Review of Madagascar Animal Trivia DVD Game

Introduction

DVD games are a pretty appealing notion to those looking for something fun, interactive, and engaging for their kids. The Madagascar Animal Trivia Game, if you believe the blurb on the outer wrap, seems to fit the bill nicely.

It has over 1600 DVD questions and is `…a spectacular look into the lives of real animals`.

It also uses some (`patent pending`) Dynamic Levelling software, branded `b-EQUAL`, which means that the whole family can play on an equal footing. In other words, my daughter Molly (and her friend Farzenah), both aged 9, get to have questions pitched at `Scout Level`, whilst my teenage daughter, Chloe, gets to answer questions at `Explorer Level`. An old-timer like me has to pitch in at the full on `Navigator Level`. So, in principal, an even playing field.

The game works for up to four players, and each has to select one of four Madagascar character icons, as well as a corresponding level, before the game begins. Snappy dialogue talks you through the instructions so you don`t really need to refer to the instruction manual contained in the DVD case.

There`s an `On-screen Game Board` which shows how far each character has progressed.

We worked out (by playing a few games with differing numbers of participants) that the game takes about 15 minutes per person to complete. So for four people, it takes an hour, for example. There are `time limit` options too, though I`d recommend selecting the `No Time Limit` option.

The game is `hosted` by animated characters from Madagascar
(including Alex the Lion and Marty the Zebra) - well their voices anyway, after a brief introduction featuring some of the class animation from that movie. They`ll call up a character at a time who will (generally) view a brief piece of archive animal footage before answering the question posed. This actually works in a number of ways. Multi-choice is the most prevalent method where you use the arrow keys on your DVD remote to select the right answer. If you get it right, you move one or two spaces forward on the board.

There are also the traditional `True or False` questions - whackily termed `For Real` and `No Way!`.

Another question type is where you`re asked a question, and then you have to answer aloud. The right answer then `reveals` and if you were right, you click `OK`. This caused a little amusement as Molly and Farzeneh both shouted the answers as loudly as possible so that the TV could hear them.

Then there are very occasional random `wheel spinning` moments that either move you forward or send you back - which adds a little fun and frustration to the game.

The winner is the one who gets to the centre of the board first.

And that`s about it.

(You can check out a demo of the game on www.bequal.com).

Video

The general graphic frames are all of a high quality whilst the archive footage is (predictably) very variable. It`s standard library material, often edging towards the grainy end of the filmic spectrum.

Audio

For what it`s worth, the character narration sound is very good. But many of the animal clips are mute, bar the music.

Features

None.

Conclusion

In theory this DVD based game ought to have been more fun than it was. It`s a family trivia game that uses the character voices from Madagascar to enliven what is essentially a fairly dry animal knowledge quiz.

The `dynamic levelling` is a good idea though, in theory allowing participants of all ages to compete on an even playing
field. But my 9 year old found the 6-9 questions simple, whilst I struggled with the older level, so that ended up not seeming so fair after all!

The movie clips are engaging enough for the first couple of plays, though it`s not long before they start repeating. There may be 1600 questions, but there certainly aren`t anywhere near 1600 clips!

My final gripe with this otherwise OK set is the wait time between questions, and the prominence of the `Hold On!` graphic frame throughout. Of course this is a natural limitation of the medium, but is boring nonetheless. (If you`ve ever played the `Who wants to be a Millionaire` Playstation game then you`ll know what I mean about frustrating wait time between questions…).

Both Molly and her friend Farzeneh (aged 9) claimed to have enjoyed the game, though it`s telling that they haven`t played it since.

On the plus side, you could certainly argue that it`s an educational game, but in the final analysis that`s maybe why it`s not been out the box since. Kids!