I have an 11-year old son who believes if he goes more than 2 days without playing a strategy game he becomes distressed. I'd like to argue with him except if I go more than 2 days without reading a book I become distressed so, he may be right. This is not to complain; I'm told that his analytical skills far exceed those of his peers, his organizational skills are exceptional; and he has an infuriating tendency to read instructions and prepare overmuch. I'm not trying to sound like a mother bragging; but the gamer in me knows where he learned his skills. Defendin' the Penguin is the first Wii title specifically designed as a strategy game for for children.
It's easy to forget that real time strategy games extend beyond large-scale battles into titles such as Pikmin, Black & White and even Spore are real time strategy titles. The goal is to manage lots of "stuff" going on all at once while progressively heading towards a specific goal. Defendin' the Penguin is a great chance for a child to learn how to manage multiple events in a less-than-frantic environment.
At its heart, the title is your standard tower defense game; there are enemies incoming and you've got to place towers in the appropriate positions to defend the target they are attempting to acquire. Of course, that sounds truly boring. So, let's spice it up...
Oh, noes! Little Blue's home is under attack by Sabretooth tigers, walruses, seals and even the occasional Yeti! They've come to steal the town's hard-earned food supply. The fish belong to the penguins, not the greedy creatures of the frozen north. Blue must fight them back and save the town from starvation!
At Blue's disposal is an array of towers with different properties. Finding the tower that works best against the particular animal invasion is important. Would ice cubes or icicles work best? Where exactly should each tower be placed? And if Little Blue enters the tower, it receives upgrades; which tower needs the upgrade most?
Using the Wii-mote makes managing the big picture easy on the newly initiated. There is no scrolling from "campaign to campaign" only from area to area on a single map. And there are 10 maps to play with varying degrees of difficulty. It's just the right size for the newly initiated strategy gamer to set them on the road to needing that "every 2 day" fix. Be warned parents; once this monkey gets on their back there's no getting it off!
I'm a mother of two boys, ages 7 and 10 and live in the chaos that ensues. I've a permanent disability that keeps me homebound, so books, kids, games and books are my constant companions. Oh, and books, too. *grins*
My children both play games so I often play them first, getting to know exactly how something may effect my sensitive and easily stimulated older child vs. my stoic and imperturbable younger.
I like games for games; for the pure enjoyment of them and believe that no game is wholly bad, though some are real stinkers.
I also have the dexterity of a camel in mittens so find playing FPSs difficult (and I also don't like the gore) and RTSs at times can stump me. I just can't seem to move quickly enough to keep up with them. Some of my favorite games are arcade games and I'll spend 3-5 years on the same 5-6 levels because I just never get any better. But, I have fun.
