When we talk about edutainment, we sometimes say to ourselves that it must be tedious and boring to use, and after all, reading a book is without a doubt a more enriching experience. However, "Peter & the Wolf" succeeds to captivate the attention of both young and old, with its great cartoon animations and wonderful music by Prokofiev.
Intended for children ages 4 to 10 years, their parents and grandparents, the latest title from Time Warner is entertaining and educational all at once, which is after all, the vocation of edutainment. However, contrary to certain other products, this one fulfils its mission perfectly.
"Peter & the Wolf" offers many facets to the user. The first one is the story of Peter & the Wolf with cartoon animations produced by Chuck Jones, featuring the voices of Kirstie Alley as narrator, Lloyd Bridges as Peter's grand-father, and Ross Malinger as young Peter. In all, there are over 22 minutes of music, fantastic sounds and images that will enchant both great and small.
The educational aspect of "Peter & the Wolf" is the description of the musical instruments used in the symphony written by Prokofiev. For each character in the story, we hear and visualize the instruments of the orchestra, with a section of the score where the musical notes are shown on the screen according to the melody.
As "Peter & the Wolf" uses Prokofiev's music and Chuck Jone's cartoons, the biographies of these two men are also available to complete the educational part.
Finally, not to forget the little ones, a "Log Game" allows the children to enjoy themselves by crossing a river using tree trunks. The children must exercise all of their skills to recover bonus points, avoid falling into the water, and above all prevent the big bad wolf from devouring them.
Time Warner Interactive Ltd.
GRAPHICS ------ 85% 1 Rushmills, Bedford Road,
SOUND ------ 85% Northampton, NN4 7YH England.
MUSIC ------ 85% Tel: +44-(0)604-602-800
GAMEPLAY ------ --
INTEREST ------ 89%
Time Warner Interactive
2210 W. Olive Avenue,
OVERALL ------ 86% Burbank, CA 91506-2626
Tel: 800-482-3766
