Star Wars -- Yoda's Challenge Activity Center

PC version requires:
Windows 95/98, DirectX, P133MHz, 32MB RAM, PCI or AGP graphics card, 16-bit sound card, 4xCD-ROM drive, 80 MB HD

Mac version requires:
version 7.6 or higher, 160 MHz PowerPC 603e, 4X CD-ROM, 32MB RAM, 640x480 display, hi-color, 30 MB HD

Description:

Yoda (cute little wrinkly green thing that he is) is the guide as the player works his or her way through different levels of six challenging games in an effort to earn certificates for completing all levels. Yoda is there through it all and "help you he will." One can choose to ride in the victory races of Naboo, help fix Queen Amidala's computer, bring C3PO the knowledge of the Jedi, explore the Gungan caves, make a songbook for Anakin, or trap droids. Each activity features explanations of the goal you should try to reach.

In the victory races of Naboo, the computer assigns you to help either Jar Jar Binks (who is riding an animal that prefers to race in water or wet areas) or Queen Amidala (who is riding a tuskcat that does better in forests or mountainous territory.) The goal each time (there are many different race routes) is to choose the best path for the character based on the abilities of the animal he or she is riding. A commentator gives a play-by-play as the Queen Amidala and Jar Jar race to the finish line.

Back on the ship, Queen Amidala's computer is not working properly and it is up to you to fix it by solving tangram puzzles. These start out fairly easy and get much harder as you work your way through the levels. When these are solved, a character from the movie appears and the player is able to read their "vital statistics," a feature that my six-year old really loved.

Relaying important historical facts (from the Phantom Menace) to C3PO is another mission you can choose to take. This activity uses visual configuration (the shapes words make if you draw boxes around the words) and scrambled sentences to relay stories from the movie. The player must unscramble the sentences (as C3PO reads the words aloud) to complete the stories. Once finished, C3PO reads the finished product.

When you explore the Gungan caves, you must follow directions exactly in order to find the jewels to open the doors to the treasure. The activity begins simply with directions in numbers of steps and turning right and left. The player soon is required to follow more complex instructions and use directional words such as north, south, east, and west. (There is an onscreen compass and "moving map" that allow you to more easily track your progress through the caves.) When you make a songbook for Anakin, you have to listen as the characters play a tune and then imitate their song using the onscreen keyboard. At first, they sing the notes using the notes' names, but it gets harder when they begin singing "la la la la's" instead. (There is a hilarious little blobby something that sleeps until the chorus begins to sing, when, startled, its antenna stands straight up on top of its head, a fact my daughter found breathtakingly funny.)

Alas, Droids are destroying the rainforest! Your help is needed to trap the droids by reproducing different sequences of beats on the drums. (This is tougher than it sounds, believe me.) Jar Jar gives encouragement and suggestions as the droids march into the forest, one by one, to challenge your sense of rhythm. .

Features:

• Six activities with 20-40 levels apiece
• Practice following directions
• Practice using spatial relationships
• Logical thinking exercises

Technical Aspects:

Report and Conclusions: