Parsing the backlog. Part 10. The rise of the multimedia era or 6 unusual educational games. 1992-1994

When you hear the phrase “educational game for children,” then probably the closest association is something bright and maximally casual, or, on the contrary, something very boring, harsh and gray, like an “educational computer” with the catchy name “Syubor” .

Both associations are not far from the truth, both past and present, but this was not always the case, or, more precisely, in this default specific genre there were sometimes quite interesting creations in their own way. About some of them, or rather not widely known to the mass public, in today's retrospective.

1. Math Rescue (1992).

What happens if you combine the gameplay of “Commander Keen” from id Software and simple mathematics? The result will be an entertaining arcade game, developed not by anyone but by Apogee itself.

The story in short is this. All the numbers have disappeared somewhere. As it turns out, they are kidnapped by various monsters for unknown purposes. The main character has to return them.

The primary settings are generally standard for the genre; as for the gameplay, here a platformer that is ordinary in spirit is combined with screens scattered throughout the level. If you approach one of them, one or another task/example for solution is highlighted. For the correct answer, a part of the key is given out. After collecting all the parts you can move on to the next level. If the indicated decision turns out to be incorrect, then the number of monsters at the level increases. Along the way, you can collect bonuses, as well as neutralize opponents by pouring some kind of pink liquid on them, in which they freeze. A characteristic detail is that at a high level of difficulty it is only temporary.

2. Gus Goes to Cybertown (1993).

The first game in a multifaceted series of educational point and click quests for children 3-8 years old, developed by Modern Media Ventures. The organization, originally founded by professional teachers, began its history in the same 1993 in the city of San Francisco. They did not last long on the market, about four years, but during this time they managed to create an entire series, the key character of which was a dog named Gus.

In the first issue, he, a talking dog, has to find three creatures called “cyberbuds”. They are hiding in five locations in the city. Each includes spelling, numbers, shape recognition, and pattern matching games. The search process is accompanied by colorful animations, often in the form of small humorous sketches, activated by clicking on a particular object or creature.

In addition to the city itself, Cybertown, there is a park. In it you can find a timeline through which you can study both Gus himself and the surrounding area in different time eras.

3. Treasure Galaxy! (1994).

An educational game whose main goal is to teach children aged 5 to 9 years old logic and solving mathematical problems, including operating with fractions.

The master of mischief, who had previously been defeated in another world, is causing panic in the vicinity of the Crystal City. To restore order, the player, playing the role of a seeker in a spacesuit, will need to collect crystals hidden in the satellites. The required number of these objects depends on the level of difficulty. In turn, to gain access to them you need to solve code words consisting of letters.

The city is divided into three orbits. The transition to the next one is carried out after completing a number of tasks in the current one and requires a four-digit password. An access code is awarded for completing various tasks set by aliens that can be found at each stage. They are related to weighing (mass) and measurement (length/width), geometric shapes and calendar dates. As the player succeeds, the difficulty of the tasks increases. Catastrophoids – evil flying asteroids that were in the past ordinary cobblestones – serve as the main antagonists throughout the game.

We drive a scooter in space, meet strange aliens and save the galaxy. Colorful graphics and atmospheric music will not let you get bored.

The game is a direct sequel to “Treasure Cove!” (1992). In total, the series includes four games, which differ quite significantly in terms of both style and gameplay.

4. Math Ace, Jr. (1994).

Taking control of a robot with the call sign Ace, players will have to go into the depths of the submarine. After selecting the difficulty level, which will determine the nature of the proposed mathematical problems, you can go to the elevator and choose one of four floors. The goal is to collect as many exotic fish as possible. To do this, you will need to solve various problems in which the robot itself is not particularly strong.

Each level has two cabins, each with its own characteristic surroundings and specifics. Somewhere you need to count the number of fish, and somewhere you need to manage seals and balls. For completing the game, you are awarded coins that can be spent on various decorations, which are subsequently placed, like the previously mentioned fish, in the local aquarium.

5. Dinosaur Safari (1994).

An educational game of a not entirely defined genre. To some extent, it can perhaps be classified as an adventure game.

Distant future. Something bad happened to the museum, which is dedicated to dinosaurs. The green alien (let's call him that) asks the main character to help restore lost information about dinosaurs (60 in total). All kinds of predators and herbivores, flying, walking and swimming, are represented. Information about each of them is stored in a special crystal. The player’s task will be to photograph them, choosing the right angle. To do this, there is something like a time machine, thanks to which you can travel into the past and move through the ancient landscape, initially having only a meager handful of facts about the necessary dinosaur and its outlines. You can conduct a photo hunt both for a specifically selected dinosaur (this way we will get more points) and for all the others. Resources are limited by a certain energy, which, in particular, is spent on movement, therefore, moves need to be protected. The better the photo and its angle, the more points we get. As we progress, it will be possible to shoot a video, use a rather expensive bait (who said “KU”?) that attracts the attention of the dinosaur we need, and a radar for additional orientation on the map. You can photograph no more than five creatures at a time. A number of them turn out to be very dangerous – they can ram our peculiar temporary ship and thereby reduce the level of available energy by an order of magnitude. The action continues until all the dinosaurs are photographed or until the player, having made mistakes, wastes all the energy.

The default saves are nothing more than a choice of difficulty level. The higher it is, the more devices you will initially have at your disposal. Otherwise there is not much difference. Saves marked X – more initial energy. A separate remarkable feature of the game is that it is based on QuickTime technology: all videos, dinosaur animations, transitions, and pictures are based on it.

The game was created in collaboration with one of the paleontology museums based in the US state of California. Hence the approach to detail: each dinosaur that was successfully photographed can be studied in more detail by clicking on the crystal. This thing does not lay claim to the laurels of a comprehensive encyclopedia, but it is capable of giving a certain idea of ​​prehistoric reptiles.

6. Museum Madness (1994).

Although seemingly childish in appearance, in places it is quite a confusing quest on a scattering of various topics, from history to natural science and physics. Although formally nothing directly creepy happens during the course of the story, there is often an atmosphere of real, classic horror, which, not least, is served by the local soundtrack and the periodically breaking “fourth wall”. Sounds unusual? In the nineties of the last century, something different happened.

The main character, a nameless schoolboy in a red cap, has a best friend – a robot who works in a local, fully automated museum. One late evening he receives a sudden message – something very wrong is happening in a usually quiet and inconspicuous place.

The exhibits were a complete mess, various mechanisms were broken, key information was destroyed, historical figures are more strange than the other, dinosaurs run from one time era to another and only one fearless teenager is able to come to the rescue and figure out what’s what in this confusing in fact.

To do this, he will need to sequentially go through twenty-five halls, divided into five categories – technology, space, world and US history separately, natural science. In some places it will be limited to simple repairs of broken structures, in others you will have to rack your brains and apply logic, in others you will have to get lost in labyrinths in search of key objects, and in others you will have dialogues with various figures from the distant past.

However, to get to this stage you will still need to stoically overcome the local dark basement and collect in it the key cards necessary to enter the main hall.