she might just be able to go back in time to prevent the fire.

Mia's Math Adventure is a role-playing game merged with a healthy dose of mathematics practice for kids ages 6 to 10. As Mia roams the area surrounding her scorched home, she encounters a plethora of characters who are out to help or hinder her. Players must solve logic puzzles just to help her get from one place to the next. Then, perhaps as things are starting to seem simple, a basic math drill will pop up and gameplay can only go forward after players supply the right answers to the computational questions posed.

This is one of those educational games that strives to offer children everything: top-notch entertainment, solid educational content, good characters, and unique, engaging animations. And where many games fail in this quest, Mia's Math Adventure delivers--for the most part. Some kids may find guiding Mia through the backyard and other game environments a bit of a chore, as the real-time navigation feature is clunky. The process of learning to get around can frequently trigger unneeded advice from the ever-helpful mouse. This is the sole complaint that can be made, however, about a game that is both a genuine learning experience and plenty of fun. --Alyx Dellamonica ... Read more

Reviews (6)

This Is Not Boring!
My four-year-old daughter is almost through level one now without my help. She complains that it is gboringh but then keeps playing it for more than an hour after her complaint. I think her frustrations come from being unable to easily and quickly navigate around Miafs world. Sometimes when I come to help her because she is stuck, I see that she has clicked on everything too quickly while trying to find what she needs to do next, so the game cannot properly respond. So far the math in level one has been no trouble at all. The difficult part was the days of the week, which she is now learning thanks to this fun, educational program. I look forward to seeing level two soon! The Math Rabbit program we had before this was truly boring for her. This is a welcome addition to our CD-ROM case.

fabulous!!
This is a GREAT program. I use it for homeschooling my son. The graphics are gorgeous, and there are lots of math games to play-- you can either play them in the sequence of the story, or just pick and choose the math games from the "options" menu. The math itself is on the easy side, my six year old can play level two on most games and up to level four on others. I am a math phobe myself, though, and I wish I could have used this program as a child. So I would especially recommend it for parents with math-phobic kids, of any age!

Good Game
This game covers a wide range of difficulty. My 5 year old son plays on level 1, and he can answer the questions himself (he is very smart). My 7 year old son (also very bright) chooses difficulty level 2, and the questions are challenging for him. They have spent many hours playing Mia, and they have enjoyed it so much that we just purchased Mia Science and Mia Reading. Way to go Mia!

Superb graphics - my daughter loved it!
I bought this game to help my 6 1/2 yr old get up to speed on math. She really hates math and is very impatient when I try to teach her. Anyway, she loved playing this game and asked for it every day until she completed it (at level 1). Days later, she is still talking about her favorite parts of the game.

As to the learning of Math, it was not as much activity as I expected... however, the activities that are there are good quality. I did need to sit and help her the first time figure out what to do with each activity (The calculator was particularly hard to figure out how to get the results to display on the right hand side).

I am still searching for math software that actually teaches math, not just queries kids on what they already know. Mia is more of the latter than the former, however, I would buy it again. It is a quality product with superb graphics that my daughter loves. I will be purchasing the other MIA products (Reading and Science).

On Target for age group
The pictures in this package are fascinating and my 7 year old daughter, who loves math,has played this exclusively for the last month. The math is just the right level to provide a doable challenge. It is rather short (or else we are missing something), but my daughter has played it over and over and enjoyed as much each time. It does have a level adjustment, but we have not used that yet. (Note: I like this better than Math Blaster 6-7). ... Read more

Features

• Help Putt-Putt plan Pep¿s birthday surprise in this cartoon-style learning adventure
• Kids choose where the characters go; over 20 fun locations to explore
• The adventure changes each time the game is played
• Putt-Putt's friendly and polite nature reinforces good social skills and manners
• Encourages critical thinking, creative problem solving, and teamwork

Reviews (7)

Putt-Putt come back!
My daughter (and I) have loved Putt-Putt. Particularly "goes to the zoo" and "racetrack" games. This game just does not run as well. It is slow and the speech is choppy. The voice of Putt-Putt has changed and not really for the better. I wish I would have read the reviews here before purchasing it. Everything the previous reviewers have said is true.

Buy Putt-Putt Enters the Race Instead!
Pep's Birthday Surprise is a definite let-down from Putt-Putt Enters the Race! The major flaw in the software is that the game is less open-ended and too full of animated scenes ... the charm of the Putt-Putt games is that kids are encouraged to use critical thinking skills and to figure out (sometimes obscure) problems. These features are curtailed in this particular game, as if the designers have lost faith in their audience's ability to problem solve and to do multi-step reasoning ... A minor but disconcerting feature is that Putt-Putt's voice has dropped in pitch, which will prove very distracting to Putt-Putt parent veterans!

Stepford Putt
We had to install this on an XP account with privileges, and we still have no confidence it will not bomb. We gave up trying to install on Windows 2000 and 98 systems.

It takes forever to get through the scene chat. Our children are really patient; this is the first time we've felt compelled to use the Enter key to end the character chats.

The bonhomie is missing. Even down to the choice of Putt's voice. Putt used to seem about 7 years old, and now he sounds like his voice is about to change.

Putt used to be an innocent little guy, helpful and kind, but in this game, he must constantly get rid of Pep in order to discuss the party with co-conspirators. In most scenes, you must first click on Pep so that Putt-Putt can tell him to "go play with your friend", out the door, unsupervised...

Better to buy "Enters the Race" first, then try "Zoo", "Circus", "Moon", and "Parade".

Not designed properly for XP
My 3 year old son loved Putt-Putt enters the race, but I'm disappointed with this game and Window's XP. I had to install the game as Administrator, but my son's account is set up as a limited user to keep him from deleting important data from the computer. The game does NOT work properly from limited accounts and I can't find a patch to fix it. So far it runs, but you can't save/load any games. A simple bug that should have been fixed in normal beta testing. Good ideas, neat pictures - bad programming.

Update: I contacted their technical support. They gave me a useless response and didn't offer to help me solve it. Fortunately some web searches helped me figure out how to fix this.

BAD Technical support for this software.

Waaay too slow
This game was unplayably slow on a computer that was adequate
for previous Humongous Software games.

Humongous is clearly capable of making playable games, so there
must have been something different about his one.
The alliance with Atari is new to me, as is their use of
Bink Video and Miles Sound System from RAD Game Tools.
Note that "Pajama Sam: Life is Tough When You Lose Your Stuff"
also has complaints about slowness on Amazon. ... Read more

Features

• First game to feature DoraÆs cousin, Diego (who can talk to the animals!)
• Jukebox for kids to choose their favorite Dora songs
• English and Spanish counting activities
• Star catching activities just like on the TV series
• Three levels of learning

Reviews (60)

My 2 year old LOVES it. Great fun!
My oldest daughter loves Dora and took to this game immediately. She loves to sit on my lap and play and our father-daughter time is often spent on the computer. She can't get enough.

The 3 levels offer a nice change for children that are getting bored with the game. Some puzzles she plays at level 1 where some puzzles she plays at level 3.

The game is VERY educational and fun and it follows the same format as the cartoon does. She'll turn 3 soon and she still loves it.

I'd also recommend Dora's Backpack Adventure (they make a trip to the library), Little People Discovery Airport, Winnie the Pooh (where Pooh gathers all the friends for Eyores birthday party) and Mickey Mouse (where Mickey and Minnie stop off at Goofy's gas station / Daisey's diner).

Average at best game; Dora only redeeming feature.
Do not buy this game if you are used to the better quality games Humongous software has produced for NickJR characters in the past: Humongous was sold to Infogames, and well, if this title is indicative, much was lost.

This game is saved only by the appearance of Dora. I really feel the two star rating is generous. My daughter is Dora crazy, and even she shows little to no interest in this game (and she loves edutainment computer games).

The program is not well executed, and there is little asttention to detail. One my daughter noticed was that at the begining of the game Dora collects 5 books to return to the liebrary. When she returns the books at the end of the journey, the colors of the books which come out of the backpack don't match the ones put in, prompting my daughter to ask "what happened to the books we put in Dora's backpack...

Dora the Explorer takes you a short and boring journey
My 4 year-old daughter completed this game in less than a half-hour. The short-length of the game actually caused her too cry! I was shocked at the lack of depth in the game given that it weighed in at over 250MB for the install.

She's crying as I type this. "I don't like this game!"

Atari must really hate paying customers!!
Well I would give this more stars if Atari support weren't so terrible!! The only reason I give it 2 stars is because my daughter loves Dora and likes playing this game because there are plenty of activities to try and places to go. HOWEVER, Atari seems to want to force you (due to their prehistoric copy-protection scheme) to keep the CD-ROM in the drive at all times in order to play the game! How ridiculous! Even though I paid good money for this game and it installed on my hard drive, it does not let you run it from your hard drive. Atari told me that you need to have the CD-ROM in to play it and they "cannot help me get around the copy protection". Well I don't know about anyone else's toddlers, but my 2 year old just loves to open the CD-ROM and take discs out to play with. So this leaves me out of luck if the disc becomes scratched after she's done with it! I think Atari should trust their paying customers a little more and allow them to install the game FULLY to their hard drive... if for nothing else to protect their investment! I will never buy another game by Atari because of this. They have no regards for their paying customers.

Boring!
I have a 3 year old, and after a week, she is already bored with this game. For $20, there should be more to do. It constantly repeats itself, and has no real direction. Very limited number of activities available, and really no variety. I would not recommend this game at all. I am currently reading reviews to find something much more interesting. ... Read more

Product Description

Share a smile with Hello Kitty and her friends as you discover the fun and magic of Hello Kitty Cutie World. You will have hours of fun playing 8 games that take you from an ice cream shoppe up to the starry sky and everywhere in between! ... Read more