Littlest Pet Shop VIPs (www.littlestpetshop.com)
© 2007 Hasbro, Inc.
Following Webkinz—collectible plush toys with codes that lead to accompanying web-based play spaces—comes a similar, less well designed option from Hasbro. Littlest Pet Shop VIPs (Virtual Interactive Pets) is a series of $15 large-eyed stuffed animals such as a cat, dog, panda, penguin, and a turtle designed to be collected. Each comes with a sealed secret code that lets you register at http://www.hasbro.com/littlestpetshop/ to gain access to a virtual pet shop town. The special tagged versions of the animals were released mid-October 2007. After you type in your code and choose a screen name, you can enter the simple 3D town, that can be explored using the arrow keys. We looked at an early version using a code supplied by the Hasbro PR department and found the screens to be fast loading and easy to use. There are many similarities to Webkinz, but there are also a lot of design problems to note, given the fact that young children are likely to be attracted to this service. You dress your pet, read a daily newspaper and play 16 timed addicting mini-games to earn Kibble points in eight areas of the town areas of the town, including a beach, playground, get better center and an adoption center. There's a hang-gliding game where you steer your critter to gather coins, a bejeweled-like puzzle called Water Balloon Garden, a jigsaw puzzle, and a dress-up game. Some of the games are clunky and crudely designed. For example, in the skating game, the Pet avatar is so big that you can't clearly time your jumps to collect coins. After ten minutes or so, games are abruptly ended with a "time to take a break" message. While this makes sense from from a child-development perspective, a visible timer should be used to help children know how much time is left. Other design issues include an over stylized interface, with arrows that don't always line up, a menu of activities that requires reading, and a scoring system that is too abstract, with scores over 10,000. There are no chat features, but it is possible to invite other players to enter you house, or you can go and visit theirs. These features are limited. The Kibble points are earned by keeping pets happy and healthy by playing games or visiting the “Get Better Center.” A “Breaking News” alerts children to new activities and, as you might expect, which new pets are available to buy. Under the What's New section, you are reminded that "if you adapt 4 or more pets, you will become a Gold Member of Littlest Pet Shops VIPs! This will give you access to special places and more over time!" None of these features are well defined, so you don't know exactly what you'll get for the investment of $45. Buying more pets will not add more time to your account (registration periods are not cumulative) and it is not obvious to children what happens when the registration period expires. At least the plush animals are cute. See the Littlest Pet Shop titles for the Wii and DS.
$15, Internet Site
Teaches: logic, classification, some creativity, reading, economics (money, shopping)
CTR Rating: 76%