On a recent visit to India, I was videotaping in a preschool. During a music lesson, I flipped the viewfinder on my camera around, so the children could see their own faces. The effect was immediate. Faces became animated, and eyes started to sparkle, and the teachers wouldn’t let me leave until everyone had a turn. The event was a reminder of how powerful it is to see yourself on a screen. This trick is being exploited by both Microsoft Kinect and the Sony PlayStation Move, with titles like EyePet (page 16) and Kinectimals (page 18). What does this expanding form of human computer interface (HCI) mean for children? Here’s a starter list:
• New exercise, sports and dance games will watch, score and rate a child.
• The line between concrete and abstract could blur with augmented reality techniques (see http://bit.ly/9h0rva). A traditional block, toy, book or playing card could jump to life, inside a 3D screen.
• Point, click, drag and drop will be replaced by a voice and motion.
• Skype-like plugins could make game sharing as routine as starting up a game and giving a voice command.
• New motion-based methods could help children learn to read and hard-wire abstract math relationships to their hand.
This welcome step away from abstraction has created a new set of research questions for educators and designers. There’s never been a better time to ask “how can we tap this power for the benefit of children?”
Here’s a video that shows off the latest features of the Sony PlayStation Move.
Enjoy our Back to School issue!
thinkSMART for the Wii and DS is a collection of exercises paired with a record keeping system. After you sign in and make an avatar, you choose from a series of mental challenges that include math, logic, memorization, language, and spatial reasoning. These are organized into free-training exercises, a daily routine, a test, and a multiplayer mode. All include the same challenges, but the free-training and multiplayer modes allow you to set your own difficulty. Created by dtp young entertainment for Mentor Interactive and Conspiracy Entertainment. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
After you sign into one of the three game-save slots, you can select the gender of the pilot in this flying game. You then begin a tutorial that helps you learn to fly through some rings by holding the controller like a pair of handlebars. Next you try putting out a fire with a water canon which involves carefully buzzing a building, and then clearing sheep from train tracks with carefully aimed buzzes. There are 40 missions including hunting for lost pirate treasures, abducting cows in a UFO, and eventually becoming the Sky Captain. You can play alone, or invite a friend to fly cooperatively (in split screen) in any of the missions. You can also compete head-to-head in mutliplayer mode. Developed by Torus Games for D3Publisher. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
This fitness game for the Wii features 18 games. After a brief introduction by a real personal trainer (Brooke Burke) you are asked to sign in and design an avatar. Next, you can choose a mode of play; either quick play or routine. The quick play option lets you jump right to a game; the routine mode gives you a sequence of activities. If you play in two player mode, you see a split screen — this could be fun for parents and children to play together. The game requires a Nunchuk, and a Balance Board is optional. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
In this game, you play as Buzz, Woody or Jessie as you run, ride and fly through scenes inspired by the film. For example, in one scene, you jump along the cars of a moving train, ducking under low poles or swinging buckets, and navigating across train cars with moving logs. You can complete missions to earn rewards such as gold and new customizations, and purchase new toys with your virtual earnings. Or you can customize new buildings, and then change how they look with paint and accessories. A “Toy Box” mode lets you add new characters and game elements. Developed by Avalanche Software for Disney Interactive. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
If one word could describe this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo, it would probably be “motion.” If that were expanded to three words, it might be “geeks looking silly.” Fortunately we had our camera, and the resulting mashup is called “The E3 Waltz.”
So now that we’ve reached the mid-point of 2010 and Toy Fair, E3 and ISTE are behind us, we’re able to start connecting some dots.
1. Nintendo is still in first place in the children’s software quantity and quality race. They also had the star of this year’s E3 — the 3D edition of the Nintendo DS, called the Nintendo 3DS. For the first time, a child can play with 3D photography.
2. Microsoft and Sony are playing catch up. But at least they’re in the race. It will be interesting to see if the Kinect connects with the public, at the estimated $150 to $180 estimated price. Based on the title list, they’ve definitely been drinking the Wii Kool Aide. The optical based Sony Move controller are also interesting.
3. The App Flood Continues. Flip through the feature reviews of this issue, and you’ll see some very exciting iPad experiences for children.
Video Games in Libraries? Absolutely!
“You can check out a movie or a book at a library. Why not a video game?” Starting with this issue, we’re beginning a series of articles designed to help children’s librarians use and circulate hardware. This includes a listing of recommend titles for starting a collection. Do you have experience with this topic? If so let us know! We’re also offering a new white paper, “Building Your Collection: 100 Library Friendly Video Games” for $25, in PDF format. Visit the order form.
NO MORE ESRB PARENTOOLS IN CTR
This will be the last issue of CTR to contain ParenTools, because the ESRB has discontinued the email service. It will be replaced by a web resource that will list the recently rated games. The plan is to push out a link to that page on a weekly basis through Facebook and Twitter, so if you follow the ESRB on either you’ll get a reminder. The ESRB is working to promote a set of mobile tools so that you can get summaries in the store, when you need them. Visit http://www.esrb.org/mobile.
HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT INSECTS?
In this month’s LittleClickers, we examine bugs, a timely topic for the summer. See page 4, visit http://www.littleclickers.com.
We hope you have a wonderful July!
If you can’t wait, have a look at our YouTube channel for some of our recent E3 footage, including highlights from the IndieArcade, and an advance look at Super Scribblenauts; one of the most exciting literacy titles of the year (now it recognizes adjectives, like “amazing.”)
On behalf of all of us at CTR, see you next week, and have a great July 4 holiday.
Like it’s 2007 predecessor, you find yourself immersed in a planetary hopping theme, where the conventional rules of physics don’t always apply. You steer Mario through each maze-like level; flying, jumping or working upside down. New power-ups include a drill that Mario uses to tunnel through the planet’s surface all the way to the other side of the planet. Your goal is to collect as many Power Stars as possible, rescue Princess Peach and defeat Bowser. Other content includes the ability to transform yourself into either Cloud Mario or Rock Mario, which enables Mario to create temporary cloud platforms, or to smash through obstacles. With the Spin Drill, he can tunnel from one side of a planet to another. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
Family Game Show for the Wii lets you become a contestant in the world of Family Gameshow. There are three shows – Control Freak, Brain Strain, and Puzzle Addict – each hosted by a different character, and more than 3,000 questions in total. The games can be played alone or with up to four players, and each game has three difficulties and ten levels. There is also a Kids vs. Adult Mode so the entire family can play. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This year’s edition of the long-running Backyard Sports baseball simulations continues the tradition of being fun and easy to play. When you’re pitching, you get to choose the type of pitch, as well as the hardness of the throw. When batting, you slide the stylus on the screen in order to try to hit the ball, which takes some getting used to. In the DS version, which we reviewed, there were eight fields options, plus a story mode, a homerun derby, a season mode, and the ability to have a quick game. Created by HB Studios and Powerhead Games for Atari. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Join the world’s largest soccer tournament from the comfort of your home, as you battle your way through 199 teams from around the world. The World Cup is the largest sporting event and this is the only official and exclusively licensed video game for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. You can take your home nation team from qualification through a virtual re-creation of the World Cup Final. And, for the first time, you can play out the World Cup in a full online tournament mode against fans from other countries. You will compete under the same conditions that your team will face in South Africa, from the group stage through the knockout rounds, to the chance to win the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Imagine Bikini Bottom as a demolition derby for up to four players, and you get the idea of this game. Content includes 100 boat mobiles that you try to knock off track. You play as one of nine SpongeBob characters and “crash-n-bash” your way to victory within demolition arenas throughout Bikini Bottom. The multi-player game allows up to four players to drive more than 100 customized boat mobiles, while trying to knock off and collect other boat parts in order to earn points and move up levels with the hope of ultimately earning your boat mobile license. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
In Avatar The Game, you either fight with the Na’vi, Pandora’s indigenous people, or against them, as a soldier of the RDA Corporation, using customizable weapons or clan-specific skills. As you unlock levels, you acquire new skills. You can also create your own character, drive the vehicles and ride the animals of Pandora. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
Based on the DreamWorks Animation movie, this game lets you train dragons, explore the Island of Berk as Hiccup or Astrid in Story Mode, and battle in dragon tournaments for Viking victory in Action Mode. The “Create Your Dragon” feature allows you to customize six different types of dragons. You can also “level up” your dragon’s speed, power, fire and other abilities through training to face the Viking challenge and become the ultimate dragon trainer. You can then use your trained dragons to battle friends. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Coming next week (April 12) from Netflix, the addition of the Nintendo Wii as a video streaming option, joining other platforms including Sony’s PS3, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Apple’s iPad.
Providing you have an active NetFlix subscription ($9/month), along with a web-connected Wii, you start by inserting a special DVD provided free from Netflix, just as you would a regular game.
When it’s movie time, you bribe your Wii away from your child, and start the Netflix movie viewer, logging into your account. Next, you pick your movies and start buffering. If the Internet winds are blowing your way, your Wii Remote soon is transformed into a real remote.
Want to go for a walk? This low impact walking simulator turns your Wii into an endless treadmill, complete with scenery, record keeping and a virtual coach. Your walking motion is captured with either the Wii Remote, the Wii Balance Board, or a vinyl dance pad; none of which are included in the $30 price. Because there are one or two player options, we were able to dig up two mats previously used with Dance Dance Revolution (DDR), plug them in, and start striding. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
Easy and fun to play, Pony Friends 2 gives you what you’d hope for in a virtual horse game. After you customize and name your pony, you can earn points with good care, love, and winning at contests. In the Wii version, the Wii Remote and Nunchuk become the reins. Lift one higher to turn, or pull back to stop. We did not test the PC or DS versions, although we did notice that the DS version lets you talk to your horse using the microphone. Created by Tantalus and Eidos for Square Enix. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
This one player helicopter flying game lets you buzz around a fictional Pacific island, shooting at tanks, buildings, boats and so on. There are 18 missions that use homing missiles, rockets, and cannons. You can fight against enemy helicopters, tanks, gunboats, troops and AA-guns, using the Wii remote to steer, control speed, take-off and land, and attack. Created by Team 6 Game Studios for Zoo Games. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
The second in the Endless Ocean series, this one player diving simulation and exploration game lets you learn about 300 species of marine life, from jellyfish to whales. If you played the first game, you’ll find this version to have a nearly identical look, feel and control mechanism. New features include the story element and the addition of content. Developed by ARIKA for Nintendo. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
As in many scavenger hunt types of games, you explore, earning points and health by smashing statues, park benches, and hedges as you try to find your way to the next level. You can also become one of five Alice in Wonderland characters; each with different attributes. Note that the DS version has a very different design than the Wii version. It requires reading, and uses a different animation style; not like the movie. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Want to go for a walk? Well designed and addictive, this low impact walking simulator turns your Wii into an endless treadmill, complete with scenery, record keeping and a virtual coach. Your walking motion is captured with either the Wii Remote, the Wii Balance Board, or a vinyl dance pad; none of which are included in the $30 price. Because there are one or two player options, we were able to dig up two mats previously used with Dance Dance Revolution (DDR), plug them in, and start striding. Read the rest of this entry »
This collection of ten games, for 1 or 2 players, is a mixed bag. The main thing to note is that while the game plays like the other Nick Jr. inspired titles from 2K Play, where you simply tilt the Wii remote like handlebars to move, this is not a side-scrolling platformer. This is more of an activity pack, and the games vary in quality.
After you select the number of players, you choose a Ni Hao, Kai-Lan character to serve as your avatar. There are both male or female options. Next, you see a game-board-like menu representing the games. Prices are $40 for the Wii and $20 for the PS2 version. Developed by High Voltage Software for 2K Play. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This follow-up to the My Baby virtual baby doll games lets you take care of a realistic onscreen baby (yes, you change diapers) from their 1st birthday until they’re 30 months old. You begin by choosing whether you want a boy or a girl and then give your baby a name. Next, you can customize your baby with new items such as outfits, toys, and decorate their room. Made in France by Dancing Dots Studios for Southpeak Interactive. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This one player, Wii only game puts you behind the wheel of monster trucks as you race through a variety of themed tracks; each set to hard rock music. Content includes six outdoor landscapes including Manhattan Rooftops and a Canadian Forest. You can choose from trucks such as Indestructible Destroyer (a military style crusher) and Yellow Beast (a crazy cab out for vengeance). Created by Team 6 for Zoo Interactive. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
If you don’t mind the crude drawing resolution of the Wii Remote, the Wii version of Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter ($30) offers a lot of play value, with a creative twist. (Nintendo DS specific comments, later). As you explore, you draw characters and tools needed to find the Artifacts of Power and rid the Raposa village of evil. In addition to the one player side-scrolling platform environment, there are several two player minigames, including soccer, hockey and basketball.
The Nintendo DS version costs less ($20) and you can draw humans, animals or multi-limbed creatures easily, and use them to find hidden coins. Created for THQ by 5th Cell. For more information, visit www.drawntolife.com. See also ScribbleNauts. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Coming this fall, LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars, the next chapter for the series that was one of the first to bring drop-in, drop-out interactivity to the games.
DJ Hero Renegade Edition Turntable
This game expands on the gameplay mechanics of Guitar Hero but instead of pressing buttons, you use a turntable controller which, at times, has you bending streams of notes to earn a higher score. There are 100 songs highlighted in 93 mixes that blend genres of music, including hip-hop, R&B, pop, rock and electronica.
The turntable controller allows you to use and master various DJ techniques including scratching, crossfading and sampling. So you can learn some real DJ techniques. The game features five levels of play: beginner, easy, medium, hard and expert. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This construction game for Windows, Mac and Wii lets you drag-and-drop sticky blobs to construct structures that look a bit like carbon molecules. You quickly learn which structures work best to solve a particular problem. On one puzzle, you must construct the highest tower using the fewest possible parts. Another presents you with a spinning set of teeth that requires a curved structure.
There’s a lot of different ways to solve the same problem, making this game addicting. Content includes 15 different varieties of blobs, each with different properties; enough to keep things interesting. Note that a Wii-Ware version is available, as a download. This is a fun way to introduce building dynamics to young science students. Created by 2D Boy (www.2dboy.com) for Brighter Minds Media. Winner of the 2010 KAPi Award. Teaches: science, creativity, building, physics, forces, potential energy. Brighter Minds Media, Inc. www.brightermindsmedia.com, $20. Best for ages 7-up.
Rating: 
or .96%
This mostly one player Wii game puts you in the role of a zookeeper, in which you take care of as many as 90 species of animals. The more you care for your virtual animals, the more you learn their habits and gain their trust, earning you hearts. Content includes 20 exhibits to unlock. A free-form mode allows you to interact with the animals you like best and you can also compete in goal-oriented and co-op challenges. There are also minigames to earn awards and gain access to unlockable content. Developed by Blue Fang, creators of the Zoo Tycoon series. See also SimAnimals. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Blackjack
This party style board game includes 17 virtual casinos and 15 gambling mini-games. The games are adaptations of real casino games that vary in quality. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
The Wii version of Twilight Scene It? turns your TV screen into a trivia game show for up to four players. The content includes 500 questions, which are answered using the Wii remote. Your score can be increased not only by answering correctly, but also by being the first to buzz in. Games include Alice’s Vision (identify the location as it is slowly sketched), Movie Clip (watch a clip, and then correctly answer a question about it), Sequentials (put the scenes in order), and Upon Reflection (identify the character hidden behind the shimmering stars). There are both single and multi-player modes. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This mixture of story telling and stories lets you narrate 16 classic children’s fairy tales and fables from Hans Christian Anderson, Aesop, the Brothers Grimm and Japan. A USB microphone is included in the $40, turning your Wii into a simple and affordable storybook jukebox. Children can read along, record and play back readings of favorite stories. You can also sing along to four children’s songs and record those performances. The Magic Voice Box option allows you to alter your voice to match the storybook characters’ speech as you read. You can also earn the option to use your Mii in select stories, play games in the Play & Learn Mode, and track progress by using a virtual sticker pad (the more books you read, the more stickers you earn). Stories include: Little Red Riding Hood; The Ugly Duckling; The Town Musicians of Bremen; Be Kind to the Earth; The Boy Who Went to the North Wind; The Little Match Girl; The Happy Prince; The Giant Turnip; A Glove; Hats for the Jizos; Three Wishes; The Star Money; The Elves and the Shoemaker; and The Golden Goose. See the preview here http://www.konami.com/games/storybook/. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Inspired by the animated film, this game includes 25 mini-games that include moving to the music, cooking, and dressing Tiana. You can also collect Mardi Gras beads to trade for new dresses, fabrics, ingredients and recipes, as well as explore quest hubs with drop-in/drop-out multiplayer. The game features seven playable characters.
The DS version is a platforming side scrolling game, that lets you play as Tiana and Ray as you jump, swing and soar in order to collect ingredients and recipes, and cook dishes. You can also perform music with 1-4 players using wireless DS multi-card play and save your tunes in the game’s jukebox. Designed by Griptonite Games. Prices are $40 for the Wii version, $30 for the DS, and $20 for the PC version. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
In PES 2010, you take your team to the Champions League. Your roster can include real life players, each with unique characteristics. The improved AI will now help your offense to build attacks or close down your opponents attacks. Other new features include a Master League where you can create and manage your team for a longer period of time. Prices are $40 for the Wii version, $60 for the PS3 and Xbox 360, and $30 for the PS2 and PSP versions. Developed by Winning Eleven Productions. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
In this seventeenth edition of FIFA, you first create an avatar using a 3D head using the Photo Game Face. Then you can join a club and play as yourself across any mode, and grow your player attributes through 200 accomplishments. Next, you can take your game online, competing against up to ten other players in online competition. You can assign a specific role to each outfield player, and then combine them. The AI allows players to avoid passes not intended for them, avoid blocking teammate shots, and throw themselves in the way of attacker’s shots in defense. A practice mode lets you work on individual skills before taking the field. Prices are $60 for the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions, $50 for the Wii, $40 for the PSP, and $30 for the Nintendo DS and PS2 versions. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Yet another spin on the DDR idea of matching moving targets to the rhythm of a song, this collection of 25 songs let’s you become a member of the Chipmunk’s band. You start easy, at a concert in Chicago, and gradually work your way up to a world tour, following a tried and true Rock Band and Guitar Hero format. Features include a multiplayer mode that lets you compete with up to two other players, and a jukebox mode that lets you sing along to the music and lyrics. The Wii version requires a Nunchuk in order to work. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This scavenger hunt adventure for one player is set in a floating island, far above the sky. According to the story,
the island’s fans are having trouble, and it’s up to you to stop the island from crashing back to Earth. 
How do you do that? By completing the 60 missions, one at a time. As you explore the maze-like ramps, you exchange dialog with people, who also offer clues about the next task. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Designed in collaboration with the Food Network, you use the Wii Remote and Nunchuk to cut, slice and dice as you prepare 30 recipes taught by the Food Network experts. You can learn as you play through recipe challenges that range from a bacon and egg breakfast to family meals and dinner parties where you serve sophisticated stir fry dishes. You can cook on your own, or side by side with friends in multiplayer mode. The game features cartoon renditions of Food Network’s Susie Fogelson and Mory Thomas, who offer tips and instructions to help you improve your technique. Please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Pull out your balance board and start your workout, with this second release in the Wii Fit series that combines 15 new games and six new yoga positions with a calendar-based management system.
You can choose a workout based on the amount of time you have available, from as little as five minutes to a full hour session. In addition, you can select from the Wii Fit Plus routines which target specific areas. The $20 price is for the standalone game; and a balance board is required. A version bundled with the balance board costs $100. Note that the original Wii Fit games are included as part of this package. Please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This one player adventure game lets you become a pocket-sized Ninja warrior. As you explore the peaceful countryside, you try to protect the balance of nature from the plot of an evil warlord who has turned the woodland creatures into mindless minions. Using standard jump, punch, kick, and slash types of moves, you battle against the bad guys, trying to preserve your health long enough to make it to the next level. You can also alternate between six male or female mini Ninjas, each with unique skills,weapons, and moves.
Developed by Io Interactive and Eidos for Warner Brothers. Prices are $50 for the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions, $40 for the Wii, and $20 for the DS and PC versions. Visit www.minininjas.com. Please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Alpine Skiing Downhill
This is a collection of 27 games for 1 to 4 players, set in a cartoon rendition of Vancouver, Canada, the host city of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.
After you choose from the four game-save slots, you select an avatar — either one of your Miis or a Nintendo or Sonic character — and your country. If you have other players, you can play either cooperatively (e.g., from the same country) or head-to-head in competitive events.
Events include Alpine Skiing Downhill, Speed Skating, Figure Skating, and more. Most games are easy to pick up and play, although it is hard to win without good times. The game was developed by Sega of Japan, under the guidance of Shigeru Miyamoto. All in all, this is a fun collection of games that is well organized into a playful Winter Olympics theme. Borrow or buy. Made by Criware and Weathernews for Sega. Please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.