Product Description
Carmen
Sandiego is up to her thieving high-jinks again. While children travel
the globe to track her down they learn about geography, history and
world cultures.
Product
Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #3906 in Video Games
- Brand:
Encore
- Model: 15030
- Released on: 2007-08-21
- ESRB
Rating: Early Childhood
- Platforms: Windows Vista, Windows
2000, Windows XP
- Format: CD
- Dimensions: .28 pounds
Features
- Designed
for ages 8 to 12
Customer
Reviews
Very Linear - No Henchmen...
Not your mother's Carmen...
For those of us who played
the classic APPLE IIe version of "Where in the World is Carmen
Sandiego?" this game is a far cry different than the original. In the
original, and most of the remakes, the format was the same with a full
selection of ten to twenty V.I.L.E. Henchmen, as well as Carmen herself.
The format used a random selection system with an anonymous villain
with random loot from around the world. The game-play was slightly
repetitive, with nearly unlimited cases to play over and over, but still
with a very addictive style - and fun!
The game being sold in
this YELLOW jewel-case (AND the BLUE jewel-case that is a mirror image
of the cover of the yellow one) is a modernized story arc that is very
linear. The only villain is Carmen herself. There are six main cases
which flow continuously into one another, without room for a pause. The
seventh case is more of a comprehensive collection of all of the stolen
artifacts from the previous six cases being bundled into a story
wrap-up...
I played through this the first time and it only took
about five hours from install to end credits. For kids, I am sure this
simplified version can be fun, but once played to completion, it's kinda
boring the second time around.
Sure, I may be well beyond the
age market for this game, but I still enjoy the downloaded DOS version
that is an exact replica of the APPLE IIe version of the original...
Overall,
if you are looking for a cool game that reminds you of your own
childhood, this is not the case for you.
Try the versions in the
GREEN box or the TAN colored box - anything by Broderbund is more like
the original, and far superior.
As far as getting these to run in
Windows XP, just make sure to turn on COMPATIBILITY mode for Windows
95,98,ME and you will be fine.
GAMEPLAY:
Essentially,
each location is a still image with your two animated characters to the
left and right of center. There are "hot spots" (like in Myst) that
trigger one or the other of the characters to describe the scene or the
country or city history or features.
Occasionally there are
characters you can click on to hear details or give things to.
There
are puzzles (about five in total) which you have to solve or gather the
pieces to and arrange in a certain order....
Carmen may show up
inside a doorway or after you click a hot spot, only to get away easily.
There
are literally A FEW animated sequences in which your characters chase
Carmen or watch things unfold, and a looped sequence for "the Chief"
speaking to you from ACME HQ.
There are tools worn on the vest of
the your characters and there is a cell phone that connects you with
"The Chief" and that's about it.
Vista
and Carmen Sandiego
It's a little frustrating
trying to get "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?" to work in the
Windows Vista environment. Here is a useful workaround.
Go to the
Start Menu and select "Control Panel". Click on "Programs". Under
Programs and Features, choose "Use an older program with this version of
Windows" and select "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?" from the
list of programs. You will now have several options as to how you want
the game to run. I found that the game worked best in the Windows 98
environment, with the display set to 640x480 with 256 colors. When
you're done setting the game up, right click on the Carmen Sandiego
shortcut and select "Run as Administrator". Wallah!
The game
itself is fun (once you get it to run). I was expecting a more modern
version of the game (i.e. similar to what I found in the Elementary
Advantage software pack) but for the price, it's not bad.
After lots of years Carmen is still going strong!
I purchased this "Where in
the World..." version for my grandsons to play when they visit. It is
every bit as much fun for them as it was when their mother's played it.
Updated but as educational as ever! The best part is that the kids are
learning and don't even realize it!! Thanks - Carmen!!
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