Happy Feet
© 2006 Midway Home Entertainment, Inc.
Best described as a simple dancing exploration game, this is a collection of activities that roughly follow the script of the animated feature film Happy Feet. The story is about a young penguin, Mumble, who discovers that he can dance better than he can sing. As an educator, we loved the underlying message that "we all have a little Mumble in us." There's no scientific validity to be found in any of the Happy Feet games, with the exception that penguins live in the snow. However, the games offer some nice rhythm and beat competency skill development, especially if you plug a dance pad into the PS2 version. After children sign in, they can choose to either jump to mini-games that they've unlocked, or play in the story mode, which sandwiches fairly typical dancing and racing games between animated sequences right from the movie. We noted that Ramon (one of the characters played by Robin Williams) was missing from any interactive parts of the game. We reviewed all platforms and found them all to be well-suited for younger children, but more experienced players will quickly top out — despite having three challenge levels. Note there are specific strengths and weaknesses for each platform. PlayStation 2. Our favorite version, thanks to the online coaching, ice diving races, dancing and belly sledding. The challenges are well-designed, and it is possible to save games — as long as you have a memory cartridge. You can also plug in a dance pad and actually dance along with Mumble. Windows. Ours wouldn't load. The first screens would play, and then the the game would freeze on the first game screen, despite some tinkering with graphics settings. The instruction manual describes a version identical to the PlayStation experience, with the added hassle of a lengthy three-CD installation that puts three GBs on you hard drive. Both the DS and the GBA versions are strong, although limited in content. Game Boy Advance (developed by A2M) is a bit harder, due to increased reading and less obvious challenges. The story mode takes place as a side-scrolling platform, where you steer Mumble through ramps of ice to find things. Activities include fishing, dancing and collecting. Up to four games can be saved on the cartridge. The DS experience is more like the console version, but it is helped by the ability to tap the screen to match the beat, which is a fun feature. Wii. Our testers liked this version the least, perhaps due to the other fun titles like Wii Sports, that make a far more effective use of the Wii's controller. Happy Feet for Wii uses the Wii Remote to enter dance moves (wave when the arrow passes over the mark). In the racing game, you hold the remote like a steering wheel. We were surprised that none of the main menus used motion input. Instead, you are forced to find and use the small arrow keys. Our advice is to stick with the DS or PlayStation versions, and you'll have the most fun in the land of Happy Feet.
$40, Windows XP*, PlayStation 2*, Wii*, Nintendo DS*, Game Boy Advance*
Teaches: rhythm, music, spatial relations
CTR Rating: 86%