Reviews (24)

A must play for any true Animorphs fan!!!
This game is awesome! You get to play as all of the characters at the same time. Also each person can morph into many different animals. There are a ton of different levels. Some levels you walk around as Jake, Cassie, Marco, or Rachel. Then others you can morph into different animals to use their special abilities to get past tough areas. The fighting is unbelievable. I personally love the final fantasy style fighting. You get to pick what animals you want each of the guys to morph into then control them to beat up Hork-Bajir, Taxxons and all our other favorite baddies. The fighting is really cool because each animal is unique and has different moves that you can pull off. The best thing about the game is that it is really long and has many different parts. I am only half way through and I can not stop playing! From what I understand, this game is completely different then the playstation version, so you are going to miss out on one great game if you just get that one because you think they are the same.

Just like living books!
This game is awesome! You can be Jake, Marco, Cassie, and Rachel. There are a couple flaws in this game, and this is one: you can't be Ax or Tobias, although Tobias makes his appearance in the game to look out for you. There are lots of levels, if you want to call them levels, and can aquire diferent morphs for each person. And, of course, the Yeerk pool and Yeerks make their apperance! Here's flaw number two: when your battling, four or three (and one time, FIVE) creatures spread across Visser Three, Taxxons, and Hork-Bajirs will line up and you four Animorphs are on the other side. But, these flaws are minor, and this game is awesome for Animorphs fans. On a final note, the graphics are so good, they require a graphics accelerator to handle them!

AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!
THIS IS GREAT I ONLY HAVE THE THE DEMO BUT MY FANTASTIC DAD BOUGHT THE GAME .I LEARNED THAT IN A BATTLE PRESS 0 AND ENTER AND YOU CAN DO AN A ATTACK THAT COULD KILL VISSER 3

REMEMBER

Awsome!
This game is really cool with the grafics and actions. It makes you think more in a TOTALLY differet way!!!

WOW!
WOw! I only have the demo but this is probubly gonna be a really cool game. The graphics are great and I like it for mild voilence butt no blood and gore. This is a must for Animorphs fans. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Good but not the best
I like the item it is eazy to use well programed and you will like it ... Read more

Features

• A thrilling investigative experience with the illusive and deadly Jack the Ripper
• Exploration, inventory-based gameplay with a suspenseful storyline
• A mass-appeal theme based on true historical events
• Virtools Engine allows for special effects and detailed graphics
• Numerous puzzles of varying complexity--environmental, tactile, auditory

Reviews (14)

Ehhh.
Goodness, I never had a game that gave me so much trouble (on a new system, too), and my time and effort was not even worth it.

First of all, the system requirements are much more than what is put on the box. It's kind of bad when you have tech support state system requirements that are higher than the "recommended" requirements on the box! For those that have problems, you either have to update your graphics card, shut down all your start up programs, or update your DirectX. This will not solve ALL your problems (because there are bugs in the game), but it's a good start.

Okay, quick summary: You play a reporter, trying to get a story for your irritating editor about some mysterious deaths that echo the Jack The Ripper cases back in London years ago. But as you do your own investigation, you have to decide if your life (as well as others) is worth the story of a lifetime. This game is a mystery, so there is lots of interviews, snooping, and collecting objects. The game box states "challenging puzzles", but there were only about 3-4 puzzles (and most of the time you can just click everything to get it right). The cursor was annoying and sometimes did not work for me many times.

The ending was a big disappointment. It was somewhat clever but irritating with no resolution whatsoever. The songs that the "Irish Nightingale" sing in the game I did enjoy to an extent.

This game is 20 bucks, but I would wait until it reaches ten dollars-or less. Too many bugs (major to minor) and nothing new nor stellar about the plot and game play. It's not like I had high hopes for this game, but I would think that it would be less buggy and more interesting than what I have encountered. Wait for a sale for this one.

An OK Game
I think this game is just OK. I don't think it's as bad as everyone is saying it is. I love adventure games, even though I am not that good at them. I usually end up looking at walkthroughs like 10 times in one game. But this game was so easy, I didn't have to look once. There's only like 3 puzzles. The Nancy Drew games for younger girls are even much more complicated. The graphics were kind of outdated. The game was short. I did like the story, the bad ending doesn't matter that much to me. I'm in it more for the gameplay, which was good. There are lots of places to go, and lots of characters to interact with. It was more like an interactive movie than a real hard adventure game.

What the...?
The game has an interesting story, and the setup as a writer who is on the ripper's trail is pretty good.

However, the game's technology is outdated, and its implementation overly buggy. Also, the gameplay itself is extremely dull. But I played through it all because the whole "Jack the Ripper" story kinda intrigues me anyway. Now I do not want to spoil the game for you by telling you the ending, but really, there simply isn't much to spoil. It was not worth it at all.

This is one of those games with a real story. It makes you wish that there were more games with a story like this. But then you realize how bad this is actually implemented and you kinda lose hope for the whole genre...

If I were you, I'd steer clear.

Dull, But Playable
New York, 1901: the seedy "Lowside" disctrict is rocked by a series of killings that resemble the London "Jack the Ripper" murders twelve yearas before. You play James Palmer, a young reporter for the New York Today. Your boss assigns you to cover the crimes and produce a series of articles that will regain sales lost to your paper's competitor. When your articles start receiving attention, you begin to hear from the killer, himself. Can you trace the hints he drops and prevent another murder?

_Jack the Ripper_ (JTR) is the kind of game that will be familiar to Adventure Purists: one with many fine points, one that has incredible potential to be remarkable, but one that had obviously no been given the time or attention to rise above the mediocre. It's perfectly playable--mildly entertaining, even. But when game developers complain that Adventure doesn't sell, they need look no farther than games like this to find the cause. JTR is boring. I personally don't think that games need lots of action, threats, and timed sequences to be exciting-and, except for one, you won't find them here. But neither do you find very many interesting puzzles, engaging characters, inspiring conversations, great locations, or much of a plot.

The game has its good points. The graphics are nice. The music is actually superb. The navigation and gameplay are smooth and easy. The voice acting isn't bad. The structure is well thought-out. But there just isn't enough going on. Each "day" of the game presents you with certain tasks, and I always was surprised when the day came to an end; I never felt like I had actually done anything. Part of this was because the puzzles were so very easy. Ninety percent were conversation; the rest were a smattering of incredibly simplistic mechanical and inventory, with one timed activity. I had downloaded the U-Hints file for this game, but the only time I ever looked at it was at the end, when I thought, "Is that IT???" In general, I found the puzzles so unchallenging that at one point I resorted to translating a book in French that my character found, just for something to do.

There are numerous red herrings in this game--threads that turn into nothing, places you can go where nothing happens. I suppose this is a realistic representation of investigative journalism, but I found it tiresome. There was also a strange plot element involving a raven and what seemed to be psychic phenomena that was never explained at all.

I disliked the save-game feature. This gave you a limited number (16, I think) of spaces to save thumbnails of your game in progress. 16 slots were about half the number I wanted, and the thumbnails were so small you couldn't tell what they represented. As your game was saved by time and date only, with no opportunity to label them for yourself, this was an irritation.

JTR was also pretty glitchy, particularly in the early portion of the game. Several cutscenes did not run properly and had to be skipped out of. Conversations overlapped and the navigational cursor sometimes didn't appear. Once the game crashed entirely--good thing I had just saved!

The ending of JTR is a disappointment. I realise that the real Jack the Ripper was never verufiably identified, so it would have been going out on a limb to identify him here. But I would have preferred that to what I got. The way the game ended was like the rest of it: wimpy and without challenge.

This game took me about 15 hours to complete, playing a couple hours a night. It was mildly entertaining, as I said. But probably better to wait for the jewel case release.

This game was pretty good
This game was pretty good, there was one gorey part, not that scary. I did like the music for it though. I liked the ending song that Abigail sings. It is a little bit of a dark game and sometimes it is hard to see what you are doing. Very exciting though. I liked the game overall. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Grandma Grouper's kelp seeds are missing. All of the ocean creatures are becoming increasingly hungry since Grandma Grouper's treasure chest filled with kelp seeds disappeared. Join Freddi Fish and her friend Luther in this undersea sleuthing adventure. The high-quality animation and high-energy soundtrack entice children and encourage hours of learning play. With no reading involved, this is a great game for young learners to play on their own. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Freddi Fish
Grandma Grouper's kelp seeds have been stolen! Freddi, along with Luther, must find the thieves and give back the kelp seeds before all of the sea life starves. This is Freddi's first game, so it's not quite as advanced as the others, but it's still fun and has lots of surprizes. If you liked this game, you'll probably like SPY Fox, Pajama Sam, Putt-Putt, or other Freddi Fish games. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Join your favorite learning pals for hours of exciting game play in this fun-filled, three-in-one learning software collection. Adventure Workshop 4th-6th Grade, 4th Edition features three award-winning educational titles for ages eight to 12. Your child will love playing, learning, and just spending time with his or her favorite characters, and you'll love watching your child laugh and learn through colorful and clever activities that build valuable skills in history, geography, algebraic thinking, logical reasoning, science, and language arts.

The software bundle contains Zoombinis Mountain Rescue (where kids will face nine perplexing puzzles with three levels of difficulty to rescue a small band of Zoombinis from a severe storm), Carmen Sandiego's ThinkQuick Challenge (in which kids will outwit Carmen and her cohorts in a series of fast-paced challenges that test knowledge in a variety of subjects), and The Yukon Trail (in which kids will relive the Klondike Gold Rush of 1897, learn the history and geography of Alaska, build problem-solving skills, and meet Jack London and other figures). ... Read more

Reviews (1)

wow
Learn and play with Reader Rabbit,Paddington Bear,and Millie and Bailey with this award-winning compilation.Make learning basic skills a fun adventure with colorful,creative activities that strengthen reading,math,art,music and more. Includes Reader Rabbit. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Playhouse Disney's Stanley: Wild for Sharks! takes kids ages 3 to 6 on a fascinating, fun-filled sea journey with Stanley. Kids adventure underwater with Stanley to learn loads of amazing shark facts, while developing their own environmental awareness for these amazing sea creatures. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

One Gem of a Program
Not only has "Stanley" become our 3 year-old son's favorite program on TV, it's also the one my wife and I admire the most. The creative team behind "Stanley" does a remarkable job of making the show educational AND fun. However, we had modest hopes for this software, because other educational software titles we've bought based on TV or movies have proven to span the quality spectrum from merely okay to downright lame.

Wow, were we ever pleasantly surprised. "Stanley: Wild for Sharks" borders on amazing. It's truly fun, yet truly loaded with educational opportunities. The creative team behind the software has done a commendable job of injecting a "scaffolding" approach to teaching young ones, and they've seemed to maximize the opportunities for challenging the three to six year-old set while minimizing the avenues that might lead to frustration as proficiency with the program increases.

I've lately tried to avoid giving a product five stars simply because I like it, but this one deserves six.

Very Enjoyable on many levels
My son's new interest in aquatic life, particularly sharks, is what led us to this software program. He's four years old and very used to working on the computer so we have quite a collection of software. Well, this has become one of his favorite programs for many reasons but mainly because it is FUN. The key character, Stanley, is very likable, smart, and determined to get his school project finished. His British/Australian (?) sounding fish friend sounds nice to listen to and is a good "thinking" companion to Stanley throughout the program. The graphics and music are also very colorful and upbeat. Apart from just playing, I see that my son is also learning bits of information on ocean animals by referencing the "Great Big Book of Everything" during the game. The only frustration is that he wants to start every game from the beginning and if you click on a previously entered name the game picks up where you left off. Other software programs let you choose to start a new game each time. Nonetheless, we both like this program so much that I'm going to explore other Stanley software. By the way, we don't watch the TV program so it's not necessary to know the characters in advance of playing. Just have fun! ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

Eye-popping graphics, fanciful animation, and cool world music entertain you while you help clownish Steve and floppy-eared Blue complete three challenging, long-lasting treasure hunts. Of all the Blue's Clues software, this is the program most well suited for kindergartners.Not easily solved, these treasure hunts require you to amass a number of different items, not all in sequential order. While hunting for the scrolls, which lead to the treasure bug and the key, you're also looking for Blue's Clues, which help steer you toward one of the character's "favorite pleasures." Luckily, the highly affable Steve is always there to tell you where you are, what you should be looking for, and where you're going next. And over time, the logic becomes clearer, and it's pretty darn fun to have so many things to look for and record at once. Once you're oriented, your momentum builds in this game, leading to a true sense of triumph when you finally amass the three keys necessary to reach The Land of Discovery.Navigation may be tricky at first--prepare to sit with a child on her/his first time through the program and assist. For example, the yellow arrows that move you through certain areas of the hunt are positioned off in the upper left side of the screen, where they're easily confused with back buttons. As well, there is an unusual blend of view-only clips interspersed with the activities. A frustrated child may abandon the hunt during times when they are forced to pause their hunt, particularly if they are not devotees of Blue. Yet fans of the Nickelodeon TV show will likely take instantly to this skill-building adventure. (Ages 3-6) --Jean Lenihan ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Buckle up and join Jay Jay the Jet Plane and friends for an exciting ride where the sky's the limit on learning. Best of all, kids get to help Jay Jay pass his flight tests with flying colors. Designed for children ages 3 to 7, Jay Jay's tests consist of delightful games, stimulating lessons, enchanting stories, and fun songs. Along the way kids learn about numbers, patterns, measuring, sequences, and much more. Filled with songs and even a surprise ending, Jay Jay Earns His Wings will launch a love of learning.

Based on the award-winning PBS Kids TV series, kids will find a magical world where imagination takes flight. They'll build skills in addition, matching, critical thinking, estimating, following instructions, as well as using a mouse. As they help Jay Jay prepare for his first solo flight, kids get to enjoy nature videos, explore six interactive learning games, and extend the fun with printable coloring pages. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Jay Jay EARNS His Wings
What a wonderful word for a child to learn: EARN. With concerns about my nephew being given almost anything he reaches for I bought this for his birthday. At four he is starting to develop a concept about work equating reward. His favorite cartoon show Jay Jay has helped with this wonderful computer program where Jay Jay has several errands to run to EARN his new job. The math skills taught were presented in a way that my nephew was totally unaware that he was learning! I'm looking to buy more Jay Jay programs. this one has done the job and more.

BUY THIS!!
Jay Jay is one of my almost-3-year-old son's favorite TV characters. My son is fascinated with basic math right now. When I found that it taught simple math addition and measurement, etc., I decided to pick it up right away. After we ran it on my son's computer, we were pleasantly surprised by the vivid animation and the quality of the games it offerred. Usually the drawings of the characters in a computer do not look as good as what you would see on TV, but this one is just as good. It even plays the theme song in the beginning. BUY THIS ONE!! Your kids will learn a lot from it, even though he may think he is just playing an interesting computer game. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

Danger Zone! contains obstacle courses, hazards, dinosaurs,
Software Details: Intended for ages seven and up, Jurassic Park III: Danger Zone! contains obstacle courses, hazards, dinosaurs, and mini-games designed to challenge one or two players as they explore the secrets of Jurassic Park. An earthquake has nearly destroyed InGen's supply of dinosaur DNA samples and you must replace them to keep the prehistoric creatures from becoming extinct yet again. As players negotiate their 4 x 4 vehicle through the island's main screen obstacle course, they initiate arcade-style mini-games by landing on challenge spaces.
Each player begins the game with 300 points, which are used to buy health kits, tires for the SUV, a helicopter ride, or an extra turn to try and tag dinosaur DNA. Collecting four dinosaur DNA samples qualifies you for entry into the Jurassic Park laboratories where you can clone up to seven different types of dinosaurs and print them out. Mystery cards drawn during the challenges increase or decrease the number of points.
Up to a dozen specialized supplies can be carried by each player and include items like bug spray, rope, free repair or rescue, narrow escape, batteries, and so forth. Mini-games offer a diverse range of challenges from timed runs to sneaking past a Tyrannosaurus Rex to gather supplies. Hazards like mud pits, dinosaur dung, traps, and quicksand can be avoided by paying points, using the correct supplies, or luck.
- Compatibility: PC, Mac

Dissappointing.
Well, What can I say? The graphics are the reason one star is up there. The plot is alright. But the name should be Dangerless Zone.

Pros:
Graphics.
Storyline.
Great 2-player

Cons:
Lack of exitement.
Lousy dino replications.
Storyline.
Lousy 1-player

The AI is appaling. "looks like you are stuck in the mud." is one example. you can't herd velociraptors, so why make it a square on this virtual game board? how can someone survive being eaten by a T-Rex? in this you can survive falling of a cliff from 200' into a waterfall without a bruise.

Drive INTO Jurassic Park !
Jurassic Park Danger Zone is great! It is also fun! In Jurassic Park Danger Zone you have to collect 4 units of Dinosaur DNA. you get to choose witch Dinosaur`s DNA you want to collect.you can collect T-rex,Spinosaurus,Velociraptors,Compsognathus,
Brachiosaurus,Triceratops,Stegosaurus,and Pteranodons DNA. You also can print out dinosaur cards.

I love this game!!
I know this game is geared towards younger people, but as a 35 year old working woman I find it great to play a game where I can get lost in the action. I can play this game for hours! I like to play two dino defenders at a time because it seems like a lot more fun. This is a great game, I hope everyone who plays it has a good time as I do when I play.

Cool Game
Awesome graphics and lots of mini-games. Me and my friends love to play this game together. Herding Raptors, sneaking past the TRex in T-Rex Extreme and Raging Raptors are my favorites. The dinos, especially the T-Rex and Raptors, are just like the movie. ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

Saving San Francisco from a powerful shrink-ray is the order of the day for Owen, Joni, Santiago, and Leslie in Cluefinders: The Incredible Toystore Adventure, an educational role-playing game for third- and fourth-grade students. When two of the Cluefinders themselves are shrunk, they are beset by mice, spiders, and other suddenly giant monsters as they try to assemble the parts necessary to build a machine that will reverse the process. Meanwhile, the other members of the team must work out who built the malevolent device...and why?

The Incredible Toystore Adventure has a better mix of story and educational content than most games of its type, offering smart, resourceful characters and a mystery engaging enough to make the study component worthwhile. And make no mistake--this game drives young players hard. Wide-ranging drills in math, language arts, science, and other academic subjects are presented in a cheerful and interesting fashion. Drills come with four levels of difficulty and, if players want to build the anti-shrinking device, cannot be skipped.

This game also comes with a bonus CD containing an entirely separate game: Mystery of the Missing Amulet. This game carries the detectives across the galaxy on a quest to save a dying planet. Where The Incredible Toystore Adventure has a generalized focus on many areas of academic development, this second game is more narrowly focused, offering a tough workout for a child's language skills.

All in all, Cluefinders: The Incredible Toystore Adventure is a pleasant surprise--an educational game that can meet the high expectations of both parents and young players. (Ages 7 to 10) --Alyx Dellamonica ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Seems to be a good game..
I bought this game as a part of a three pack for Cluefinders. AFterwards I read a review where a person had trouble installing this on an XP system. That was one reason why I bought this game as the box states "Now Featuring XP compatibility.". With a bit of trepidation, I installed it in my computer, and then let my 8 year old have at it. I must say installation on the XP system went fine and after only about 3 hours of play we haven't noticed any strange glitches. This is definitely more of a learning game as opposed to a more fun style of game like Pajama Sam or Spy Fox. I saw that my child had to fill in the blanks of sentences, using words provided, and then arrange those sentences into a sensible paragraph. That provided a bit of frustration, and even the proper arrangement wasn't obvious to me. Still, by randomly moving the sentences around, you can eventually get the answer they are looking for. Same with the math questions. You will get an equation to solve and about 25 different answers are on the screen, and you click on the right one. I have no doubt my child just clicks till she gets the right one if she doesn't know how to do the equation. For less then ten dollars I got 3 Cluefinders games, and with only trying this one game, I am satisfied with the purchase. It seems perfect for this age group of 7-12 years where Reader Rabbit and cutesy games are too easy for them, and they want to feel like they are solving a mystery but also practicing school skills.

Disappointed again
I bought this software specifically because it said it would run on Windows XP. I had tried other Cluefinders on an older computer and was very happy with it. But since buying the XP, it's been a nightmare to get them to work. Despite it's claim that it's compatible with XP, (my system more than meets the system requirements), there were still technical errors. I tried the Program Compatibility Wizard and changing resolutions to no avail. Trying to contact their email support system has been unsuccessful so far - something about no being able to access it at this time. All in all, frustrating and discouraging. Cluefinders is off my list of educational games for now.

works right, and my daughter likes it
This is the first "edutainment" software that I've been able to install without a hitch on our Windows 2000 system. We don't give normal accounts "Administrator" or "Power User" privileges, and it worked fine. Kudos to The Learning Company for finally updating their game engines to work cleanly (and securely) on operating systems newer than Windows 3.1!

It also properly adjusts and restores screen resolution, and with far more than VGA resolution.

My daughter enjoys it, and has played each disk several times.

I'll agree with the other review that the map section required some help at first. But she's been able to stretch her mind to understand all aspects of it, which is great.

A 9 yr. old
This game is totally cheap (price wise) because you get one regular game and one bounus game... It is very educational and also is fun. This is a really, really great game!!!

Education vs. Fun
As I sat down with my niece to "play" this game I was struck by how interesting it was that software manufacturers could actually use games that are fun to help teach kids (and I dare say adults) and add to the education that children are receiving. This game was fun for us both because it helped my niece to recognize patterns, follow sentence structure, taught general mathematics in the elevator and showed that in the end you can have fun while learning.

I would definitely recommend this game to anyone who has a child in the 2nd, 3rd or 4th grade. However, you will need to sit down with them to help them figure out what exactly they need to do. The only reason I gave this product a 4 star rating instead of a 5 is that in one part of the game, the player is required to map out routes on a computer screen and it was very difficult for my niece to grasp. I believe that they set out to teach the player something they hadn't covered in school and it went above my niece's knowledge level.

Otherwise, this game is a very good educational tool and yes, we "both" had fun playing it. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

In Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius kids hang with the teenage super genius, his best friend Carl Wheezer, and his trusty robotic dog Goddard. Play through six huge levels, including Jimmy Neutron's school, his neighborhood, Retroland, Retroland's power plant and its amusement park, and a final secret level. A slew of cool gadgets are at the ready, like Jimmy's shrink-ray gun, his jetpack backpack, a rocket ship, the Goddard scooter, and more. Jet, drive, and even hop around in a gravity bubble. Based on the animated film Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, kids unlock movie clips as they complete various levels. Remember: it's just a day's work for your average, teenage super genius, who's still gotta be in bed by nine. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Mother of 3 small children
Our son received this game for his 5th birthday. Once we downloaded all the updates for our graphics/sound software the game worked great. Our son loves trying to get to the next level. He is able to save each game and pick up where he left off. My husband also loves to play the game. A great game for a Jimmy Neutron or computer adventure game lover.

really engaging
my 4 year old loves this game, i have to help him read the objectives but he also has to listen to them which is improving listening skills. Still not all the way through yet and purchased it 3 weeks ago!It's fun and very appealing to all ages.

GREAT
Got this game and my grandson who is 8 just loves it. He is ADHD yet he can sit for 5 hours doing this game. I love it as there is no violence.

Cool game
I gave this game to my 5 year old for Christmas - he loves it! His 13 year old brother likes it too. The grahics are pretty good - look just like the tv show. Its hard to beat at the CD Jewel case price! ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Little drivers will have a blast racing through Autoland, collecting the parts they need to save their friend, KC Coupe, from the terrible TowTruck. Along the way they'll discover repair shops, raceways, the car wash, and other pit stops full of four-wheeled fun. Realistic races, six cool car activities, and supercharged surprises give little road racers a new course every time. Kids will join Tommy Treads in a soapy excursion through the Comet Car Wash, weave their way through the backstage of Diesel's Palace, and print collector cards of auto friends from the Big Action Garage. Other activities include helping Ralph the Recycling Truck clean up the river pollution and helping Cliff Convertible tune up cars, replace the battery, and check the oil. There are six auto activities in all, featuring a colorful cast of comical car characters. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Great Software for Preschoolers
I purchased the Fisher Price Garage software for my 4 year old grandson. I was leery of buying it since I had previously purchased some poorly designed and frustrating software for preschoolers. I am happy to say I am very impressed with this one. One of the things I like the most about it is it's perfect for his age and his present computer skills. The visual and verbal instructions are very straighforward--he has had no trouble understanding what to do. Since he cannot read yet, he only needed a little help the first few times using it.

There are activities for children with different levels of computer skills. (I would say a 3 year old could do some of the activities.) Some of the features he could do all by himself the first time which made him feel competent (and made me happy because I didn't have to listen to whining). The Diesel's Palace maze (similar to a Pac-man game) is more of a challenge for him. It is great to have a racing game that a preschooler can do too--I think it is just right for a 4 year old--challenging and fun, but not so hard he never wins. The car detailing feature is also impressive--quite a few vehicle choices and many, many stickers to "jazz things up". Loads of fun for preschool boys or girls.

Overall, I am very happy with this software and my grandson just loves it--he is learning more computer skills, has a lot of laughs, and just plain fun.

Great for introducing the computer to preschoolers!
I picked this up on a lark, not knowing that my three-year-old would take over the computer! He LOVES this software so much that he wants to play with it first thing in the morning--and all day if it were possible. It is perfect for teaching preschoolers how to use a mouse. The activities are simple and loads of fun. I've tried other software packages designated for preschoolers, but they were too complicated to hold my son's attention. His favorite part is spray-painting the car and printing out the picture. Now our house is plastered with these "works of art!" The great thing is that he's learning to use the computer while being challenged and entertained.

From the Mom of a car crazy kid!!
Tommy Treads is a friendly little car who captivated my 3 year old and still has his attention 1-1/2 years later. Children can use their problem solving skills, race at the track, paint and detail in the body shop, give a tune-up and much, much more with this fun and creative software. ... Read more

Features

• It's Thomas & Friends to the rescue in this exciting adventure
• 8 engaging activities with rich, 3-D graphics and animations
• Print certificates and pictures of all the engines
• 8 jigsaw puzzles to print and cut out
• For 1 player; ages 3 and up

Reviews (1)

Super fun for Thomas's Fans
My 3 year old grandson enjoyed this game and was able to do all the activities. The only thing missing was being able to drive Thomas on the railroad with him as the engineer. At the end of the game, it would have been wonderful for the designers of the game to let Thomas ride around railways with the child being able to make stops and choices where to drive the train on the island of Sodor. It is a game he comes back to play with many times. ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

Pit Droids poses the age-old math question: "If a droid traveling five miles per hour leaves Mos Espa at dawn, how long will it take to get to the Arena Gate?" Watto, Tatooine's notorious junk dealer, has purchased a large pit-droids shipment to help with the pod races. Naturally, the droids don't know the way, leaving you to direct the capering mechanoids to their goals by placing various arrows in their path.

Right from the slick panoramic interface, Pit Droids is a blast. C-3PO's thorough tutorials (featuring the inimitable Anthony Daniels) and R2-D2's chirpy in-game help will have you herding the hordes of droids in no time. Not only do you need to avoid collisions, you need to change droids' attributes, sort them, and adjust the timing of their patterns. While holding your attention with the frenetic puzzle-solving fun, Pit Droids quietly refines your logical-thinking and problem-solving skills, making it a great game for older children as well as adults.

Pit Droids rewards progress with comic short films of the clowning droids in action. Eight locations offer more than 300 puzzles spanning three levels of difficulty, and the Puzzle Editor lets you build your own devices. It's enough to keep you interested for as long as the droids keep you scrambling. --Jack Gardiner ... Read more

Features

• 8 challenging game levels
• 300+ puzzles
• Create your own custom-made puzzles
• 6 unique Star Wars game environments
• For 1 player

Reviews (6)

Great Fun Game!!
Almost endless amount of pre-created puzzle But then! You can creat your own! Loads of fun!

This is not good
YO people, dont waste money on this. Trust me! It is boring. i mean, it takes forever to just beat one!

Challenging, Graphic, and Limitless
Star Wars Pit Droids is not exclusively for Star Wars fans, and is an excellent puzzle game if you want one. It has three levels of play for all people. The goal is to use the arrows provided to literally point the different pit droids in the right direction. However, they have different colors, helmets, and tools, so you have to guide each type to their destintation. It's 3-D and has pretty good graphics. There's an online exchange for puzzles that you make, which has some EXTREMELY difficult puzzles, much harder than the game provides. Making a game in this is pretty easy, but picky. It doesn't agree with the standard Microsoft interface, and forces you to use buttons for cut-and-paste. The major downside to this game is that you can only save after completing a level, not during one. Overall, I suggest this for people who want to be challenged or to challenge others.

This is hard,escpecially Hard Mode,but fun
This game is fun.You work on many puzzles to get your pit droids to the Podrace Arena.I won a T-shirt for a 13 year olds contest on this game,I had to get 144 pit droids to the Podrace Arena before too many other opponents did the same.I would recommend this game to any one who isn't too (not smart) as I wouldn't want to insult you readers! And also,if you want a cool pit droids T-Shirt,you can buy it now and practice until sometime in Year 2001.Then you can sign up for a totally cool contest!

The "H-bomb" since Droidworks!
Pit Droids is the #1 maze/puzzle game! If you're a big fan of Star Wars or strategy, you should definitally buy this game! What I specifically like about Pit Droids is the great 3-D graphics, the challenge of the puzzles, and the hilarious slapstick "reward" cutscenes! But sometimes you may go crazy when you get to a frustrating part in a level, but don't worry about that little comment. Yep, it's another one of those Lucasarts/Learning masterpieces that quite often happen. I betcha when you pop this CD in your PC, you're going to think, "I didn't waste a dime on this thing!" ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

Your Hot Wheels track comes to life in Hot Wheels StuntTrack Driver 2, an action-packed adventure that beats the socks off mostNintendo racing games we've tried. Three-dimensional graphics make this gamerealistic and very cool; slinging mud and dirt while making death-defying jumps,and wicked mid-air rolls and twists in some of earth's hottest all-terrainvehicles gets our vote for one of the most enjoyable activities ever to grace aCD-ROM.

There are six challenging racing courses that kids can master, from dodginggiant turtles at the beach to racing in eerie tunnels in a Jurassic Park-likesetting. It's serious business as kids wrestle the arrow keys, mouse, or gamepad (for the ultimate experience) to beat the clock and earn coin power-upswhile keeping crashes to a minimum. Once kids beat the records in the four mainracing courses, they'll qualify to compete in the ultimate races: two secret,hidden courses loaded with challenges. Once you've unlocked the secret courses,you're just a green light away from world fame on the Hot Wheels Stunt Trackcircuit.

Don't be surprised if, after playing this game, your kids get out their old HotWheels set and start setting up an obstacle course in the living room. Filledwith rip-roaring adventure and fast-paced play, this racing workout is hard tobeat. Kids can also design and build their own virtual courses and take a joyride in more than a dozen Hot Wheels cars and trucks. This CD-ROM is a must forkids of all ages, including adults who've got the need for speed. (Ages 5 andup) --Tina Velgos ... Read more

Reviews (4)

it's very fun to play!
When I played stunt track driver 2, I was thrilled. When you play it, you can win a variety of cars, and you can try to open the two tracks that you can play if you open them in the championship.

Color me happy!
Not only has my 8-year-old son had a ball with this game, my husband has, too! Software was easy enough for my son to install unaided and learn to play without assistance. The game is easy enough to figure out but very fun to play! Highly recommended.

A huge disappointment
I've had the original Stunt Track Driver for almost two years. It was a good game because you raced on tracks throughout the house using a huge track layout you could never afford. It was also a fun game and incorporated tricks into the racing action. Unfortuantely Stunt Track Driver 2 doesn't live up to the expectations. The first problem is the graphics, they are more detailed than in the first game but these good graphics come at a big price. The game has a very low frame rate thus making you feel as if there is no sense of speed. Also, when you are in the middle of the race, the game sometimes pauses to load sometimes when in a turn or when you are in mid-air causing you to crash (this happens most notably in the Beach level and sometimes in the Garden level). But the graphics aren't the biggest problem of the game, the major problem is the huge difficulty of the game. I consider my self a hard core game player and have been playing games for over twelve years. It took me three days to beat the original Stunt Track Driver. I figured it would take even less time to beat the sequel. I was very wrong. In the championship mode, you are given 1 minute and 15 seconds to finish the first course. Even if you don't crash once, you won't finish the course within the time limit. You have to do huge combos of tricks at each and every jump to even have a chance of finishing the course within the alloted time. After I fianlly beat that course, the second course is even worse! The Garden track has turns that are hidden meaning you have to memorize the track to know when to turn without crashing. I doubt I'll ever beat this game. If, I, myself can't beat this game then what chance does a five year old have of even beating one course? If you don't have the any Stunt Track Driver game, buy the first one, it is less money and a whole lot of more fun. If you do have the orignal Stunt Track Driver, I reccomend Rush 2049. It has crazy jumps and a stunt mode and is a great game. And at least you know you'll be able to beat the game.

Still Hot
Hot Wheels expands their interactive collection with yet another highly entertaining game about the die-cast cars we all grew up with. This game is especially entertaining for children as the race the cars on the computer as they do with their own tracks at home. It is also fun for the adult in bringing back memories and having a quality racing game. ... Read more

Features

• 6 activities and 2 mini-activities
• 5 villains and 5 possible outcomes
• 3 levels of difficulty: spooky, spookier, and spooktacular
• Printables for fun away from the computer
• For kids ages 5 to 10

Reviews (8)

Great Game
We have three of the Scooby Doo Case File Games.
My four year old loves these games. He will play it for a long time. There is problem solving and mazes and other activities in each game.

My problem with this game (and the other Scooby Games) is that there is no variability. Once your child solves the game and plays it again, the puzzles are essentially the same. The clues might change and the villian might be different, but the puzzles are the same and the clues are in the same places.

This is not a problem for my kids though. They both enjoy the game and play it for many hours.

Enjoy.

Great fun but...
I would rate this a middle of the road four or at the very least a high three.

First the positive- the scooby gang are in a museum and a green glowing bug man has messed up the displays. They have to put the displays back together in order to earn clues. The clues point to a villian. Each of the 'games' or displays involves a different part of the brain- in one scooby has to jump on a conveyer belt to earn scooby snacks and collect bones, another is a puzzle, another is a matching game and so on. There are three different levels so you can have it fairly easy to fairly difficult. My five year old was able to play the easy with no help and the medium level with only a little bit of help.

The Negatives- The games are the same. The villians change but the games are the same- you are always doing a puzzle in the dinosaur room and it's always the same puzzle. The placement of the boxes in the puzzle might change but the idea is the same. I would have also liked to have seen the ability to change the levels of the puzzle as individual games, not the whole game.

However, it's a fun game.
I would also suggest the Freddy Fish games if your child likes to solve mysteries.

Enjoy.

Close, but not the best.
If any of you have expierienced past Scooby Doo games of this style, then you will understand this. In comparison, the voice acting in this is sub-par. The vocal animations are so generic that every word they speak looks just like the last. The load times between screens is a lot longer in this one than in past games. However, the puzzles are clever, and the background animations and layouts are very colorful and creative. Dropping you in many foreign locales. A good representation, and learning tool, of different cultures. My 5 year old enjoys this. But, myself, as a Scooby Doo fan, did not think that much of it. It was a bit shorter than previous games as well. Good game. Just not great. Hope the next volume shows more promise.

Great Scooby fun!
My 8 year old loves this new Scooby game. She will play it over and over. The facts on China are cool and the animation is just like the TV show.

I highly recommend this Scooby game. We like them all but this one is definitely a favorite!

Jessica & Hannah's Review
Jessica our 9 year old daugher said "this game is great, in one room you visit the cafeteria and you are challenged to blend different flavors of ice-cream until Shaggy gets the perfect cone. In each room you visit you need to find the clues to match the suspect until you find the glowing bugman". Hannah our 7 year old daughter said "this game is perfect, we both had fun with it and I think lots of people should have fun with it just like us" ... Read more