Putt-Putt Saves the Zoo
© 1995 Humongous Inc.
Rereleased in 2008 and sold at retail, this cartoonish scavenger hunt-style program lets you drive Putt-Putt (a car) around the paths in three zoo regions (the jungle, the arctic and the grasslands) in search of six missing baby animals. As you explore, you find special items necessary to help the animals. For example, a rope found in an arctic snow bank must be taken into the jungle and lowered down a waterfall to rescue a trapped lion cub. Freeing a stranded hippo requires building a bridge of uniquely shaped icebergs and finding a shovel to clear away an avalanche. Unless the necessary special items are found, the animals remain lost and the zoo cannot open. Testers aged three and four became frustrated in their first few plays, and required adult assistance. Older children (and adults) loved the program. Especially enjoyable are the multilevel activities found around the zoo. In Animal Tag, kids must pay attention to detail as they match special animals that pop up at random from the Savannah. Other activities include six different information stations offering interesting animal facts like "hippos eat 100 pounds of grass for five hours each night". There's also a water-slide maze game that's just for fun and a camera option for printing out pictures of each animal. The program was first released in 1995, setting a new standard for excellence in interactive design. Today, this game still makes a welcome addition to any home library. Note that the graphics can look grainy on large screens.
$18, Mac CD-ROM, Windows CD-ROM
Teaches: problem solving, logical thinking, animal facts, shapes
CTR Rating: 88%