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Ozzie and his animal friends travel south of the border to Mexico. Be sure to tell your kids it's safe to drink the water in this virtual adventure to Mexico. Ozzie and his pals waste no time as they land in Mexico and head to an interactive marketplace, complete with dancing chili peppers and a walking potted cactus plant who does a hot Mexican song and dance number.
The interactive features in the Ozzie's Travels series make this software entertaining for the 5 to 10 year- old crowd, although younger kids will enjoy most of the games. Four-year-old, Timmy, laughed and laughed as he watched an elephant wearing a sombrero weave his way through the marketplace on a motorized skateboard. The guitar-playing iguana was pretty hilarious. The Mexican Maze, Blockheads, Culture Hunt, Puzzler, Hidden Picture and Art Zone are challenging games for the kids. In Ozzie's Mexican Maze, kids guide Ozzie through a marketplace to find a hidden jar filled with chocolate chip cookies. The three levels, Easy, Medium and Challenge, make the game fun to play for kids of all ages. The Blockheads game requires lots of concentration as a picture block rotates and kids scramble to complete one of four characters. One of the characters is a businessman from Mexico City, complete with cellular phone attached to his ear. The Challenge level required the most concentration of all... even for me. In the Culture Hunt, kids match common items to uncover photos. One of the better photos was a group of kids holding an iguana. The caption below the photo read "Iguanas are not icky". I believe that, but I still don't want one as a pet. Kids learn that tacos are as popular in Mexico as hamburgers are in the United States. They also discover a few words such as casa, serape, and maracas. In the challenge level, instead of matching pictures, the kids match the words. True to the Ozzie's Travels series, the Puzzler is the best virtual puzzle game we've come across. You can select a 12 piece or 35 piece puzzle, depending on how challenging you want the puzzle to be. The puzzles range from deep sea fishing scenes to Mexican ruins. There are five different scenes to select. The three skill levels are ideal. The Easy level assists kids when they drag the puzzle pieces near the right location, the puzzle pieces make a clicking sound and snap into place. The gray images and outlines in the easy level make it fun for younger children. But if you're looking for some mind-boggling puzzle action, choose the Challenge level and put the puzzle together on a blank screen. Of course, if you're stuck, Ozzie is there to help you. But that's only because Ozzie is a pal and all-around nice guy. Ozzie will say "Nice try, amigo" when you put the puzzle piece in the wrong place. Like I said, what a guy. In Ozzie's Hidden Picture, kids choose from two different animated pictures, each with a bunch of hidden objects to find. One of the scenes was a rather tranquil forest setting with a stream and a Mexican casa in the background. Tranquil, until all those hidden wacky animals start springing up! Although the hidden pictures can be tricky, Ozzie gives the kids a Hint button in case they need a clue. Kids get competitive as they race against the timer, to see how many minutes or seconds it takes them to uncover all the hidden pictures. For those mouse-clicking kids who still like to color, the Art Zone is worth a visit. My kids liked the Color Bomb feature, which paints the entire page with a sea of different colors. The art pages can be printed with any printer. If you want to save your color toner, or if you have a black and white printer, print out the colors in outline form and give your kids some crayons to color them the old-fashioned way! My kids need more practice with real crnca, and Make a Pinata. They are accessed by clicking the slide projector's projects section. The stone-like graphics and the familiar Fajita font displayed before each activity were creatively done. Parents and teachers will appreciate an accompanying Parent/Teacher guide, which explains the activities in more detail. I'd better check my crafts cabinet to make sure my large jar of rubber cement is still there. Then, I'll take a siesta and dream of far-away Mexico (and Ozzie, of course) as the soothing Mexican music from the CD-ROM plays in the background. Adios. |
