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Slow, Frustrating, and Negative for young kids

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 0 / 2
Date: April 05, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I bought this game when my son was 4, because he had mastered most of the preschool games but wasn't ready for games that required reading, math, or quick fingers. I thought it would be a good problem-solving mystery game featuring some of his favorite Peanuts characters. After several attempts to help him get Charlie Brown out of the house, I finally got frustrated myself and put the game away so he wouldn't keep pestering me to figure it out (I was stumped, and didn't realize there was a "help" file). He finally dug it out months later and figured it out himself, but I forbid him from playing as Lucy because of the negative language she used towards the other characters. We finally pitched the game and moved on to Putt-Putt, Freddy Fish, and Pajama Sam. Much more positive role models, challenging but not frustrating problem solving games, fun music, and a more kid-friendly pace. Don't waste your money. This game is an insult to Charles Schulz.

Worst software I have

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 0 / 1
Date: February 23, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I picked this up in the store for my 4 and 6 year old. There is nothing intuitive about this software. You have to read the help file in order to advance to each step. A 4 and 6 year old definitely cannot read the help directions by themselves, so I ended up having to help with this tedious game. My 6 year old got bored. The 4 year old kept wanting to play, but I had to do most of the work until he got to a puzzle or activity. These he could do.

Very slow

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 0 / 1
Date: December 05, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Buy the Freddi Fish or Pajama Sam games if you are looking for good kids games where you must solve a puzzle and have fun interaction with some whacky characters and interesting situations. This game is very, very slow, not intuitive and has nothing like the look and feel of Freddi Fish or Pajama Sam.

dialog may not be the greatest for younger children

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 9 / 10
Date: January 11, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I purchased this game at Target as a gift for my 5 year old daughter. I noticed that it had won some sort of Parents Choice award and she is a big fan of the Peanuts "specials". The game has a charming detective game at its base which is a bit too difficult for her to figure out. She would be happy to continue trying but I am just going to throw this one in the garbage. My problem with the game is the constant negative talk that Lucy and Charlie Brown spew as they search for the blanket. Lucy is even more bombastic on the software than she is on the specials--constantly calling people stupid and putting them down. Charlie Brown is virtual stream of negative self-talk. I am aware that much of the Peanuts humor relies on negative humor and putdowns but it seems really excessive in this software. Even though I threw the game out and definitely didn't get my moneys worth I gave the it two stars because the basic game seems challenging and fun. Definitely not a good choice if your trying to teach your child to be kind and upbeat. I

Maybe if you have hours to waste...

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 5 / 6
Date: August 04, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This game takes around an hour and a half to complete. It is VERY slow, boring, and any child under 7 will be bored to pieces after the first scenario of trying to get out of Charlie Brown's house. The narration is too long, you can't speed it up, and once you think you've solved the game and it's over, it continues on and on again.

The only way I can recommend this is for young kids 3-5, who just want to see the Peanuts characters interact on screen and the opportunity to click on things and see what they do. Once you have finished the game once, it remembers this and you can now play any one of the game/puzzle sections of it again, but if you take it out of your hard drive completely, you will be back to square one. Other than that, it is very frustrating to play the entire thing.

HELP!!!

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 4
Date: August 01, 2003
Author: Amazon User

My daughter is trying to beat the game and is stuck at the supermarket level...i can't seem to figure it out either... of course it could be because i'm not that great at video games but if someone could just post a thing on here and let me know how to get past it i would really appreciate it!

Thanks

Mostly fun & addictive game for Peanuts Fans!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 41 / 42
Date: July 28, 2002
Author: Amazon User

This game is fun for Peanuts fans of ANY age to enjoy. Don't be put off by the marketing, which touts this as a game primarily for young children. I am an adult (also a gamer) and I thoroughly enjoyed this game. It's interesting because there are games within the game you unlock. These are not challenging in and of themselves but it's fun to have these pop up randomly. The game is true to the spirit of the Peanuts characters, with Lucy being the fussbudget she is and Charlie Brown being resigned and wishy-washy. Although, it's not a Mensa workout for adults by any means, I think children will find it challenging and engaging and even adults may find themselves stymied by the sheer simplicity of the game, i.e. I sometimes found myself "thinking too hard" and missing obvious solutions because I'm a grown up. The only gripes I have, which is why I didn't give it 5 stars are the graphics and sound. The drawings are a bit ragged around the edges and the sounds don't always match the action (and the words don't always match the mouth movements). Additionally, the sound is set too loud (the lowest setting was still too loud at least on my iMac). Other than the few technical glitches, overall, this game is just as fun as the Sims and it's nice to play a game that doesn't involve violence. Besides, who doesn't love Snoopy and the gang? If you're a parent, this is a good game for kids and if you're a Peanuts fan, you'll love it.

Where's the help file, Charlie Brown?

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: January 09, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I bought this discount-rack item for my kindergarten-age nephew shortly before the holidays. I read a series of negative reviews on Amazon.com and frankly didn't expect a whole lot from the game.

Superficially, there are problems. The animation looks like it was drawn by Charles M. Schulz, but the rest of the game convinced me that it was designed by people who'd never read the comic strip or seen the TV specials before. After all, the first words spoken during the introductory sequence are: "The Peanuts!". The CD case itself points you to a German website, and I get the impression this game was designed by German programmers who know English only as a second language. Some of the things the Peanuts characters say during the game are 100% at odds with Schulz's deceptively simple use of the English language.

Once you get past the surface complaints, the game itself is a lot of fun. I solved it with my nephew over the course of four sessions (each about a week apart, but he kept asking to come back to it). I will honestly say I could not have solved this game myself without frequent reference to the help file included on the CD-ROM. Then again, I grew up playing all the Sierra "Quest" games (Space Quest, Police Quest), none of which you could solve without buying the hint book... at least here the solutions comes free of charge! To be fair, I didn't read the answers directly to my nephew, I just gave him hints as to what he was supposed to do at certain dead ends.

As with any good kids-oriented video game, solving the mystery is not the only goal of playing. There are several funny sight gags. There are nine games to play along the way, each at two levels of difficulty, and once you reach a game you can go back to play it at any time. The games vary hand-eye coordination with problem solving.

In sum, a rewarding game that is not as cheaply made as it appears.

A good time!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: January 06, 2005
Author: Amazon User

My son is almost a year old and I bought this software on a whim, to see if I can figure out a kid's game in my old age. Granted he doesn't know what a computer even is yet, but I bought the game (cheaper at Target, BTW) and I plan to give it to him in a few years when he's ready for stuff like this.

I'm not sure about the 4+ age minimum. I took the easy route in this game to see and it seems a lot of things might stump the wee ones. At least they stumped this old mold bag. Maybe kids are smarter at that age today, but it seems to me like some of the puzzles may get frustrating after several attempts. I would put this more in the age range of 6 to 8 for beginners.

Other than that, the game is a blast! Chasing Snoopy down the grocery aisle was the best part.

I wouldn't worry too much about the language issues raised by others here. 'Peanuts' has always been self-depreciating to a point - one has to consider that while the characters in the game do tend to belittle _themselves_ they never call the player "stupid" or "dumb". In fact I found the characters to be very encouraging to the player when a puzzle failed, and downright flattering when the puzzle was completed. I don't see many kids crying at the game because of something Lucy or Charlie Brown said. In fact, I don't see them crying at this game much at all, unless they're too young.

Great game, and good for German students, too!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 8
Date: January 01, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Where's the Blanket, Charlie Brown? is a fun game all Peanuts fans will enjoy. The pace might be a little too slow for the younger set expecting constant action, and a four-year-old might get easily frustrated not being able to exit the Brown household, but all-in-all it is an appealing game with lots of nice extra features. The reviewer who mentioned the fuzzy graphics probably installed the game on the Quick Install method - if you use Full Install, the graphics are crisp (although it does take up a bit more disk space)! Finally, the game is also great for German students, such as myself, as it provides more exposure to the language in an entertaining way by playing the game in German.

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