Cluefinders: The Incredible Toy Store Adventure

by The Learning Company

Product Features

• Learn math including addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, estimation, pattern recognitio
• Develop skills in spelling, reading comprehension, grammar, punctuation, word decoding and more
• Learn about ecology, environmental study, hypothesizing, experimentation, mapping, world geography,
• Develop logical thinking, deductive reasoning, spatial relationships, and strategizing
• 4 skill levels with 30+ skills covered

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00005LBVQ
• Item model number: 380841
• Date first available at Amazon.com: January 1, 2000
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #774 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)
  • #15 in Software > Children's Software > Games
  • #27 in Software > Children's Software > Early Learning
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

Saving San Francisco from a powerful shrink-ray is the order of the day for Owen, Joni, Santiago, and Leslie in Cluefinders: The Incredible Toystore Adventure, an educational role-playing game for third- and fourth-grade students. When two of the Cluefinders themselves are shrunk, they are beset by mice, spiders, and other suddenly giant monsters as they try to assemble the parts necessary to build a machine that will reverse the process. Meanwhile, the other members of the team must work out who built the malevolent device...and why?

The Incredible Toystore Adventure has a better mix of story and educational content than most games of its type, offering smart, resourceful characters and a mystery engaging enough to make the study component worthwhile. And make no mistake--this game drives young players hard. Wide-ranging drills in math, language arts, science, and other academic subjects are presented in a cheerful and interesting fashion. Drills come with four levels of difficulty and, if players want to build the anti-shrinking device, cannot be skipped.

This game also comes with a bonus CD containing an entirely separate game: Mystery of the Missing Amulet. This game carries the detectives across the galaxy on a quest to save a dying planet. Where The Incredible Toystore Adventure has a generalized focus on many areas of academic development, this second game is more narrowly focused, offering a tough workout for a child's language skills.

All in all, Cluefinders: The Incredible Toystore Adventure is a pleasant surprise--an educational game that can meet the high expectations of both parents and young players. (Ages 7 to 10) --Alyx Dellamonica

Product Description

It's a maze of mystery in the ultimate toy store! Embark on a wild toy store adventure where your problem-solving skills will make a big difference in solving this shrunken mystery! Features exciting activities and much more!

See all Product Description

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

68 of 69 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Education vs. Fun, April 24, 2002

By 

"isleofjules" (Salisbury, NC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cluefinders: The Incredible Toy Store Adventure (CD-ROM)

As I sat down with my niece to "play" this game I was struck by how interesting it was that software manufacturers could actually use games that are fun to help teach kids (and I dare say adults) and add to the education that children are receiving. This game was fun for us both because it helped my niece to recognize patterns, follow sentence structure, taught general mathematics in the elevator and showed that in the end you can have fun while learning.

I would definitely recommend this game to anyone who has a child in the 2nd, 3rd or 4th grade. However, you will need to sit down with them to help them figure out what exactly they need to do. The only reason I gave this product a 4 star rating instead of a 5 is that in one part of the game, the player is required to map out routes on a computer screen and it was very difficult for my niece to grasp. I believe that they set out to teach the player something they hadn't covered in school and it went above my niece's knowledge level.

Otherwise, this game is a very good educational tool and yes, we "both" had fun playing it.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Seems to be a good game.., June 3, 2004

By 

Jadecat (Lake Orion, MI United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Cluefinders: The Incredible Toy Store Adventure (CD-ROM)

I bought this game as a part of a three pack for Cluefinders. AFterwards I read a review where a person had trouble installing this on an XP system. That was one reason why I bought this game as the box states "Now Featuring XP compatibility.". With a bit of trepidation, I installed it in my computer, and then let my 8 year old have at it. I must say installation on the XP system went fine and after only about 3 hours of play we haven't noticed any strange glitches. This is definitely more of a learning game as opposed to a more fun style of game like Pajama Sam or Spy Fox. I saw that my child had to fill in the blanks of sentences, using words provided, and then arrange those sentences into a sensible paragraph. That provided a bit of frustration, and even the proper arrangement wasn't obvious to me. Still, by randomly moving the sentences around, you can eventually get the answer they are looking for. Same with the math questions. You will get an equation to solve and about 25 different answers are on the screen, and you click on the right one. I have no doubt my child just clicks till she gets the right one if she doesn't know how to do the equation. For less then ten dollars I got 3 Cluefinders games, and with only trying this one game, I am satisfied with the purchase. It seems perfect for this age group of 7-12 years where Reader Rabbit and cutesy games are too easy for them, and they want to feel like they are solving a mystery but also practicing school skills.

30 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A 9 yr. old, July 13, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Cluefinders: The Incredible Toy Store Adventure (CD-ROM)

This game is totally cheap (price wise) because you get one regular game and one bounus game... It is very educational and also is fun. This is a really, really great game!!!