Madagascar
© 2005 Activision, Inc.
See Madagascar 2. Kid friendly, humorous, and full of challenges, this is an engaging interactive rendition of the Dreamworks movie that the whole family can enjoy. But the later stages can be frustratingly hard for younger players. The game begins with an easy challenge -- explore a NYC zoo collecting cards, as Marty the zebra. The game does a great job of making sure you are successful, although the PC version keyboard/mouse controls are harder to use that the console versions, making some of the levels (like the onion gathering level) too hard. Other than that, there's no difference between the PC/Console version (other than the price). The game is organized into 11 chapters, and games are automatically saved, or bookmarked, so you never lose your place. As you explore, you assume the roles of Melman the Giraffe, Alex the Lion or Gloria the Pig. Each has unique attributes (Mary kicks, Alex roars, Melman glides, and Gloria has a "butt bounce"). Like the movie, there is some crude humor and language ("this place sucks"), hence the 10+ rating... but nothing too bad and certainly no blood. There are plenty of mini games. You can enter a foot race against birds, go fishing, control a crane to throw thugs into the ocean, jump through hoops, or shoot penguins with a tranquilizer gun. Some of the games are very creative; others completely pointless. But they are generally fun, there's a good deal of engaging action and humor, creating a great interactive extension of the movie. Note that the Windows version of the game costs $19.99 and is the same as the Console versions. This is a one player game, with no online features, and you'll want an NVideo or ATI graphics card in your computer to make it work. There are also GBA and Nintendo DS versions that we have not reviewed. Developed by Beenox and Toys for Bob for Activision. Buy it.
$39.99, PS2, XBox, GameCube, Win XP
Teaches: problem solving, sorting, spatial thinking, rhythm (no formal learning)