AppCraver » Kids Games

MonsterABC Wraps up Entertainment and Education in One App

Barbara Holbrook — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 17:42:30 +0000

MonsterABC – Keeping your little tyke occupied on long car trips and boring waiting rooms has gotten easier in the AI-era (after-iPhone). The App Store holds lots of fun and educational apps made especially for little hands still learning how to swipe and tap.

One of the newer edutainment apps to hit the marker is MonsterABC, an alphabet primer with a monstrously cute theme. The schtick is simple and well rehearsed: A is for Apple, B is for Bunny and so on. What MediaBrand does differently is the real story.

MonsterABC is an app that can grow with your child (or be shared by siblings in different age groups). The app has two flashcard-esque learning modules. Letters is the “A is for Apple” side and Words is a fill-in-the-blank game for the over-k crowd. A child’s voice sounds out letters and words to combine auditory and visual learning and reinforce new information.

MonsterABC uses an easy tap control system so it’s easy for kids to play alone and doesn’t require any shaking — or dropping — that might cause parents to second guess a decision to let a three year old handle such an expensive device.

MediaBrand knows that they’re not the only kids on the block when it comes to iPhone apps. The company website offers a couple value-added features that tie in with the game and make it more than just another app. Anyone, not just MonsterABC owners, can visit the website to download free coloring pages to match the Monster theme. In addition, MonsterABC users can download a free desktop version of the game (PC or MAC) with ”enhanced features.”

The “iPhone for Kids” department continues to grow — especially as families trade up to newer gadgets and have an extra phone available for young fans. MonsterABC is a well-designed app that does a good job of combining learning and fun. It’s a game that tiny tots and grown ups can both agree on, for different reasons of course.

app_name: MonsterABC
rating: 8/10

Jumping Panda’s Comparison to Super Mario Bros. is a Stretch

Jennifer Beam — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 17:00:03 +0000

Jumping Panda – I can’t speak for my colleagues, but as a review writer I often come across applications or products that fall into a sort of gray area — it might be something with possible but unmet potential or hidden value that’s difficult to gauge. But our job is to state the facts, be as objective as possible, and remind everyone that our opinion is just that – our opinion.

Where Jumping Panda is concerned, I can state for a fact that the name of this game is appropriate and I can state my opinion, which is that panda bears are cute. Beyond this rhetoric, fact versus opinion in the case of Jumping Panda might not be so black and white.

Jumping Panda is a side-scrolling game that features three rows with a panda in each one. Players control all three pandas as they jump over mushroom obstacles. The jumping control of the pandas is simultaneous; meaning that all three pandas will jump at one time when you swipe up on the screen. You can control the position of each panda individually within its row by tapping on a location in the row. Lastly, you can incorporate long jumps for each panda by swiping and then tapping further over in each row. You get points for jumping mushrooms and lose lives for running into one. The object in Jumping Panda is to score as many points as possible before you lose all your panda lives.

I would love to be able to say that Jumping Panda is enhanced by gorgeous colorful graphics or that it was great, addicting fun to play, but neither of those statements would be fact or my opinion. Sure, the pandas are cute, as are the little sound effects of their jumps. And for some it could be mildly entertaining to try to align the pandas for successful mushroom-avoiding, simultaneous jumps, but in my opinion, I got bored with it quickly and found no real thrill in trying to beat my highest score after just a few rounds.

Here are the facts of Jumping Panda. There are two difficulty levels included – easy and hard. For each level you get eight panda lives, which quite frankly seems excessive, but at least is a forgiving feature for younger or less skilled users. You can score bonus points in the form of 2X or 3X if you jump more than one mushroom at a time. The user interface while simple, is absent of any in-game controls like pause or a menu button should you like to start over or reselect your difficulty level after a game has begun.

In my opinion, Jumping Panda is a cute idea, but for a two-dollar game should have a bit more substance to it. For a simple and unadventurous game that is fairly easy to understand and play, it might be better priced at .99. It does have the cuteness factor going for it, but the description provided by the developer states it is similar to Super Mario Bros. and that’s a bit misleading. After all, Mario does more than jump over stuff so there needs to be quite a bit more to Jumping Panda for that comparison to even come close. (Like the pandas shooting bamboo bombs or something.) As it is, I would play Mario a hundred times over by comparison – but again, that’s just my opinion.

rating: 6/10
app_name: Jumping Panda

Balloon Headed Boy: Light Fun for Everyone

Tracy Rodgers — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 01:00:28 +0000

I’m a sucker for cutesy action games, so it comes as no surprise that I really like Balloon Headed Boy by Gimme5games.

The story of Balloon Headed Boy makes about as much sense as these types of games ever make, which is to say that apparently Balloon Headed Boy’s birthday party has been postponed by a horrible storm of rain and frogs. (Yeah, I don’t know, either.) Don’t worry, though — Balloon Headed Boy is certainly not about to let the storm get the best of him! The object of the game is to clear all of the levels and to collect all of the balloons that were scattered by the storm so that the party can go on.

Gameplay in Balloon Headed Boy is pretty fun. As you go through each level, you collect gas from flowers (random, but a nice renewable resource, I suppose) which lets Balloon Headed Boy inflate his head so he can float around the level, and collect other balloons, get rid of those pesky party-ruining frogs and do whatever else he needs to do.

Once you’ve collected all the balloons in a level, the exit for that level will be unlocked. Now, AppCraver readers, I’m going to give you a helpful Balloon Headed Boy tip that I wish someone would’ve given me. Once the door’s been opened, you have to stand in front of it and tilt your iPhone toward you and back. There’s a graphic onscreen that shows this, but I didn’t catch on until after I’d pressed every possible button, cursed a lot, and uninstalled and reinstalled Balloon Headed Boy twice. Maybe I was just being thick, but if it’s not just me, hopefully I helped save you some aggravation.

Overall, Balloon Headed Boy is a really cute and enjoyable action game. The graphics and music are well-done, and the timer on each level helps increase the replay value. If you’d like to give Balloon Headed Boy a shot for free, check out Balloon Headed Boy Lite in the App Store.

rating: 8/10
app_name: Balloon Headed Boy

WackyLands Green is Three Great Games in One

Amelia Sauter — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 01:00:19 +0000

What do a surfer dude, a hippo and a bunch of cows have in common? When you play WackyLands Green, it is your job to save them all.

WacklyLands Green from Fair Play Labs is three games in one app. In Surfer’s Nightmare, you shoot fish at hungry sharks to keep them from eating a surfer. The second game, Hop Hippo Hop, involves steering a hippo down a river to scoop up gifts for his hippo girlfriend-to-be. In Off with the UFO, you save cows from being beamed up to alien spaceships. You can play in regular mode or accept survival challenges like the surfer must survive 45 seconds or you have to save 40 cows without getting sucked into a spaceship. You can earn trophies and medals, and compare your high scores with others online.

WackyLands Green is creative and entertaining. The graphics are well-designed, and playing the games is a flawless and satisfying experience. Cute Saturday-morning-like cartoons before and after each game give you the backstory and the epilogue to some of the games’ characters (you can skip these cartoons if you like). Instructions are available at the beginning of each game if you need them.

Though feeding sharks, steering a hippo and saving cows may not seem elegant, WackyLands Green is a sophisticated app that utilizes the iPhone’s multi-touch and accelerometer capabilities. Adults and children alike will enjoy playing the games. Children will love the cartoons and the childish music, although WacklyLands Green will prove to be difficult for kids under age 7 or 8.

When you are buying WackyLands Green, you are essentially spending 33 cents on each game. Three great games for a dollar? WackyLands Green is a bargain. This entertaining app will keep you and your kids occupied for hours.

app_name: WackyLands Green
rating: 9/10

Easter Words is a Feel-Good Family Game

Amelia Sauter — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 00:00:45 +0000

Easter Words is a family-friendly holiday game for the iPhone. Like its cousin, Hangman, the user guesses a word one letter at a time. Unlike Hangman, there are no negative consequences for picking the wrong letters.

A blank egg and the alphabet greet the user at the start of the game. To play Easter Words, you tap one letter at a time until you can guess the word. Each correct letter is rewarded by an added decoration to the Easter egg; developer Hristo Bojinov chose to provide positive reinforcement to the user during this game rather than a negative punishment.

Words are both secular and religious, such as ‘basket,’ ‘bonnet,’ ‘mass’ and ‘resurrection.’ After you complete the word, you can choose to see a definition, meant to stimulate family discussion of Easter traditions.

I could not figure out how to start a new game, so I just tapped the screen a bunch of times in different places until I realized you can tap any letter to advance to the next word.

When playing Easter Words, there is no sense of competition and no score. You just guess the letters until you get the word. Since there are only four Easter egg designs, there’s very little anticipation about seeing the fully decorated egg.

Maybe it’s OK that Easter Words is not exciting. Though I prefer a sense of competition when I am playing a game, even if I am simply competing with myself. Competition isn’t as necessary for children and the positive reinforcement is a nice touch for kids.

Easter Words could probably keep your eight- or nine-year-old occupied for a little while on Easter morning. If you are worried about cavities, it could be a good alternative to jelly beans and chocolate bunnies. Me? I’ll take the chocolate.

app_name: Easter Words
rating: 7/10

Tamagotchi: ‘Round the World Is Really, Really, Really Cute

Tracy Rodgers — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 15:00:24 +0000

Tamagotchi: ‘Round the World — For my own peace of mind, and to make sure we’re all on the same page here, I feel like I should start this off by stating that I am, generally, pro-cute. I like cute boys, and cute shoes, and cute couples. I also like puppies and kittens and assorted other fuzzy baby animals. And for the most part, I like games that are cute, too. So when I say that Tamagotchi: ‘Round the World is just a little too cute for me, please understand that to mean that this game is very cute.

I missed the original Tamagotchi craze — I believe I was a few years too old. So, Tamagotchi: ‘Round the World (by Namco Networks America) is my introduction to the series. My thought, frankly, is that it’s not for me. But it might be for you, AppCraver readers, so let’s take a look.

The objective of Tamagotchi: ‘Round the World, from what I can tell, is to complete assorted missions, which consist of things like getting a little fruit to grow (I think it’s a pineapple, although it falls from a tree, which is…not right) so your character can eat it. To do so, you take actions like performing rain dances and, ahem, answering the call of nature.

Performing the rain dances is actually sort of fun. You have to have good reflexes and timing — hit little bulls-eyes on the screen as they appear and pop them at the right moment, and properly follow the path of stars along rainbows (I said this game was excessively cute) to keep your Tamagotchi dancing and the rain falling. Other activities include playing rock/paper/scissors with the vegetation and shaking palm trees.

The issue with Tamagotchi: ‘Round the World is that it’s just not that entertaining. I found myself feeling like I could have better spent my time painting my nails or picking lint off a sweater.

It’s entirely possible that kids would like it; the colors are vibrant, the music is lively, and the tasks seem relatively simple. On the other hand, Tamagotchi: ‘Round the World seems to be fairly repetitive, so I don’t know how long it would hold a kid’s attention. I can’t personally imagine that kids would like it six dollars worth; there are better, cheaper options out there for children, in my opinion.

app_name: Tamagotchi: ‘Round the World
rating: 6/10

Supermarket Mania Comes to the App Store

Jennifer Beam — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 00:00:08 +0000

Already a frequently downloaded PC game, Supermarket Mania is now stocked in the App Store thanks to G5 Entertainment. A time-management game, which has players keep up with customer demands in a small town grocery store, Supermarket Mania provides iPhone/iPod touch users access to a detailed and complete mobile version of the same game.

For the price, currently just .99, you get a lot of game. There are 50 total levels, which change and grow with previous level success. The story concept behind Supermarket Mania is to play as “Nikki,” an annoyingly perky stock girl whose job is to stock shelves and pick up trash in a supermarket. Your goal is to make the customers happy, thus making the supermarket money and driving the evil Torg competition out of business.

Using simple tapping, players fill their cart in the storeroom and then stock the shelves like mad according to customer demand. Customers come in droves, ranging from teenage girls to little old ladies and the occasional local celebrity. The items they want to buy are displayed in thought bubbles above their heads and they each have their own assigned patience levels in terms of waiting for items to be restocked on store shelves. If they wait too long, they get angry and leave the store. In Supermarket Mania the more customers you serve, the more money you make to purchase store upgrades and advance to the next levels.

In addition to managing customer demands, Supermarket Mania players must also keep an eye out for trash on the floor and the periodic shoplifter. Thieves are thwarted by tapping on the store’s security guard, who will make the sticky-finger dudes pay up, but if you miss one, the store loses money.

If you enjoy time-management games, that is to say games where you have to complete a specific number of tasks or goals within a certain time frame, Supermarket Mania is right up your alley. Granted, it has plausibility issues, like why would any teenage girl ever buy multiple heads of cabbage/lettuce at a single visit to the supermarket and for a group of people who grocery shop at break-neck speed, it’s amazing how their carts are always empty. But all in all, Supermarket Mania is a fun enough game.

Supermarket Mania will hold more than one player’s file, which is great for kids who have to share one device. Due to the multiple levels and store upgrades, the longevity of the game is great. Comic book style cut scenes complete the story line progress and high scores are saved to enhance replay value. At the current price, Supermarket Mania is a game value as good as any double coupon.

app_name: Supermarket Mania
rating: 8/10

Brain Thaw: Got A Cool Head for Math?

Tracy Rodgers — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 22:00:27 +0000

Brain Thaw - I feel comfortable saying that there’s nothing in the world that can’t be improved at least a little bit by adding penguins. They’re cute! They waddle! They… eat numbers? In Brain Thaw, they do. The math game from Groovy Squared introduces Newton, the hero of Brain Thaw and “the cleverest penguin in the land.” (You can tell he’s smart because he wears glasses.)

Newton, apparently, likes to snack on digits. (By which I mean numbers, not fingers. Don’t be scared.) On each level of Brain Thaw, players are given a basic math rule, such as multiples of three or factors of 30. Simply double-tap squares with numbers that fit the rule and Newton scoots over to them, clearing them from the board.

Of course, Brain Thaw is not quite that simple. There are yetis about, and yetis enjoy eating penguins as much as Newton enjoys eating numbers. (Doesn’t anyone just eat cookies anymore?) There are several different breeds of yeti, ranging from ones who just kind of lurk about and get in your way (but are easily avoidable) to ones who will chase you around the board or ones who will leave additional numbers in their wake.

To finish a level in Brain Thaw, simply clear all of the numbers that fit the given rule, without being eaten by a yeti. There are also special bonus squares from time to time, with things like “x2″ or “x3″ which will multiply the points you earn for a short duration, a “1Up” which gives you an extra life, or a small bomb which will blow all yetis off the board for a brief period.

Brain Thaw has three difficulty levels (although I didn’t think the Hard setting seemed all that different from the Easy setting, honestly) and records your high scores. There’s also the option to upload your high scores to the web, if you’re into bragging rights.

While Brain Thaw is definitely really cute (the music’s cute, too), I personally found it a little too easy to really capture my interest. This seems like it would be terrific for kids, though.

app_name: Brain Thaw
rating: 8/10

Moo Shake shakes a tail feather — and a cow belly and a cat head

Ofelia Saenz — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 20:30:36 +0000

Moo Shake - A martial arts zebra, a bandanna-wearing feline ballerina and a hula hooping cow? It’s a curious combination, but sure, why not. These are just a few of the colorfully and imaginatively illustrated cast of characters that come together in Moo Shake, a children’s mix and match game designed by MoGeneration for the iPhone and iPod touch.

Moo Shake is an educational children’s game that challenges kids’ ability to piece together a picture by swiping side to side along three horizontal panels. There is no reading or language element to the game, which makes it easy enough even for pre-reading or pre-verbal age users.

Tapping the icon or giving the instrument a couple quick shakes sends the panels rotating in opposite directions and sets off a cacophony of animal sounds (and one somewhat uncanny granny cackle). Each panel provides the head, midsection or feet of ten different characters from which to choose. Piece the panels together correctly and the character does a little dance.

While there are no specific settings to Moo Shake, players can play against the clock by tapping at the bottom of the interface. When Moo Shake is working correctly, you have 45 seconds in which to make a match and score. A second round starts at a 40 second countdown. The game will archive up to five high scores. In countdown mode, Moo Shake has a tendency to get stuck. If you start swiping the panels too quickly, the countdown freezes and you can’t progress from one round to the next after completing the match.

That said, what kid doesn’t like something that makes animal noises — Moo Shake is one of my 4-year-old’s favorites. He just never tires of it.

Moo Shake is MoGeneration’s first foray into the realm kid’s games; the company has created several media and enterprise applications for other companies. MoGeneration will soon be releasing round two of its shake at kid’s games; Look for Dino Shake to be released soon. Visit ShakeandPlay.com for more information.

app_name: Moo Shake
rating: 7/10

Tower Bloxx Deluxe 3D Stacks Up Repetitious Fun…Kind of

Jennifer Beam — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 19:00:36 +0000

Tower Bloxx Deluxe 3D – I had never seen the acclaimed PC version of Tower Bloxx by Digital Chocolate so I wasn’t sure what to expect with their iPhone version of the game. With apps like Crazy Penguin Catapult and Chocolate Shop Frenzy under their belt, I was hopeful. But reading through the iTunes Store reviews, which is always a bit daunting if not entertaining, I began to wonder if I was getting an app that would crash and glitch or would truly entertain. For the asking price of $5.99, I was rather hoping for entertainment. Here’s what I found.

Tower Bloxx Deluxe 3D is a block stacking game with a teeny, tiny bit of puzzle element to it. Your goal is to tap the screen to drop one segment of a tower on top of another in perfect alignment. The challenge is to get the timing right, as each unplaced tower segment is being swung around by a poorly trained crane operator. If you tap at just the right moment, the tower segment will drop in alignment with the last one. You score bonus points for each consecutive success. If you drop the tower pieces at the wrong time, you will end up with a crooked tower, but only very poorly timed pieces will fall off or cause others to fall.

In Tower Bloxx Deluxe 3D there are various “districts” in the metropolitan area where you are constructing towers. They serve as levels and as you achieve certain goals in the previous district, the subsequent districts, which total four, become unlocked. As you build each tower, people will begin to move in and your ultimate goal for each level is to achieve the maximum population. The better the tower, the higher the number of residents.

The puzzle element stems from the placement of each tower. There are different colored towers, each with their own rules regarding placement on the individual district grids. Certain colors afford more space for residents, so it is advantageous to build and place the right ones.

As far as the technical aspects of Tower Bloxx Deluxe 3D, the game gave me no problems with interface, navigation, or crashing. The graphics are nicely done and the premise is simply laid out. The people who move in to the high rise buildings are a bit odd as their mode of transportation is an umbrella, which they use to parachute into the windows — but who am I to judge? After all, the more the merrier.

The biggest issue I had with Tower Bloxx Deluxe 3D was entertainment value. Quite frankly, it went from mild entertainment to moderate boredom mid-way through the second district. Yes, there are bonus roof top balconies to unlock for better-built towers and new colored towers to build with, but it is essentially the same thing over and over. No real switch ups or added depth — just tap and drop. In my quest for perfection, I would have appreciated the ability to blow up a tower with too many mistakes and start over rather than have to finish it, place it, and replace it with a better one later on. In fact, an implosion button would be a great addition in my opinion.

To be fair, Tower Bloxx Deluxe 3D is full-version game, not a wimpy short one. It reminds me a bit of the Tonka construction games for PC geared towards little kids, but with a tad more sophistication. However, it does have additional modes of play, which are thankfully quicker. In the Quick Game you see how tall you can build a tower before causing three tumbles and the Time Attack mode is a race against the clock to build the tallest tower. A party game is also included to challenge a friend.

In the end, having had no real expectations, I won’t say I was thoroughly disappointed, but I would recommend trying Tower Bloxx Deluxe 3D Free before buying the full version so you know exactly what you’re in for.

app_name: Tower Bloxx Deluxe 3D
rating: 7/10