Customer Reviews

Konami Kids Playground: Frogger Hop, Skip, & Jumpin' Fun

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

OVERVIEW
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I bought this as a way to keep my active 2-year old happy during the winter months. The activity pad is thin vinyl pad about the same thickness as a raincoat with a USB connector to connect to a PS2 or PS3. The Frogger games are a collection of 12 "fun" mini games, 3 of which are more tutorial than game. Also included is a sampler disc that has a few activities from the other 3 Konami Playground discs. All discs work with PS2 and PS3 systems.

THE ACTIVITY PAD
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This activity pad is what kids use to play the games. It has a circle, triangle, and square shape that corresponds to the screen. This layout is intuitive since my 2-year old almost immediately understood that it's mapped to the layout on the screen. There is also a back button and a star button.

The bad thing about the pad is it is very thin. The instructions call for your kid to play with it barefoot to avoid slipping. So imagine an active kid rapidly stomping on shapes on a hardwood floor with this pad in between which provides zero shock protection. If you have a lumpy carpet, it may not work well on that either. My solution was to take some foam tiles from the play area and place it below the mat.

THE GAMES
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I was fooled by the Konami brand. Konami is only the distributor. The games use the Konami Frogger character but are programmed by a US company that does 2nd rate games. The games are neither educational nor fun. If you are thinking of something along the lines of Leapfrog games that you plug into the TV like Word Launch or Clickstart, you're wrong. The educational or fun content isn't here.

There is an extraordinary amount of loading time between games. Expect to see the loading screen a lot since your kid may get bored of each game very quickly. Also, if they accidentally step on the Back Button, you'll also see the loading screen. The loading time is the built-in version of a time out.

The menu navigation of the 12 games is also unintuitive. When you start, you can see and select the 3 tutorial games. The other games are tucked away on other menu screens, again 3 per menu screen. So you'll need to do the navigating for your kid.

The games are very basic games that you find for free on the internet like Simon Says and shell games.

I also have the Alphabet disc in this series which is sold separately. That's not fun or educational either. I was not impressed by the other 2 discs that I previewed on the sampler disc.

I was excited to get this for my 3 year old, he has played it once and has never played it again. My other children tried it and did not care for this game either. The mat would not always recognize when you would step on it and this frustrated all the kids. I watched them play and I thought that it was frustrating. The mat was the cause of the frustration but the software had many things that it could improve upon.

So far we've bought 2 of this game because the play mat has died on us. The 2nd one died a while ago but I decided not to invest any more in this game, or this company.

My son was 2 when we bought the first Frogger game. He loved using the mat for other Konami games (his favorite was the Dinosaur one,) but he hated this Frogger game.

I'm a little confused because when I think of Frogger, I think of my little 80's handheld game - where you jumped across the road avoiding cars. Not sure how they were able to use the name for something not even close. It's seriously nothing like it.

My son hasn't played the Frogger game since the day the first one came in the mail (he's 4 now,) but he did like using the mat and playing the other games. When the 2nd one came, we tossed the game in the trash, as we just wanted the mat. It's a shame I had to waste a game to get that... Konami obviously didn't think about that when they bundled the mat and didn't make it available any other way.

Not happy, not impressed, not wasting any more money on Konami.

I ordered this used, from this Amazon link/description, and received no mat. If the items included differs from new to used, it should be indicated somewhere in the listing. Do not buy this used and expect a mat.

We just received the game and only played it once, but from what I can tell this game is going be a great hit for my 4 year old. He loved it. He has Down Syndrome so he is not really able to play the games that require the hand controller so the mat is perfect. I did not order the game and mat that was $36, instead I ordered it through Amazon Warehouse Deals for $12.99! I was afraid at that price I wasn't going to get the controller mat, so I took a chance. Was I surprised when it came in the original box and the game still had the shrink wrap on it. It appeared to be new. I suggest if you are looking for this game, look at the warehouse deals before paying almost $40 for it. I wasn't going to pay that, but fortunately I was determined that I could find it cheaper and I did. I recommend this game highly. It definitely will be great for the rainy days when we can't get out to let some of his energy out!

This is one of the few games they never seem to get tired of, especially with the jump pad. There's enough variety even for the shortest attention spans.

I got this game for my 3 year old and so far he has had lots of fun with it. It keeps him moving and jumping if he's stuck inside. I wouldn't say this is all that educational beyond basic colors and following basic directions. But it is a lot of fun, and if he's going to play a game, at least he's moving. I will be trying the other titles in the series also. The one year old brother also likes to jump on the mat even though he doesnt really know what he's doing. Overall, this is a fun game for preschoolers.

Hello

We have been battling our DDR mat with our 3 year old and this is a great solution. It has a nice choice of games, one game has no rules but to jump on any color you choose (my daughters favorite game and she is almost 4). There is a hopscotch game, but my daughter thinks it is hilarious to watch her dive in the water when the wrong answer is chosen.

My 4 year old loves the Frogger game. I like to see him using the game pad (he calls it a dance pad). However, I wish I could have purchased the game pad separately since I really wanted the alphabet or numbers game rather than Frogger.

Great game for the preschool set. My son and nephews (3 - 5) all love jumping around with this game. Little do they know they are learning their letters and shapes at the same time. The games are very simple and easy for the kids to understand. As they get better the games get harder so it remains a challenge. The games also work with the PS controller but the jumping mat is really what keeps them interested. Additional games are avilable so it's worth the cost of the mat.