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- Bug Game On Old Mac Computers From Elementary School 2017
Real talk: I think learning is always fun. (Yes, I am absolutely a Ravenclaw. Why do you ask?) But when it’s a literal game? Then it’s even better, especially when you’re a kid. This is probably why there were so dang many fantastic educational '90s computer games — the rise of home computing (and, by extension, the rise of computing in the classroom) during the 1990s opened up a whole world of possibilities, including tons of ways to make learning a blast for the up-and-coming generations. And you know what? These games are still fun. And yes, I say that as a fully grown adult; don't knock going back and replaying the games you loved when you were 10 until you've tried it. Seriously.
As is often the case with the things we remember from the '90s, a lot of the games those of us who grew up during the decade filled our days with were originally developed and released long before the ‘90s. That's perhaps the reason '80s babies also have a certain degree of fondness for them; many of them actually dated back to the decade in which we were born. Some were part of long-running series, while still more of them received a number of remakes and reboots as technology improved. Though the graphics may be laughable now, just remember — once upon a time, they were the pinnacle of technological achievement.
So, in the spirit of nostalgia, here are 15 computer games from the ‘90s that made learning incredibly fun. Most of them are available to play on the internet now, so in these cases, I’ve also included links to where they can be found — frequently either an app store or the Internet Archive’s glorious collection of browser-based, emulated DOS games.
Best laptops for kids 2020: the top laptops for kids in elementary school and beyond By Joe Osborne, Michelle Rae Uy 25 February 2020 Prepare your kids for the tech-filled future. Here is a collection of our top bug games for you to play. These include the famous Evolution, the extremely addictive Bug Breaker, the ultra fun Worlds Guard and 19 more!
Have fun, kids!
1. Number Munchers and Word Munchers
The Munchers series was created by the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium — or, under a name with which you might be more familiar, MECC. I don’t know about you, but I have vivid memories of seeing those four letters scrawled across a huge number of the educational games I played at school; the company dated back to 1973 and was also responsible for games like the business simulator Lemonade Stand and the storytelling game Storybook Weaver.
The Munchers series' conceit was simple: They taught kids the basics of math and grammar. Number Munchers was originally released in 1990 for the Apple II, while Word Munchers had arrived a few years earlier in 1985. Gameplay-wise, both series functioned kind of like a turn-based version of Pacman; the object WAS to “eat” all of the numbers or words that correspond to the instructions on the screen (multiples of five, etc.) without getting caught by a Troggle.
What exactly are Troggles? No idea, but they're insatiable.
2. Math Blaster!
The original Math Blaster! was released in 1983 by the now-defunct developer Davidson & Associates, but it wasn’t until the ‘90s rolled around that the series really hit its stride. Between 1990 and 1999, a whopping 20 games were released in the Blaster Learning System — and somewhat astonishingly, a few more follow-ups trickled out between 2000 and 2008. Math wasn't the only subject addressed by the series; Reading Blaster!, for example,taught language arts. A Science Blaster! Jr. was also released at one point, but due to lack of popularity, it was the only entry in the series to tackle science-based topics.
Math Blaster! is available to play online now; additionally, a bunch of ports of the math-teaching game arrived as Android apps in October of 2013, so the series appears to be alive and well (if somewhat frozen in time).
3. Scooter’s Magic Castle
Like many early computer games, Scooter’s Magic Castle consisted of a relatively large environment full of what we now call mini-games. Released under Electronic Arts’ EA*Kids umbrella in 1993, the game involved players either assuming the role of or simply helping out an elf-like creature wearing a blue tunic, red sneakers, and a red baseball cap turned backwards (the '90s!) as they worked their way through a variety of activities. These activities were designed to teach everything from problem-solving to typing; you could even make terrible MIDI music by jumping up and down a set of colorful stairs.
Scooter's Magic Castle also has a super earworm-y theme song, so if you now have it stuck in your head for the rest of the day… sorry. My bad.
4. The Carmen Sandiego Series
No list of educational ‘90s computer games would be complete without an appearance by this mysterious, trench-coated criminal mastermind. The four major entries in the series — Where in the World, Where in the U.S.A., Where in Europe, and Where in Time — were all first released by Broderbund between 1985 and 1989; the deluxe versions of Where in the World and Where in the U.S.A., however, came along in 1992 and 1993, and as a result, it’s those versions that most ’90s kids remember so fondly. There was no better way to learn geography — and hey, Where in the World deluxe is playable at the Internet Archive, so it looks like I just figured out what I’m doing with myself this weekend.
Fun fact: A Facebook version of Where in the World was available to play in 2011; I’m not sure how I missed it, but it stuck around until 2012.
5. Kindercomp
I’m really dating myself here, but Kindercomp is probably the first computer game I remember playing. Initially released in 1983 by Spinnaker Software Corporation, it was exactly the kind of game that appealed to very young children: It consisted of six mini-games that taught kids their way around a keyboard by having them draw pictures, match pairs, and other simple activities. The one I remember is the 1984 version, but the Internet Archive has a whole bunch of ‘em available, so knock yourselves out. If you have a kid in your life who's around 3 years old, it might be a fun time to play with them!
6. Mario Teaches Typing
As a child in a house full of gamers, naturally I adored Mario Teaches Typing, which first hit the scene in the early '90s. One of a number of educational Mario games released between 1988 and 1996, it put the pixelated plumber to good work teaching us how to type. Hitting the correct key would prompt Mario to hit blocks, jump on Koopa Troopas, and more. Nintendo had almost no hand in the development of these games (a far cry from the tight hold the company tends to keep on the reigns of its properties nowadays), but they proved popular all the same.
I’ll be honest, though: I actually learned how to type by frequenting chat rooms. As a result, I can type an impressive number of words per minute; however, I definitely don’t use the “correct” fingers. Ah well. Whatever works, right?
The game has been played since 1997, when the conference was first divided into divisions and since 2003 has been sponsored by (officially known as the Marathon MAC Football Championship Game). Espn mac championship games.
7. Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing
Mario was second perhaps only to Mavis Beacon in the world of beloved typing programs — and what’s more, it’s still around: The first version debuted in 1987, and it has remained in production, continuing to get new and improved updates, pretty much ever since. You can download it for free right now if you like.
I was, by the way, absolutely devastated to learn recently that Mavis Beacon isn’t a real person. She was invented to give a face to the program in an era when human people weren't regularly associated with computer and video games (everything is a lie). 1985's The Chessmaster 2000had shown how effective putting a real person on the cover of a computer game could be; the wizard on the box was played by actor Will Hare, reported Vice in 2015. Mavis became the next incarnation of this strategy, as depicted by Renee L'Esperance.
Audiosurf Alternatives. Melody’s Escape. Melody’s Escape is an Action-Adventure, Platform, Side-Scrolling, Rhythm, and Single-player video game developed. Osu is Music, Rhythm, Single and Multiplayer video game developed by Dean Herbert. It is another exciting music video game. Dec 13, 2008 I played a game called AudioSurf on my friend's PC and thought it was really neat, so I went online and then, to my dismay, saw that it was only for PCs. So I ask, are there any games like AudioSurf for Macs? I have a Mac OS X. Nov 17, 2018 Popular Alternatives to Audiosurf for Windows, iPhone, Steam, Mac, Android and more. Explore 7 games like Audiosurf, all suggested and ranked by the AlternativeTo user community.
8. 3D Dinosaur Adventure
Launched by Knowledge Adventure in 1993, 3D Dinosaur Adventure was little more than a glorified encyclopedia specializing in what we knew about dinosaurs at the time (much of which has since been determined to have been terribly, terribly wrong, even if the brontosaurus did make a triumphant comeback in 2015). That didn’t matter, though, because dinosaurs.
Also contained within 3D Dinosaur Adventure was a mini-game called 'Save The Dinosaurs' — which, to be perfectly honest, was downright terrifying. It required players to make their way through a series of maze-like hallways to find and rescue 15 types of dinosaurs before time ran out — and by 'before time ran out,' I mean 'before the comet that wiped out all of the dinosaurs crashed into the Earth, while you and the dinos were still on the planet.'
No pressure.
9. Odell Lake
Like the Munchers series, Odell Lake was created by MECC and therefore a fixture for many an elementary school computer lab. It debuted in the early 1980s, but it stuck around for long after that; it’s why so many of us ‘90s kids remember playing it when we were young.
In all honesty, it wasn’t really that exciting — all you did was swim around as a fish, trying to figure out whether you should eat, ignore, or run away from every other fish you encountered. I’m also not totally clear on why this was classified as an educational activity; Giant Bomb suggests it taught kids about food chains and predator/prey relationships, but I.. clearly did not get that takeaway from it. But hey, I suppose survival skills are important, too, right?
Odell Lake is a real place, by the way; it’s in Oregon. Just, y’know, FYI.
10. Reader Rabbit
You know the old saying, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it? That’s pretty much the Reader Rabbit series in a proverbial nutshell: It’s so effective at teaching kids to read and write that it’s survived all the way since the first game launched in 1984. There's a huge list of Reader Rabbit titles scattered throughout educational computing history; at the series' height in the late '90s, six to seven titles in the line were being released each year. The output has since tapered off, of course, but the remarkable thing is that it's still around.
91 rows Feb 01, 2020 Most of the best games are available on Mac. Indeed, Mac gaming has come. Mac os game.
The last major PC release for a Reader Rabbit game was in 2010, but a number of titles have debuted since then as iOS apps. Many of the games are also, of course, available to play online courtesy of the Internet Archive.
11. Mixed-Up Mother Goose
Mixed-Up Mother Goose didn't have a ton of replay value; the point was to sort out all of the nursery rhymes that had gotten 'mixed up' and put them back in order, so after you did that once, your work there was done. However, the world in which the game existed was so delightful that I played it over and over again as a small child. Released by Sierra in 1987, with a handful of remakes appearing at regular intervals throughout the ‘90s, it was a point-and click adventure game that encourage problem-solving; it also gets bonus points for having tons of relatively diverse avatar options — something which was even rarer back then than it is now. (And, y'know, it's still a problem decades later, so that's.. really saying something.)
12. Super Solvers: Treasure Mountain
I’ll be honest: I actually have no recollection of playing 1990’s Treasure Mountain, Treasure Cove, or any of the other Treasure titles in this series. Many other people seem to remember these games fondly, though, so I think they deserve an inclusion here. Like many educational games, 1990's Treasure Mountain — a creation of The Learning Company, like the Reader Rabbit series — involved solving riddles that led you to keys that unlocked each successive level. You also collected treasure as you went, returning it to the chest at the top of the titular mountain once you got there. A prize was awarded for depositing the treasure back into the chest.
Treasure Mountain and Treasure Cove both focused on general reading comprehension and basic math skills; however, other entries in the Super Solvers series tackled more specialized skill sets, including deductive reasoning and logic.
13. The Dr. Brain Series
Admittedly, I never played the fourth game in Sierra On-Line's long-running Dr. Brain series, and I wasn’t a big fan of the third — but the first two? Classic. The Castle of Dr. Brain, released in 1991, and the follow-up, 1992’s The Island of Dr. Brain, were a step up from a lot of the other puzzle-solving games out there; they were geared towards slightly older kids, so there was more to each puzzle than simply picking a matching shape or selecting the next number in a sequence. We’re talking intense logic puzzles that might stump even some adults.
Sierra merged with another educational game company, Bright Star Technology, following the release of The Island of Dr. Brain; the franchise was then handed over to a team from Bright Star, which might explain why 1995's The Lost Mind of Dr. Brain and 1996's The Time Warp of Dr. Brain were so different from the first two entries in the series.
14. Eagle Eye Mysteries
Bug Game On Old Mac Computers From Elementary School Online
Like Scooter’s Magic Castle,1993’s Eagle Eye Mysteries and 1994’s Eagle Eyes Mysteries in London came to us courtesy of the now sadly defunct EA* Kids division of Electronic Arts. Unlike Scooter’s Magic Castle, though, they were meant for an older crowd. The games followed siblings Jake and Jennifer Eagle as they solved mysteries throughout first their hometown, then in London not — unlike a modernized, digital version of Encyclopedia Brown. If you were a pint-sized fan of whodunnits, this was the game for you; it helped you learn how to piece together different pieces of information until a complete picture emerged. A valuable skill to have, I feel.
15. Oregon Trail
Ah, yes: Oregon Trail, the game responsible for countless deaths by dysentery, many drownings of oxen who tried and failed to ford the river, and a plethora of memes. For anyone who grew up playing it, it's the gift that keeps on giving.
Speaking of people who grew up playing it, perhaps unexpectedly large swathe of the population falls into this category. Originally developed in 1971 and launched by MECC in 1974, roughly 20 versions of the game have been released since then — the most of which, believed it or not, arrived in 2018 as a handheld game similar to the Tiger Electronics games a lot of '80s kids grew up playing. Best mac adventure games 2014. Ostensibly, it taught kids what it was like to travel the Oregon Trail in a covered wagon in 1848; practically speaking, though, it mostly taught us about frustration.
Also: Never ford the river. Always caulk your wagon and float it.
Your oxen will thank you.
This article was originally published on
Bugdom | |
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Developer(s) | Macintosh Pangea Software Windows Hoplite Research (2000) Ideas From the Deep (2003) |
Publisher(s) | Macintosh Pangea Software Windows On Deck Interactive (2000) Ideas From the Deep (2003) |
Platform(s) | Mac OS 9, Microsoft Windows |
Release |
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Genre(s) | Platformer |
Mode(s) | Single player |
Bugdom is a 1999 platformvideo game originally created by Pangea Software for Mac OS 9. It was included with the iMac DV 2000 and later iBook models. The Microsoft Windows version, released in 2000, was developed by Hoplite Research and published by On Deck Interactive, a division of Gathering of Developers.[1]Bugdom was generally well received by critics, being praised for its graphics, gameplay and soundtrack but criticized for certain technical glitches as well as gameplay repetition, and sold fairly well.
Bugdom's story centers on the Bugdom, a kingdom inhabited by insects that appears as an outdoors bug environment. Originally, the kingdom was peacefully ruled by the rollie pollies and ladybugs, but not long ago, the kingdom was overthrown by the tyrannic and pompous King Thorax, leader of an evil clan of fire ants, as well as their evil follower bugs recruited prior to the kingdom's downfall. Thorax now rules the kingdom with an iron fist, and the ladybugs have been imprisoned in spider web cages scattered across the environment. The player assumes the role of Rollie McFly, who has survived the ambush of the kingdom by taking refuge in the lawn area. Rollie must travel to Thorax's anthill on the distant reaches of the Bugdom, while freeing various trapped ladybugs along the way.[2]
A sequel, Bugdom 2, was released on December 30, 2002.[3]
Gameplay[edit]
The game is set in an outdoors bug environment, in the Bugdom, a kingdom once ruled by bugs, namely the rollie pollies and ladybugs that was overthrown by a clan of fire ants who captured all of the Lady Bugs and held them as prisoners, leaving their leader, King Thorax, to rule the land.[2] The player visits several colorful locations throughout the kingdom, namely a lawn (levels 1 and 2), a pond (level 3), a forest which resembles a bug's interpretation of a garden (levels 4 and 5), a beehive (levels 6 and 7), a nighttime-themed level (level 8), and an anthill (levels 9 and 10).
Players navigate through ten different stages as Rollie. Rollie has the ability to jump, kick, and roll, the latter two of which can be used to attack most hostile enemies. Nuts are scattered throughout the level which, upon being opened, have power-ups, keys, clovers, buddy bugs, or enemies. Gates can only be opened when Rollie has the appropriate colored key. Lady bugs are trapped at several points of each level and can be freed by kicking their web cages. When Rollie reaches the level exit, a hollow log to be exact, the players score is tallied based on the number of ladybugs freed, the number of clovers found, and if all four pieces of the blue clover has been found. In Level 9, if you found all 4 gold clovers in the entire game, which are levels 2, 6, 8, and 9, they will be tallied in that level.
PC version[edit]
The PC version was originally developed by Hoplite Research and published by On Deck Interactive, a division of Gathering of Developers.[1] Following the acquiring of Gathering via Take-Two Interactive in 2002, the game was ported again by Ideas From the Deep.[4] However, Take-Two Interactive apparently continued publishing illegal copies of Bugdom, prompting Ideas From the Deep to contact the FBI's crime division. Despite this, Take-Two Interactive continued to publish copies following the debate.
Creatures[edit]
There are lots of insects out to kill Rollie so he must survive and save the Bugdom. Some bugs help though.
- Ladybugs - They once ruled the Bugdom with Rollie McFly until trapped in webs by the terrible minions of the anthill led by a giant ant in the name of Thorax. Now Rollie has to rescue them by kicking the web trap, making the beautiful bugs fly to safety. They appear in every level except level 7 and 10, the last two bosses.
- Buddy bugs (bees) - These small striped bugs behind Rollie are like smart bombs that can immediately be shot on enemies, killing them. They come from nuts and are in handy when Rollie is being attacked by lots of enemies. They appear in all of the levels.
- Termites - These are minor enemies in the Bugdom that come from nuts. They appear in probably all of the levels.
- Slugs - These large fat creatures are invincible, so they must be avoided. They appear in levels 1, 2, 3, and 8.
- Boxer mantis - These green mantises wear boxing gloves. The player needs to kick or roll into them quickly, or Rollie is in for some pain. They appear in levels 1 and 2.
- Spear throwing ants - These minions of King Thorax have ugly faces and spears. They must be attacked three times before they die. They also hate water. There's also a variety that throws rocks in levels 2 and 8. They appear in levels 1, 2, 4, 8 and 9.
- Mosquitoes - These female flies attack Rollie from above and drain both his life and rolling energy, swelling their heads. Rollie must attack them when their noses are impaled in the ground. They appear in level 3.
- Water hoppers - These buggers can be defeated only by buddy bugs and should be avoided at all costs. They appear in level 3.
- Water spider - He is an aquatic taxi. If Rollie gives him a coin, the water spider will offer him a ride, making Rollie avoid the killer fish and frogs. He appears in level 3.
- Killer fish - These fish eat Rollie, resulting in an instant kill. They can be avoided by riding the water spider. They appear in level 3.
- Human feet - These pounding feet do big damage to Rollie, even if he runs into them from the side. They appear in level 4.
- Spiders - These eight legged monsters drop down in front of Rollie. They attack by shooting web. They've made webs that King Thorax's minion fire ants have trapped ladybugs in. One of them appears on the main menu. They appear in level 4 and 5.
- Dragonflies - These green insects will offer Rollie a flight and can shoot fireballs (a spoof on actual dragons). They appear in level 4 and 5.
- Bats - These mammals are a danger of riding the dragonfly. If the player flies over the wooden fence, a bat eats Rollie, resulting in an instant kill. They appear in level 4 and 5.
- Caterpillars - These spiky creatures are like the slugs but bigger. They appear in level 4, 5 and 8.
- Bees - These striped monsters follow Rollie wherever he goes. When they sting him, they die. They can be painlessly dispatched by rolling into them. They appear in level 4, 5, 6 and 7.
- Bee grubs - These small white grubs with bee faces can be killed either by being kicked or being jumped on. They appear in level 6 and 7.
- Drone bees - These muscular bees can fire their stingers but they die if they fire them. If Rollie is on the ball, they will pound try to pound their fists instead. They appear in level 6 and 7.
- Queen bee - This giant bee can spew blobs of honey that generate lots of bees. When fighting her, avoid the shadows as they have spikes. Roll into her face to defeat her. Also, you can shoot buddy bugs at this female giant. She appears in level 7.
- Fire ants - These elite soldiers of King thorax can fly and shoot fire. They can be defeated by using a buddy bug. They appear in level 8, 9 and 10.
- Fireflies - If they see you in their flashing glow, these annoying creatures can carry Rollie off to somewhere that could kill him. They will explode if shot by a buddy bug. They appear in level 8.
- Toxic gas roaches - These cockroaches have green gas masks that protect them from the toxic slime. In level 8, the gas they leave behind explodes if ignited by fire ants or buddy bugs, so they may die without Rollie having to fight them.
- Ghost ants - If you kill a spear throwing ant in level 9, he will rise again as a ghost ant. He cannot be kicked but he will die if he is in lava or water. If you hide for a while, he will dissipate.
- King Thorax - The game's final boss. The king of the fire ants can shoot sparks from his staff and to defeat him, Rollie will have to kick the water pipes so they quench the fire on his head, then kick him. After he repeats this process, King Thorax will fall and the game will be completed.
Reception[edit]
Sell Used Apple Computers
Reception | ||||||
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Pangea Software considers Bugdom to be their most popular Mac game. The Mac OS version of Bugdom received generally positive reviews, according to a 70% on GameRankings.[6] Dziga Robilev of IGN rated Bugdom a 7/10, calling it 'one of the best crafted platform games available for the Mac.'[7] However, Robilev also stated 'The only thing holding this baby back is that the levels themselves don't offer enough variety. There is a lot of the same activity being performed over and over again. Still, the game is a fun play and younger gamers will definitely have a good time with it.'[7]MacMagazin rated the game a 6/6 Mac score, saying 'We are sure: Bugdom will be the summer hit this year among the Mac games.'[8] iMacSidian rated the game a 5/5, saying 'Bugdom really fills the huge gap of platform games for the Mac.. The graphics are absolutely top notch - you have to see it to believe it.'[8] Mac Gamer's Ledge rated the game a 4.5 out of 5 score, calling it 'a feast for the eyes and ears.'[8] AppleLinks called the game's musical score 'fantastic' and called the game 'one of the first games that really can be enjoyed by both children and adults.'[8]Inside Mac Games rated the game a 4/5, saying 'Bugdom is certainly a great game.. and it is good enough to rival many of the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation titles that it is similar to. Its easy-to-grasp controls and interface are almost totally transparent, even to new users, and the feel of the game is just plush and polished - as is the look.'[citation needed]
Sequel[edit]
A 2002 sequel, Bugdom 2, stars a grasshopper named Skip who attempts to retrieve his stolen knapsack from a large Bully Bee. As of March 1, 2002, it has sold over 30,000 copies worldwide, prompting Pangea to rerelease the game as a shareware release.[9]
See also[edit]
- Truform, rendering technology used in Bugdom
References[edit]
Bug Game On Old Mac Computers From Elementary School Near Me
- ^ abWalker, Trey (October 27, 2000). 'Bugdom Coming to PCs'. GameSpot. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
- ^ abBugdom - Description. Pangea Software. 1999-12-01.
- ^'IGN: Bugdom II'. IGN. 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-19.
- ^'Bugdom Ships!'. Ideas From the Deep. March 24, 2003. Archived from the original on February 11, 2015. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
- ^Breen, Christopher (December 1999). '1999 Macworld Game Hall Of Fame'. Macworld. Archived from the original on June 11, 2001.
- ^'GameRankings: Bugdom'. GameRankings. 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-21.
- ^ abRobilev, Dziga (2002-06-07). 'IGN: Bugdom Review'. IGN. Retrieved 2007-10-10.
- ^ abcd'Pangea Software: Bugdom Reviews'. Pangea Software. 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-19.[dead link]
- ^Deniz, Tuncer (2002-03-01). 'Bugdom Goes Shareware'. Inside Mac Games. Retrieved 2009-09-19.