Showing posts with label educational video games. Show all posts
Showing posts with label educational video games. Show all posts

Age of Mythology Review

Age of Mythology
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I must say, I am thoroughly impressed with Age of Mythology. Though it's certainly not revolutionary to the RTS genre (it plays very similarly to Age of Empires I & II), it is an addictive game that's accessible to amateurs but still rewarding to those that master it. What really stands out about it though, is how polished it is.
Age of Mythology is all about the details. While Age of Empires I & II had very simlar looking units for their many "races", this game really gives the varying units a different look. There are only so many ways you can depict a 0.5 inch spearman on screen, but the developers have nevertheless defined each unit visually. It gets even more impressive with the plethora of colorful myth units. Who knew that a manticore and a chimera would look so very, very different?
Perhaps even more impressive is the fact that at least the Greeks actually speak their ancient language (though the single player mode understandably narrates the story in English). Take it from the classics major (I even verified the phrases I didn't know in my lexicon.....yeah....I'm a loser), Ensemble Studios did their homework. We're not talking Thucydides; the statements are really simple phrases basically translating to "that is my purpose" and "especially" and "yes". I have no idea how accurate the Egyptian or Norse game language is, but I have to imagine that they did their best to base them off their ancient languages.
On top of being polished, Age of Mythology is a lot of fun. For fans of the Age of Empires games, you'll be pleased to know you'll still be having a blast with powerful siege weapons and legions of infantry, archers and cavalry. The addition of myth and hero units and of course the wonderful "god powers" does wonders for the gameplay. The old and the new are boiled down into one familiar, intuitive interface.
My largest complaint about Age of Mythology is that the variety between the races. I was nurtured by Starcraft in the beginning of my RTS days, so I have long been accustomed to different "races" holding different advantages. Though there are certainly variety in the "races" strengths as well as units' abilities and look, they are pretty similar (i.e. Greeks have more types of archer units, Norse have the best melee fighters, Egyptians build stronger walls, but all races have archers, melee fighters and as walls). This does tend to force players to strategize more, but I would have liked to see more variety.
Overall, this is a really good game that is really detailed and just a hoot to play. If you're considering getting Age of Empires I or II, waste not your money and get this one instead.

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Age of Mythology a game that transports players to a time when heroes did battle with monsters of legend and the gods intervened in the affairs of mortal men.Taking on the role of one of nine ancient civilizations players guide their people to greatness by commanding all aspects of their empire: gathering resources raising massive armies waging war against enemies establishing profitable trade routes building new settlements enhancing production or military might with improvements exploring new frontiers and advancing through four distinct ages.In their struggle for supremacy players can use mythological creatures like Minotaurs and Cyclopses to bolster their armies' strength. Players may also call upon the gods for assistance in flattening enemy towns with meteors or scattering opposing troops with lightning storms.All of this is brought to life using a revolutionary 3D engine originally developed by Ensemble Studios. The engine is capable of providing the most realistic beautiful and immersive world ever seen in a real-time strategy game.System Requirements:Mac OSX v 10.2.5 or higher 450 MHz G4 or faster processor 256 MB RAM 32 MB Video Card.Format: MAC 8.6-9.X (CLASSIC)X10.1 OR LATER Genre:ENTERTAINMENT UPC:828068103071 Manufacturer No:10307

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Math Blaster Pre-Algebra Review

Math Blaster Pre-Algebra
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This product I bought for myself because math isn't my strong suit. It doesn't have a forward or backward button, so you are stuck on a page. It doesn't give you any explanations, assume you know what to do. The games are fun and entertaining!

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Charlie Church Mouse: Super Pak Review

Charlie Church Mouse: Super Pak
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I got this product for my preschool to help reinforce Bible stories to those who do not hear them at home or church. It has done just that! The stories are accurate, short, repetative and entertaining. The games that are aligned with them are very fun and educational. My students love this!! The levels of play can be increased based on their knowledge. Great value too! I'd get all 3 games, even if you have a preschooler!

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QuickStudy Pre-Algebra Review

QuickStudy Pre-Algebra
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Unfortunately, I placed an order for several QuickStudy courses (math and english) and after placing them into CD drive, I found that none of them have AUDIO in their tutorials!!
There is nothing more useless than reading "text" on a CD...
If you want to teach yourself mathematics or english...purchase a book or another tutorial product! (I recommend Jason Gibson products for mathematics..I have not found a worthy product on teaching English writing or grammar)

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School Zone Flash Action Alphabet/Numbers 1-100 (PC & Mac) Review

School Zone Flash Action Alphabet/Numbers 1-100 (PC and Mac)
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Lots of fun and kids don't even know they are learing or reviewing math facts!

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History Channel: Lost Worlds Review

History Channel: Lost Worlds
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This game came from the same place as monster quest. Had to return this one too. Let me download then told me I needed Open gl and to insert card??? Requirements were xp which I have???

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The Hardy Boys: The Perfect Crime Review

The Hardy Boys: The Perfect Crime
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Fair warning: "The Hardy Boys: The Perfect Crime" is not an adventure game like "The Hidden Theft." It is instead a pretty straightforward hidden object game. It actually had the potential to be a very fun little game, but there are numerous small problems which add up to a disappointing experience.
First, the good: the plot follows the Hardy Boys as they try to track down a stolen bike, and discover a criminal conspiracy in Bayport. This game has more plot than many hidden object games, and while the dialogue is text-only, it manages to capture some of the goofy charm of the books. It's clear that the writers made an effort to create an interesting story. The boys' search takes them to a nice variety of locations, and the object hunt is occasionally interrupted for a quick puzzle. None of the puzzles are difficult, but they're not insultingly easy, either, and they do get a bit harder as the game continues.
Unfortunately, the game also had a number of flaws. First and foremost is the artwork, which isn't especially good and makes it almost impossible to find some of the objects. The game also has an irritating habit of giving you a description like "clock," and even though there are several clocks in the scene, only one of them is the correct answer. It also occasionally misidentifies objects (a clock is not the same as a watch), and gets strangely British at times (asking for a "spanner" instead of a "wrench," even though it seems like every scene features an American flag). None of these problems are game-killers by themselves, but it all adds up to a game that feels sloppy and unfinished. The occasional grammar mistakes don't help, either.
Overall, this game isn't terrible, but it isn't great, either. Die-hard Hardy fans should probably wait until the price comes down before buying it. Other players might just want to give this one a pass.

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Nancy Drew: Ransom Of The Seven Ships Review

Nancy Drew: Ransom Of The Seven Ships
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The ND games are always at least moderately fun, but this one offers something of a departure from the feel of previous efforts. Largely, I found it fell short.
From almost the first moment of the game, you're presented with a lengthy and ever-increasing list of tasks to accomplish. Thankfully, these can be completed in pretty much whatever order you like; however, the motivation behind them is rarely more than "because El Toro/Johnny/that squawking bird said so." Even at the end, there's no real sense of urgency - perhaps because there's practically no one to talk to. No phone, no funny e-mails, no Prudence Rutherford. Just a stressed out George and a none-too-talkative beach bum. There are barely any suspects, and while the big villain reveal at the end is clever, for me it took away from the story not to try to figure out whodunit on my own. Also, the island, while beautifully depicted, is limited. Driving and sailing have always felt like time wasters to me - I much prefer the near-instant mass transit systems of some previous games - and the locations offer little to explore beyond the bare essentials.
As I mentioned, the game is highly task- and puzzle-driven. I found some of these puzzles to be obtuse or simply way too hard; at times I knew what I had to do, but I just couldn't do it in the limited time available or without what seemed like a lucky stroke. One of the mini-games is a (long) game of complete chance, which I don't remember ever happening in an ND game before and is really pretty boring. The puzzles might have been more of a pleasant mental exercise and less of an irritation if not that so many of them were timed. I've never needed so many second chances before, and found myself resorting to the Internet to get the solution because I got sick of either dying and restarting or leaving the puzzle to refill my air tank and return.
Unlike many of the previous ND games, I had little sense of discovery or excitement with this one. There's no deep storyline to unfold or layers of secrets to discover. There's just a lot of traipsing around the island collecting stuff that seems completely pointless until it's required by a later puzzle. If you like the ND games for the mental workout of the puzzles, you'll love this one; if you prefer the character interaction, the snooping, the suspense, and the wit of many of the previous games, this one won't be your favorite. It's not mine.

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What could be better than an all-expense paid vacation in the Bahamaswith Bess and George? But when Bess is kidnapped and held for ransom,it's up to you, as Nancy Drew, to discover the treasures of the sunken"Seven Virtues" fleet and find the missing artifact that the kidnappersare demanding in exchange for Bess. Team up with George to sail throughthe perilous waters of this mystery and defeat the dastardly villain!

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Reader Rabbit Learn to Read With Phonics (Preschool & Kindergarten) Review

Reader Rabbit Learn to Read With Phonics (Preschool and Kindergarten)
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I purchased this software because my kid's daycare uses Reader Rabbit. I picked this version since it was preschool to K & I've got a 3yr old & a 5yr old & I wanted something (for my first purchase of software) that they could both use. It's a two disk set with one for the preschool & the other is K. The preschool has less "story" to it; it has more games, songs, & a zillion printable activities (we haven't done them since the kids computer isn't hooked up to a printer-- another thing they might break). Some games are matching letters or shapes, while harder games have the child pick the right word for the sentence (if you move your mouse over words, etc, the sentence/word is read for the child). Both my kids like teh preschool disk. THe K disk is more story & more detail -- help the mouse find letters & fill in a map. I think my 5yr old lacks the desire right now to sit thru all that, but it seems fun & challenging without being hard. My 3yr old tries to do it, but he can't follow the steps yet. I would have given this four stars (maybe even five, but it's my first software purchase & I've got nothing to compare it to) but I had to bump one off because the software doesn't download; you have to change between disks & that is a huge drag for me when one kid is done & the other wants to do the other program. That's just a hassle that isn't necessary. Outside of this, I think the program is great. The kids spend maybe 20 minutes on a Saturday or Sunday on the computer. I would recommend this product. It was a good first purchase for us.

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Civilization 4: Gold Edition Review

Civilization 4: Gold Edition
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Issues with this game on OSX: 1) graphics glitches: units and terrain will suddenly turn black and you can't see the game. restarting the fixes this for me. 2) it runs very slowly (eg. combat animation) even on a brand new late 2009 macbook pro (the bizarre focus on these graphics aside, given this is a turn-based strategy game). 3) multiplayer simply doesn't work for me. I click "register to play online" and the screen just hangs, doing nothing. 4) I figured maybe patches from the developers would resolve some of these issues, but it seems like they're exclusively focused on the windows users. I found a zip file via developer support pages that might contain an OSX patch but then got a MySQL error from the download server link. I feel these glitches and lack of technical support are a bit ridiculous for the price tag of the game. I was a huge fan of early versions of the game and would recommend that people not buy Civ 4 for OSX and wait for a subsequent version that lacks the glitches and comes with OSX support, if that time will ever come.

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