The adventure story line is very engaging. As the program progresses, it quickly becomes apparent that Animal Junction is turning into an animal daycare as more and more baby animals such as lynx and bobcat kittens materialize. Children are treated to wonderful sequences in which babies from diverse animal groups play together, are bottle-fed, and take their naps.

This game's linear format is actually quite clever. Each video clip is engaging and not so lengthy as to make children squirm, and activities are tied in well with the unfolding story. Once the adventure is completed, children can opt to play it through again or simply return to any of the activities.

The eleven activities offered are engaging and playful. Though they are natural extensions of the story line, they don't expand upon the animal lessons presented in the live-action video in an educationally meaningful way as much as they could have. This is curious considering the learning potential inherent in the show itself. Arcade-style activities, as well as fairly commonplace games revolving around things like coloring and simple matching, predominate. Only a handful of these games exercise the brain, and even these do so in a minor way. There's a missed opportunity here that, if taken advantage of, could have resulted in a fabulous product. At the very least, none of the spirit of the television series has been lost in this computer translation.

Children learn assorted facts (such as the special adaptation of desert-dwelling fennec foxes) through the video portions. They also play such games as matching animal babies with their mommies, Concentration with cards featuring characters from the show, and an arcade-style game in which falling objects must be grouped by category (headwear, camping gear, etc.). As well, there are printable "creature crafts", including a pinecone bird feeder and fish windstocking, to take away from the computer.

Technically Speaking
Minimum system requirements are Windows 95/98, Pentium 166, 16 MB RAM, and 4X CD-ROM. Mac users require a Power PC, System 7.1, 16 MB RAM, and 4X CD-ROM. Only 5 MB of hard drive space is required, and a printer is recommended.

Skills Covered
Some animal facts, memory, colors, hand-eye coordination, sorting.

Educational Value
We wish the slant in this edutainment title leaned more toward education. As it stands, the live-action story line presents learning opportunities, but the games fail to extend these in an educationally significant way.

Entertainment Value
This linear adventure strings together video action and animated activities smoothly. The games are mostly arcade-style and not especially unique, but engaging nonetheless. The graphics, with smooth video sequences and brilliant illustrations, are superb.

Design
The developers have created a product that essentially has children watching a Zoboomafoo show, with game breaks interspersed in between these clips. Children are not able to interrupt the clips or the instructions for the games, but they can play activities as long as they want, or skip them altogether. Once the entire adventure is complete, the activities essentially "open up" to children and can then be accessed freely.

A sign-in feature allows children to pick up their personal adventure where they left off. There are 3 difficulty levels to choose from after sign-in. However, the only way to change these levels midstream is to exit the program and sign in again.

Replayability
Though graphically impressive and pleasing to play, once children work through the adventure a few times, there are not enough surprise elements to draw them to the game in the long term. Still, we consider the title worthwhile, and children at the younger end of the suggested age group will be enthralled - at least for a while.

Dollar Value
This title retails for $29.95 US.