We’ve seen the games featured in Hoyle Kids Games time and time again, but never quite this way. Kids and parents alike will love this collection of time-tested games, gussied up for today’s technologically demanding kids. Though this is the Hoyle Games line’s first foray into the younger kids’ market, after watching your kids spend one afternoon with this title, you’d think they were old pros.
Entirely kid-friendly, this new title features 12 tried-and-true classics like Hangman, Checkers, and Snakes & Ladders. Kids can play checkers, for example, on lily pads – and with a Dalmatian, no less. In fact, there are a number of computer opponents to choose from. Besides Pepper the peppy and positive Dalmatian, there’s Marvin the cool dinosaur, Roswell the sophisticated and wisecracking alien, and a handful of other choices. Players can try to recreate themselves or opt for a wacky-looking character with the Face-Maker feature.
All of the program’s games can be found in the bedroom. If all kids’ bedrooms contained what this one has to offer, sending kids to their room would lose its effect! These versions of old favorites are snazzy and appealing.
The Snakes and Ladders game is set, quite fittingly, in a jungle. There are versions of Tic Tac Toe (played against a fish), a Placer Racer game that will appeal to anyone who loves arcade-style puzzle games like Tetris (adults included), and a Music Game which involves repeating musical notes in sequence. There's a nice mix of activities here, including a typing test, arcade-style. A standout game is the old favorite, Battling Ships, where we can see bombs flying then either splashing in the water or striking a ship with a satisfying blast.
I spent much of my time playing the Placer Racer game that requires a certain amount of strategy in order to advance in levels. Sticky colorful balls are shot up as the field slowly falls down. The object is to clear the board before the balls move too low, and the balls will only disappear when 3 or more of the same color balls attach. Very addictive!
The hangman activity is graphically rich but is considerably difficult for most testers – they simply weren’t given enough chances. We did enjoy the settings for this activity, however. In the winter scenario, for example, a snowman slowly melts and icicles drop from the house as wrong letters are selected.
The complete list of games offered: Crazy Eights, Old Maid, Checkers, Go Fish, War, Snakes & Ladders, Hangman, Memory Match, Battling Ships, Chinese Checkers, Tic Tac Toe, Music Game, Speedy Racer, and Placer Racer.
Though the characters’ chatter is charming much of the time, it does slow down a game. Less patient children have the option to turn it off. Help features in the game are abundant. A Genie is available to give players hints, and if kids want to turn this feature off, the Genie will retreat back into his lamp. As a gentle (and cute!) reminder, the lamp will shake a little when the Genie "thinks" players might need him again.
Played without the CD-ROM in the drive, this game is easily accessible – a feature that improves replay value. However, most animations and opponent’s conversations are not available this way. Bare-bones game playing is possible though, and should be quite satisfying for most kids.
All in all, this program is sure to please most kids approximately 6 and up. Some parents will enjoy the program almost as much as their kids.
