Zoombinis Island Odyssey

by The Learning Company

Product Features

• Firmware Upgradeable
• Buffer Underrun Technology - helps prevent writing crashes on slow computers
• Write Speeds
• Up to 4x Double Layer DVD+R
• Up to 16x DVD+R

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00006RUZU
• Item model number: 381678
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 2, 2001
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,895 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

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Those engaging and adorable little Zoombinis go back to Zoombini Isle, only to find that their home has been destroyed by Bloats, and the essential moths and critters (Zerbles) who sustained life on the island have vanished. To restore the delicate balance of life, children guide crews of 12 Zoombinis and their caterpillars through a series of mind-bending puzzles that will rejuvenate Zoombini Isle. When they first get to the island, children have to figure out the ball-dropping pattern of a chute and wheel to catapult the Zoombinis onto the island cliffs. They decode hieroglyphs to get each Zoombini through the gate, and guide the moths across flower beds according to certain attributes. While the games are unusually thought-provoking, some take several trials to figure out, even with the nicely narrated help system. In a Zerble feeding activity, for example, testers didn't realize that there were two ways to unveil the preferences of the little critters (using Venn diagrams) and struggled for too long. Kids found it tough to accurately estimate the time using a revolving Earth, and needed lots of help (as did their parents) when trying to figure out correct sequences in a planting activity. All things considered, however, the activities are responsive and addicting, and really get kids to use their heads. After the Zoombini crew gets through to the Zerble and moth hangout, it's time for a new crew to take the journey. In fact, there are 240 Zoombinis that must get through the games. That means that kids have to play the activities at least 20 times (more when the individual activities aren't completed the first time)! Though testers enjoyed the adventure, it's our guess that only the most persistent will have the staying power and patience required to play to the grand finale (which we never did see).

Product Description

Plunge into a vital expedition to save Zoombini IsleProduct InformationReturn to Zoombini Isle in another puzzling odyssey!  Life continued to begood for the Zoombinis. That is until they received word about the homelandthey had left behind. The dastardly Bloats had destroyed the natural habitat andthen evacuated leaving the Zerbles and other wildlife struggling for survival.Join the Zoombinis and develop math logic and scientific-thinking skills on acourageous expedition to save the Zerbles!Skills Learned Thinking Skills Logic Collecting Data Data Analysis Decoding Complex Processes Graphing and Mapping Logical Reasoning Modular Arithmetic Pattern Finding Problem Solving Theory Formulation and TestingCategoriesScience Concepts: Astronomy Mechanics Cryptography Ecology Genetics Life CyclesProduct Features 7 perilous puzzles 3 levels of challenge Practice mode Helpful puzzle clues Parent's Guide Puzzle Reformulation - a new game each adventure! Supports math standards set by the National Council of Teachers of MathematicsFun Activities Included The Bloats evacuate Zoombini Isle leaving the Zerbles struggling for survival. Vault the Zoombinis onto the towering cliffs by studying the gear ratios. Recognize patterns in the hieroglyphs to discover how to open the door. Create Zerbles genetically adapted for survival. Ensure caterpillar metamorphosis by combining astronomy with modular arithmetic. Create your Zoombinis for the mission to save the Zerbles. Deduce how to feed each type of Zerble by using Venn diagrams.Windows System Requirements Pentium 200 MHz+ (Pentium II 300 MHz or faster for XP)Windows 98 Me 2000 XP Vista Windows 7 (32-bit and 64-bit)90 MB free hard disk space32 MB free (128 MB RAM for XP)8X CD-ROM DriveHigh color 16

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AWESOME ADDICTING GAME, March 12, 2005

By 

reviewereviewer "REVIEW" (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zoombinis Island Odyssey (CD-ROM)

Me (14) and my sister (10) bought the Logical Journey of the Zombinis maybe 4 years ago and it was sooo much fun. Im sick of all these bad reviews beause they are all lies. when my sister was five and we had this game she was not completely confused like some other people are from other reviews. and people say that it is the same logic over and over, NOT TRUE, it is soo different and each level of difficulty makes the puzzle much different. This game takes you though an arcane island filled with different adventures to save the zoombinis, from pizza making to mud throwing, its all fun. My sister and i used to play it 24/7. We had no clue it was even educational and my parents were so happy when they saw us getting further and further into the game. I have to say, we cut down on the playing a little bit because it got kind of boring if you play it every day. Even i am still challenged by this amazing game.I just got a new labtop, i tried zombinis on it and it didnt work :( but it worked on my sisters so we still got to play. I heard just weeks ago that not one but two sequels to the zombinis are out!! i cant wait to buy them. This game really works on any type of computer except mine ( a compaq windows xp presario 2100). THIS GAME REALLY IS AMAZING!!!!

16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Does it work on Macs?, April 9, 2004

By 

Peter Boardman (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zoombinis Island Odyssey (CD-ROM)

Although Zoombinis Mountain Rescue works fine on MacOS X (Panther), neither of the other two Zoombini adventures (Island Odyssey and Maths Journey) work on either my iMac or my eMac - they either crash after the opening video or don't run at all. Island Odyssey claims to be X compatible. Maths Journey ought to run under Classic. The Reader Rabbit CDs work fine under Classic.

Tech support don't bother to reply or say they don't support it any more.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Third Zoombinis title!, November 16, 2002

By 

Douglas Smith (Montousville, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zoombinis Island Odyssey (CD-ROM)

As one of the biggest Zoombinis fans on the planet, I was really excited to find out that The Learning Company was making a third Zoombinis title, though not as surprised as when I had found out about the second. This game has fewer puzzles than the first two, but includes science, while the others were just math and logic. There are seven different puzzles, each with three levels of difficulty. Once you perfectly beat a puzzle on one level three times, you are upgraded to the next skill level for that puzzle. Unlike the first two, however, you are able to step down from a higher level if it is too hard, then go back up any time. This makes it so that you are not afraid to do well. There are two puzzles based on games from "Logical Journey", as happened to several in the sequel, "Mountain Rescue." The plot this time involves returning to the homeland, which the Bloats, mean Viking-type creatures, have evacuated after chasing you out (at the beginning of the first game, Logical Journey). They have left the environment a mess, so the Zoombinis must return to save the creatures living there. This game was much easier than the others, and only took me five days to beat (at one to two hours per day), whereas I would have to play for five days straight to beat the first game, requiring you to keep playing harder puzzles and get about three times the Zoombinis through nearly twice as many puzzles. The graphics have, once again, been upgraded, making older computers unable to play it (though newer computers have trouble playing the original editions of the first game). The puzzles involve absolutely nothing dealing with the Zoombinis' physical features, unlike the predecessors, mainly based around their traits. This means that you can make all 240 Zoombinis exactly the same, which is humorous, but confusing. The puzzles are all based on the Zerbles' bodily characteristics, the flower types, or some other thing of nature. This new science concept makes up the other five puzzles, of which my favorite is the "Planetarium". In the planetarium, you must put in coins to make the earth revolve an hour at a time. The sun must also be aligned to hatch cocoons at certain angles. In the higher levels, you have to deal with dollar bills, which make up days, and the cocoons can only hatch in certain lunar phases. Some of the other fun and educational puzzles cover Venn diagramming (overlapping circles), dominating genes in reproduction, synchronizing mechanics, and decoding symbols by identifying patterns. The ending isn't too exciting, just a congratulation message from the narrator. The graphics present a new idea about Zoombinis- their genders are now apparently determined by their eyes, not their hair, as in games one and two. This means that boys can have a ponytail, which is more popular today than when the first game premiered. It also means that girls can be bald, which looks awfully strange. Previously boys always had at least some little hairs on their heads. Despite all of the large changes, "Zoombinis Island Odyssey" remains similar to the first and is almost as much fun, integrating even more educational value. If you liked this game, try the first two, "Logical Journey" and "Mountain Rescue."