Aerobeak Goes on a Ride,
version 2.0, by 9Isles
International, $24.95
Reviewed December 2002
From 9Isles, the folks who are passionate
about making violence-free and environmentally friendly edutainment
games, Aerobeak Goes on a Ride is an adventure game that
will take you to the islands of Hawaii. You will ride a bicycle
as a parrot with snorkel to explore the beautiful island
with palm trees and the ocean floor full of colorful sea
creatures. The quest is to pick up a certain number of pineapples
while avoiding the snakes and puff fish that will block your
path with logic puzzles and knowledge questions.
There are two cycling trials, one on land
and one in the ocean. You control the cycling parrot with
your stylus and your goal is to collect the pineapples that
are scattered throughout the course. You must meet the quota
given at the beginning of the course by your parrot captain
and only have 5 minutes to do that. It isn’t hard except
you will run into the Snake Fufu on land and Fish Puffruff
in the ocean. Once you get stopped by one of these creatures,
you must answer the questions they ask you. The questions
are either logic puzzles which will remind you of IQ tests,
or knowledge questions in the areas of science, geography
and history. There is an option for you to focus more on
one category over the other. If your answers are correct,
a group voice will shout “Hurray!” and you will
continue your trial. If the answers are incorrect, you will
lose a number of the pineapples you’ve collected. The
trial rotates between land and ocean. As the level goes up,
more and more Fufus and Puffruffs will stop you. The game
allows you to use a magic shield to get more time and a magic
horn to avoid the annoying creatures.
The graphics in this game are mostly still
images with vibrant Hawaiian colors in island and ocean themes.
You will see a very nice sand beach with palm trees and tribal
wood carvings with a bursting volcano in the background.
The blue ocean floor is painted with bright colored shellfish,
coral and fish. The animations of the parrot riding a bicycle,
snakes jumping out of the sand and blowfish puffing up into
an air ball are simple but very cute. The quiz window is
well designed for quick glancing at the questions and picking
an answer.
There are plenty of creative sound effects
in this game. From the bike crashing sound to the snake rattling
sound, there is sound FX for every animation. The drum beat
and bird chirping while you are cycling on the island will
remind you the Tiki Room at Disneyland. You can adjust the
volume of the sound effects and music. Aerobeak takes about
4MB memory and support ARM, MIPS, SH3 and has a PC simulator.
Palm OS and Symbian OS versions are coming soon.
If you are looking for something
to play with your children to help them sharpen their logic
and to share knowledge with them, Aerobeak is a great game.
The brilliant colors and interesting creatures will attract
youngster’s attention. 9isles promises to add more
difficulty levels to challenge children and adults, which
will make this a great pick for a family title.
Playing Hints and Tips
While you are trying to get the best
time, don’t forget it’s fun to run into the snake
or the fish. Their questions will help you learn. Remember,
The clock continues to run down when you are thinking about
the answers, so think quickly.
|
