The Mission Masters Freezing Frenzy Language Arts Grade 3

Reviewed by Janine Taylor
Published by McGraw-Hil

Age Group: Age 4 to 8
Type: Language Arts, Puzzles/Memory
Price: $30 Canadian

PC version requires:
486/66, Win 95: 16 MB RAM, 5MB HD, 1MB video card (2MB recommended), 2X CD-ROM (4X recommended), Sound Card, 256 Super VGA monitor

Mac version requires:
16 MB RAM, 5MB HD, 2X CD-ROM (4X recommended)

Description:

The Mission Masters are four super teen agents and their computer guide who work for the Intelliforce Agency. They save the world from villains, with your help, by solving problems in this grades 3 to 5 series by McGraw-Hill. This time Will Chill has stolen an ice machine and is planning to deep freeze the planet. The missions are all based on this theme.

There are three sections: Training, Missions and Reporting. In Training mode, The Mission Masters Freezing Frenzy provides drills in Grade 3 language arts re-enforcing spelling, parts of speech and grammar.

In the Mission section, there are five mission puzzle-games each with three levels of difficulty. Games include reading letters to deduce the proper owner or filling in words in a report to make it comprehensible. Once all five missions are complete at the top level, the player becomes a Mission Master.

The Reporting desk provides parents and kids with details on progress and material that is being covered.

Features:

  • Cartoon superhero style mini movies
  • Hints available for each level and skill
  • Reporting, training and mission modes
  • Bonus Grade 3 Writing Curriculum Workbook

Technical Aspects:

The package is a good reflection of the contents of the game. It shows actual screen shots interspersed with the movie-style characters as they appear in the game.

Some transitions are unnecessarily long without the option of bypassing. A few sound files were rather jerky during transitions between screens, but the driving beat soundtrack was generally enjoyable for the kids.

The only truly annoying technical glitch is the question screen popping up to ask if you want to run the program or not. This is just an unnecessary extra layer to wade through before play.

Report and Conclusions:

Generally the kids like the games within the missions, especially the mail sorting deduction game. Each of the five games addresses specific skills, making the program a truly useful tool for academic assessment. It seems more suited to a school environment than home. Even within the mission mode, the series of self-contained exercises is not held together well with steady progression along a storyline.

For the kids the greatest drawback is the ending, or lack of one. Unfortunately, M5 (the computer guide) merely congratulates then returns to the same puzzles without a beat. It would greatly increase replay value if a satisfying conclusion were reached.




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