Nostalgia is a powerful thing. Often when I go back and play games or watch movies that I loved as a kid, they disappoint. Flubber, Croc, Space Jam and Mary-Kate and Ashley Horse Riding for the Playstation One, to name a handful. It is normally the same for games and films I didn’t get to experience too, but one game proved this theory wrong, and that game is Zoombinis.
I did not play Zoombinis as a child, pretty messed up considering I label myself as a Hardcore GamerTM. The only educational game I remember playing was Reader Rabbit, which perhaps is why I found English an easier subject. Had I played Zoombinis instead, maybe I would have been good at math! Zoombinis is disguised as an adventure and you will be surprised in finding yourself learning practical math skills such as logic, data analysis, set theory, graphing and algebraic thinking, all while having fun!
But what are Zoombinis? They are your little blue friends. They are like smurfs, but not shit. They’re actually just blue, so not really like smurfs at all. You get to choose their hair, eyes, nose and feet. All of your Zoombinis are on a journey to take back Zoombiniville from the meanies called the Fleeb. Zoombinis also all get given really cool names such as Lobi, Muquak and Aueuby. And guess what! This game is available to download on PC and Mac from Steam! Play games while learning.
The only thing that sucks about this game is the Pizza Troll. This dude is entitled and rude as hell and has terrible pizza taste. You have to guess what pizza he wants by changing up different toppings, but there’s no way to know! One time he wanted just a cheese pizza, the next time he wanted jalapeno and pineapple, gross! Many Zoombinis will lose their lives to this troll. I forgot to mention, your Zoombinis are essentially sacrificed if you mess up any of the levels. All the enemies are dicks. Don’t get attached to your Zoombinis because they will suffer and die. This game teaches you math and how to deal with loss, the essential skills of life.