Its bar setting might give some parents pause, but those who don’t mind that 
will find Tapper World Tour to be a loving remake of one of the first time management simulation games. The gameplay is simple, though ultimately quite frenetic. But it’s the art that truly makes this game stand out. Hand-animated by Don Bluth and his team (who are responsible for the Dragon’s Lair arcade game and films such as An American Tail and All Dogs Go to Heaven), the characters have personality and aren’t the lifeless drones that appear in so many other games. While alcohol is not specifically called out, the drinks shown in the game (and earned as you progress) look like beer or adult cocktails (many of which you’d get at a tropical resort), which could be a concern to some. The game itself, though, is wonderful.
Tag Archives: app review
App review: ABBY MONKEY – Animal Games For Kids HD
The name’s a mouthful, but ABBY MONKEY – Animal Games 
For Kids HD by 22learn is a good collection of educational games for children with a good variety of settings so parents can gradually ramp up the difficulty to keep kids challenged. For example, the number of cards in the Animatch game (essentially the classic card game of concentration) can range from 8 to 18. And the reading of words can be toggled off and on for kids who know the words. The cartoon critters you’ll encounter are charming, and the game greatly encourages children as they get answers right. The promotional links at the start of the app are a bit too much, but it’s not enough to detract from the quality of the games. By the time they tire of this app, kids can learn up to 80 different animals.
App review: Angry Birds Rio
New Angry Birds levels are never a bad thing — and 
Angry Birds provides plenty. With 60 initial levels and commitments from developer Rovio for additional updates in May, July, October and November, this will keep fans of the runaway hit franchise happy for a while. Veterans of the game, though, might be disappointed with how easy half of the levels are this time around, although there are other elements, such as hidden fruits and new achievements to keep them busy. The marketing parts of the game are relatively tame, which is refreshing as well. While the visceral thrill of the game is still there, the gameplay is starting to show very early signs of aging. Angry Birds has been around for a while now and there are lots of clones on the market. It’s still a lot of fun, but Angry Birds Rio is noticeably less addicting than Angry Birds.
App review: Horton Hears a Who!
With bullying a common problem in schools, Horton Hears
a Who! teaches an important lesson to children about sticking up for people who are unable to defend themselves. The creatures that share the jungle with Horton (and who do not hear the Whos) taunt and mock him for his actions and ultimately try to punish him, but he maintains his watch over the Whos, underlining how critical it is to stick by your virtues, even when there is peer pressure to abandon them. The message alone makes this a five-star app, but the added bonuses of charming narration and wonderful educational elements, such as highlighted words and picture identification, put it over the top.
App review: The Going to Bed Book
Sandra Boynton is one of the most-loved modern authors 
of children’s books and it is fun to see her beloved board book become an app. This app has a soothing reader (Billy J. Kramer), great highlighting of words read, the ability to tap any word to hear it spoken aloud, and lots of interactive hotspots. Plus the interactive elements vary greatly from tilting the iPad to make the animals slide to turning on the hot water in the sink, which causes the screen of the iPad to steam up (you wipe it clean with your finger). However, The Going to Bed Book has a few navigational issues. The onscreen animations are generally well-done, but some are positioned on the screen near where the user is likely to try to swipe to the next page, making it sometimes hard to advance the book. Even with this shortcoming, the book’s message and characters are as charming on iDevices as they are in the original board book form.
App review: NBA JAM by EA Sports
NBA JAM by EA Sports is, quite simply, a heck of a lot of fun to 
play. Easy to pick up and anything but complicated in its rules, the game focuses solely on the most outlandish parts of the sport — monster slam dunks and huge blocks of opponents’ shots. It’s a bit more aggressive than other basketball games, but the violence is arcade-like and not too concerning. The game further offers impressive visuals and keeps the adrenaline pumping with announcer Tim Kitzrow’s “boomshakalaka”-infused running commentary. The biggest disappointment is the lack of any multiplayer mode, as this is one of those titles that’s more fun with friends.
App review: Jack and the Beanstalk Children’s Interactive Storybook
Jack and the Beanstalk Children’s Interactive Storybook is 
a blueprint for interactive children’s books. Each of the app’s 32 pages has entertainment elements, with dozens of hidden surprises. For instance, touch Jack enough on one page and he’ll break into song. On another, touching the right onscreen picture opens a memory game. Phrases, rather than words, are highlighted as the story is narrated; users have the option to turn highlighting on and off, giving the app a wider range of potential users. The app is dense with kid-friendly features, and will make a nice virtual library addition.
Strong showing for Oscar Backstage Pass
The first push by the Academy of Motion Picture 
Arts and Sciences to offer a multi-screen viewing experience may not have been perfect, but it proved to be a very solid first effort.
Oscar Backstage Pass offered a strong second screen experience for users that wanted a behind the scenes look at the Academy Awards, taking them into previously roped-off areas like the press room and giving them looks at the backstage happenings of the film industry’s biggest night.
App review: NBA Elite 11 by EA SPORTS
If you’re a fan of NBA games looking for a precise 
simulation of the sport, NBA Elite 11 by EA SPORTS isn’t it. It is, however, a fine game for fans who simply want to have a fun experience that’s a step beyond an arcade-like basketball game. With easy-to-grasp controls and a smooth flowing animation system, it gets a lot right — even down to the television-like presentation. It’s a fun single-player game, but it’s a title that cries out for a multiplayer mode, something that NBA Elite 11 by EA SPORTS lacks. Of course, seeing that EA cancelled all other platform versions of this game, the fact that it’s available at all is a notable achievement.
App review: Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed
While it might be a little jarring to hear Five Little Monkeys 
Jumping on the Bed presented as a story rather than a song, Oceanhouse Media (and author/illustrator Eileen Christelow) pull it off. Children will love seeing the song presented with quality artwork and the pages pan and zoom to help bring the story to life. The app also is a good learning tool, offering a variety of ways for users to experience it and utilizing picture/word association to help teach children (words zoom and are spoken when an item is touched onscreen). The story’s simplistic, and older kids might get bored quickly, but young children will be captivated.
Chris Morris: Journalist 