Petits débrouillards (The Little Slyboots)

Facts

Publisher: Mindscape, France
Target Group: 6-9
Price: -15 Euro
Distribution: CD-ROM
Type of game: Educational Adventure

Story

This CD-ROM presents more than 50 adventure trips around the world. On each trip, the player is accompanied by one of the six “Little Slyboots”, who are clever young characters that talk to the player and guide her through the game. This game is produced by Mindscape, one of the household names in edutainment software in France that has produced many successful educational titles.

Elements of the game

There are different types of trips that can be played. One type of adventure trips deals with the life of animals, observing their behaviour and getting to know their habitats. A second family of trips deals with understanding different types of natural phenomena. A third possibility is to explore underwater life and life in the air. A fourth type of trips is about getting to know the different habitats in the world. A fifth type of adventures deals with the question of what everyone can do to protect the planet.

The graphics of the game is very clear and simple (comic-style throughout), designed to focus on key messages and the most important things. At each stage of the adventure, there is nice music and innovative sounds. Arcade games are used to get more knowledge across, with funny comments from the characters. There is also the possibility to take photos at every point in the game, saving and/or printing them. There is also the possibility to draw pictures and to paint in templates of animals and landscapes.

How biodiversity is presented

This game attempts to communicate very basic knowledge about the environment. All this information is presented in a friendly, amusing and suitable way. Within such an approach, biodiversity issues are mentioned concerning habitats and species.

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