5 of 6 customers found the following review helpful:
 learning without trying, 2002-03-19
For a patient child, my eight year old stayed on this game for several hours. It teaches math and logic skills without the child feeling like they are being taught. The game offers rewards along the way for acheiving partial steps and allows creative play for each adventure. It also allows for partnering during the game as we played together to solve the puzzles. Not a heavy handed teaching program.
2 of 2 customers found the following review helpful:
ZOOMBINIS!, 2001-12-27
Zoombinis is the greatest game in the whole universe! I used to play it sometimes in my class at school, and I was so addicted, my teacher was always scolding me for staying to long on the computer! With practically a million kinds of Zoombinis, and many ways the game gets different and more challenging, I'd give Zoombinis 4 thumbs up! (If I were a chimpanzee, that is-they have 4 thumbs) I think anyone getting Zoombinis has no idea what they are getting into.. >(o.o)<
6 of 7 customers found the following review helpful:
 Repetitive but Unique, 2001-12-25
This game is an interesting way to teach critical thinking, but it gets very repetitive very quickly since it is pretty short, and once you finish one skill level, the next level is the same old thing with just a bit more difficulty each time. I got tired of doing the same puzzles over and over, it would have been nice if each skill level had a new set of puzzles.One good thing about this game is it works on both Windows machines and Macs, although the second Zoombini game, Mountain Rescue, does not work on Macs. All in all, a cute game, but likely to be tired of quickly.
69 of 69 customers found the following review helpful:
This lost a star for the difficulty of the higher levels., 2001-12-04
My younger sisters and I have been homeschooled for years, and our math teacher makes a point of bringing math computer programs for us to play durig the week. She brought us "Logical Journey of the Zoombinis" a few years ago, and we all became hooked. Even my older sister gave it a try. Once we figured out how to solve the puzzles, we had so much fun. Then we lost the CD and couldn't find it anywhere.A few months ago, we saw this on amazon.com and were delighted! Of course we ordered another copy. Being older (14 1/2, 12, and 10 1/2) we had learned more math and were able to get to the higher levels. That's where we started having problems with it. The levels go from extremely easy to ridiculously difficult in so little time. It would be better if they spent more time on each level and worked your way up gradually, or if they didn't even get to levels that are so difficult. Not one of us (including my oldest sister, now 17) has won Zoombinis. This isn't even because we haven't figured out how to solve the highest levels, because we have. It's because of another problem with the game. You have to get way too many Zoombinis to Zoombiniville (over 500, I think). Each trip, which can take about forty-five minutes, transports only sixteen Zoombinis. After maybe ten max trips, you're on the highest level. That's pretty hard, and you get bored with doing the same things over and over. As it is, none of us have gotten very many past 200 to Zoombiniville. We simply get bored. Plus, it says that the age range is 8 and up. Don't let this fool you. A very intelligent 8-year-old would probably be able to figure out the level-one and level-two puzzles, but not many puzzles on higher levels. My final verdict is: Great game, lots of fun, but gets too hard too easily and would take too long to actually win.
5 of 5 customers found the following review helpful:
Logical Journey of the Zoombinis, 2001-11-26
Two or three years ago I got this for my now 11 year old daughter because she monopolized it at her friends' house. Their mother highly recommended it, and I concur. I am now looking to purchase two more for some cousins. They played it over Thanksgiving weekend and both 9 year old boys were hooked! I even became obsessed with for a bit when we first got it. The increasing levels of difficulty lend this game to a wide age range. And the Zoombinis are so cute!
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