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LeapFrog Leapster Educational Game The Incredibles

Help the Incredibles save the world! Learn 2nd and 3rd grade skills as you use quick thinking and special super powers to outwit a villainous plot. The Incredibles teaches parts of speech, verb forms, multiplication and critical thinking. Requires Leapster Multimedia Learning System (sold separately).

User Ratings and Reviews

3 Stars Too difficult for younger kids, not interesting for older kids
Okay, we own a lot of Leapster cartridges. My kids may have tried this out, but they haven’t played it much at all.

There are 5 characters, each one associated with a different game. Each game has two levels. In addition to the basic games I describe, there are bonus rounds:

Mr. Incredible: Solve the addition and multiplication problems. The answers are on the heads of a statue. Choose the statue with the correct answer and push or pull it into position. Level 1: The addition problems feature serial addition of three single digit numbers. Level 2: The multiplication problems feature single digit multiplication of two single digit numbers.

Mrs. Incredible: Doors open and close revealing letters to a word. Grab the letters to spell a word before the door closes. They must be grabbed in the correct order. Level 1: The words are about five or six letters long. Level 2: The words are about the same length as Level 1, but they are more difficult to spell because they do not follow the basic phonics rules.

Dash: Pick up blocks to build the correct number. For example, if the number is 605, pick up blocks 600 and 5, put the 600 in the hundreds place and the 5 in the ones place. Level 1: The numbers are three digits long. Level 2: The numbers are four digits long.

Violet: Violet has to find the part of speech in the maze that completes the sentence. Level 1: This level focuses on finding the nouns. An example is “Find the noun that completes the sentence.” The sentence is “The ___ throws a robot,” and the choices are “ran,” “happy,” “enemy.” Level 2: Find adjectives to complete the sentence.

Syndrome: Help navigate the Incredibles family work together to get through the jungle. Must use some logic, like use Mr. Incredible’s strength to move rocks or Mrs. Incredible’s stretch to reach across a chasm.

Summary: The games are not bad and they are very educational. The problem I think is The Incredibles appeals to a younger audience, maybe preschool level, and the skills it requires are first through third grade level. They were too difficult for my kids when I bought the cartridge, still too difficult for my now 5 year old; but The Incredibles is considered too babyish by my 7 year old who could now play the games.

2 Stars Very difficult to play
Out of all the games my son has (around 10), this is the worst of them. It is confusing and very difficult to use. The activities seem interesting but when you try to do something, the controls just dont work well. I tried the activities so I could explain my son how to play (first time I have to do that with a leapster game) and couldnt finish them !!. Do not recommend this game.

5 Stars The Incredibles are incredible!
My [..]son LOVES this game. Many of the other leapster cartridges that are geared for his age are too easy. This one challenges him. He does most of the work himself with occassional help from me. I love the entire Leapster line and this game has not let us down one bit.

3 Stars Not so Great
Like the PS2 version, we just weren’t real thrilled about the fun-factor of this one. Didn’t hold my son’s interest like other games.

5 Stars Glad to find it again!
One of my kids favorites! I’m buying a replacement copy. I agree these things are durable, I sent one through the wash last month and in the morning it was fine. I agree this one is a bit of a challenge (i.e. frustrating) in parts, BUT the upside of this is that although we lost it a year ago (after having it for over a year) I have no qualms about buying it again (I’ve been looking at the stores to no avail), for my now almost 8 year old son knowing he’ll still have fun with it and my almost 4 year old daughter knowing she’ll love it again just because it’s the Incredibles! Highly recommended!

Buy/More Info

Kid Toys Music Addition Problems, Basic Games, Bonus Rounds, Correct Answer, Critical Thinking, Different Game, Digit Numbers, Educational Game, Four Digits, Leapfrog Leapster, Leapster Multimedia Learning System, Multimedia Learning System, Multiplication Problems, Nouns, Part Of Speech, Parts Of Speech, Phonics Rules, Position Level, Sentence Level, Violet

LeapFrog Tag Activity Storybook Disney Princess Adventures Under the Sea

Read and swim along with Ariel and Flounder as they explore a sunken boat loaded with treasures! Find out what happens when they’re surprised by an unwelcome visitor and their adventure takes an unexpected turn! After the story, play leveled learning activities with Cinderella and Jasmine that help build vocabulary, reading comprehension and phonics skills. Plus, connect the Tag Reader online to the Leapfrog Learning Path to see what your child is learning.

Introduces:

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Awesome product
Although LeapFrog’s Tag system is recommended for children 4-?, my 3 yr old had constantly been asking, “What does that say?” She received the Tag reader & this book for Christmas. I think I enjoy playing and “reading” the books more than she does!

3 Stars Not so interesting
This book is ok, if you like the Mermaid stories (I don’t agree with the message of most disney princess stuff). This is probably my daughter’s least favorite of her 5 Tag books. I think the others have more interesting story lines.

4 Stars Disney Princess
Bought for my 6 year old granddaughter. She loves it. We took on vacation this week and she was using it and doing the activities and different game levels. I would recommend.

5 Stars My daughter just loves this book
My 3yo would read this book every waking moment if she could. She loves the games as well as reading the story. Such an amazing toy to help teach the love of reading.

5 Stars Favorite tag book
This is our favorite tag book!!! if you have a princess at home you need this book first!

Buy/More Info

Kid Toys Music Ariel, Cinderella, Different Game, Disney Princess, Game Levels, Granddaughter, Interesting Story, Jasmine, Leapfrog, Least Favorite, Mermaid, Phonics, Reading Comprehension, Sunken Boat, Tag Activity, Tag Reader, Tag System, Unexpected Turn, Unwelcome Visitor, Vocabulary

LeapFrog Tag Activity Storybook Disney Princess Adventures Under the Sea

Read and swim along with Ariel and Flounder as they explore a sunken boat loaded with treasures! Find out what happens when they’re surprised by an unwelcome visitor and their adventure takes an unexpected turn! After the story, play leveled learning activities with Cinderella and Jasmine that help build vocabulary, reading comprehension and phonics skills. Plus, connect the Tag Reader online to the Leapfrog Learning Path to see what your child is learning.

Introduces:

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars My daughter just loves this book
My 3yo would read this book every waking moment if she could. She loves the games as well as reading the story. Such an amazing toy to help teach the love of reading.

5 Stars Awesome product
Although LeapFrog’s Tag system is recommended for children 4-?, my 3 yr old had constantly been asking, “What does that say?” She received the Tag reader & this book for Christmas. I think I enjoy playing and “reading” the books more than she does!

5 Stars Favorite tag book
This is our favorite tag book!!! if you have a princess at home you need this book first!

4 Stars Disney Princess
Bought for my 6 year old granddaughter. She loves it. We took on vacation this week and she was using it and doing the activities and different game levels. I would recommend.

3 Stars Not so interesting
This book is ok, if you like the Mermaid stories (I don’t agree with the message of most disney princess stuff). This is probably my daughter’s least favorite of her 5 Tag books. I think the others have more interesting story lines.

Buy/More Info

Kid Toys [Learning & Education] Ariel, Cinderella, Different Game, Disney Princess, Game Levels, Granddaughter, Interesting Story, Jasmine, Leapfrog, Least Favorite, Mermaid, Phonics, Reading Comprehension, Sunken Boat, Tag Activity, Tag Reader, Tag System, Unexpected Turn, Unwelcome Visitor, Vocabulary

LeapFrog Leapster 2 Learning Game System Green

Put innovative creativity and fun at your kids’ fingertips — and watch them learn in the process — with the The LeapFrog Leapster 2 Learning Game System. This battery-operated handheld game system goes where your children go, and brings plenty of learning fun along. It comes with two pre-installed educational games, and many more are available: purchase an optional SD card separately for access to additional online games and to take advantage of other online features; or you can purchase game cartridges to add to your Leapster 2 repository. The included games have skill levels suitable for children ages 4 to 8.

Children will love playing the educational games. View larger.

Insert different game cartridges (sold separately) for endless fun. View larger.

What We Think Fun Factor: Durability: (what this means) The Good: Battery-powered console goes where your child goes, offers versatile, educational fun. The Bad: An SD card, which must be purchased separately, is required to take advantage of many Leapster 2 features. In a Nutshell: Handheld game console offers fun, educational games that accommodate your child’s learning curve. At a Glance Ages: 4 to 8 Requires: Four AA batteries

The console has a comfortable, curved shape, although it may be a tad large and heavy for smaller hands. It features a full-color touch screen and sound that’s a far cry better than the beeps of old-school handheld consoles. (Parents will appreciate the volume control and a jack for headphones!) Control and manipulate the console with the included stylus and with the videogame-style D pad and other buttons.

We found the initial set-up to be relatively easy: install the four required AA batteries, and navigate through the self-explanatory screens to create user profiles for up to 3 children (which come in handy for accessing online features). After this quick set-up, a menu screen will appear, where you can choose to play the pre-loaded games, go online, or insert a game cartridge.

Fun and Learning
Leapster 2 games are designed to grow with your child ages 4 through 8. The console is pre-loaded with two games: The “Dragons to the Rescue! Learning Game,” is a “video game” type activity with four different levels, the first helping kids identify letters and numbers, the most advanced giving them spelling and multiplication practice, all while navigating a dragon past monstrous storm clouds and scrambling to collect magic crystals. The “Creativity Castle Art Studio” is a rather low-tech art program. Players can select a background scene to “color” using the stylus and “decorate” with fun animated stamps. While it does foster creativity, this program is somewhat clumsy — your Paint program on your PC does a much better job. But “Dragons” was fun enough to keep even an adult tester enjoyably diverted.

Unfortunately, an SD card is required for taking advantage of much of what the Leapster 2 has to offer — which is a drawback, because it must be purchased separately. Without the SD card, which offers more memory, you cannot save artwork, download new games, or take advantage of the online “Learning Path,” which will be available August 2008. (This online program allows you to register and upload your children’s Leapster 2 profiles to show you their learning activities and their progress.)

In the meantime, without the SD card, you can still purchase game cartridges. And you still can plug your console — with the included USB cable — into your PC for your children to view and print “rewards” for completing different game levels (for Dragons to the Rescue, they’re certificates of achievement) or to print pictures to color with actual crayons (to encourage some “old-fashioned” creativity!) You must first install the Leapster 2 software on your computer, which comes on the included CD-ROM.

What’s in the Box
Leapster 2 Game System, USB cable, CD-ROM

PC Requirements

All Leapster games work with all Leapster systems.
PC Requirements

Windows XP or Windows Vista operating system
Pentium III 500 MHz processor
Monitor resolution of at least 1024 X 768
Available USB port
256 MB of RAM (512 MB recommended)
300 MB free disk space
Internet connection
Microsoft Internet Explorer version 6 or higher
CD reader

Mac Requirements

Mac OS X 10.4+
PPC G4 or any Intel-based Apple computer
Monitor resolution of at least 1024 X 768
Available USB port
256 MB of RAM (512 MB recommended)
300 MB free disk space
Internet connection
Safari application
CD reader

User Ratings and Reviews

2 Stars Great stand alone game machine, but crappy otherwise
My son has fun with the cartridges sold at the retail store, but the sync on PC and SD card matching is very unstable. The software and website for your account is not so intuitive either. I basically gave up on any feature that requires the SD card or Sync to PC.

I would recommend Leapfrog to include a SD card that works, since it seems that all the SD cards I own make it hang/crash. (And I’m using ones that are less than 256MB as instructed…..)

3 Stars Video Game Lite
The Leapster2 is a nice alternative to those who do not want to purchase a real video game system. It’s look and feel is close enough to a Nintendo DS so that pre-K and early elementary school users will feel like they are interacting with a big kid toy. A child who has access to a DS, Game Cube, or Wii will likely be bored.

The games are fairly simplistic. Skills include identifying numbers, identifying letters, and finding the next step in a sequence. While games have a number of levels, children are neither rewarded nor penalized for their answers. The educational questions are embedded in other activities; therefore, children may ignore the questions and still have a satisfying gaming experience. This negates the value of the parental website which purports to measure the child’s success. Without watching the child’s interaction, it is impossible to know whether s/he is trying to answer correctly or engaging in alternative play. The parent’s web site is most valuable for its feedback on the amount of hours played over the number of sessions per week. This is not an alternative to tutoring for a struggling academic.

Games cost between $25 and $30 a piece, which is not an insignificant investment. The instruction manual encourages parents to purchase an SD card to store games downloaded from the web site. However, according to LeapFrog’s customer service representative, there are only two games available for download (both free) and no plans to add more. Given this scenario, the SD card is an unnecessary investment.

LeapFrog has created an acceptable, entry-level gaming system for the youngest audiences. Future versions would be improved by the ability to play music, download additional games, save and share art projects, and a more sophisticated educational approach. Before purchasing the system, parents should consider their goals and the amount of money that they will deem an acceptable investment to achieve them.

5 Stars Daughter LOVES this….
Mya daughter is 5, and she loves this! My son is also 2 and he enjoys stealing this from “sissy” so he can color. I think it’s educational. It provides me with a little quiet time in the evening… Looking fwd to buying more games.

5 Stars Great New Leapster!
My son had two of the old leapsters and they kept shutting down so I bought this one hoping that that would do the trick. It did and is much better. He loves it! He is 4.

4 Stars My kids like it
It is a nice gift for my son, who just turned to four. He likes it very much.

Buy/More Info

Kid Toys [Learning & Education] 000000, 999999, Amazon, Different Game, Durability, Educational Games, Endless Fun, Fingertips, Font Style, Game Cartridges, Game System, Handheld Game, Helvetica Neue, Leapfrog Leapster, Learning Curve, Nutshell, Online Games, Sd Card, Serif Font, Skill Levels

LeapFrog Leapster 2 Learning Game System Green

Put innovative creativity and fun at your kids’ fingertips — and watch them learn in the process — with the The LeapFrog Leapster 2 Learning Game System. This battery-operated handheld game system goes where your children go, and brings plenty of learning fun along. It comes with two pre-installed educational games, and many more are available: purchase an optional SD card separately for access to additional online games and to take advantage of other online features; or you can purchase game cartridges to add to your Leapster 2 repository. The included games have skill levels suitable for children ages 4 to 8.

Children will love playing the educational games. View larger.

Insert different game cartridges (sold separately) for endless fun. View larger.

What We Think Fun Factor: Durability: (what this means) The Good: Battery-powered console goes where your child goes, offers versatile, educational fun. The Bad: An SD card, which must be purchased separately, is required to take advantage of many Leapster 2 features. In a Nutshell: Handheld game console offers fun, educational games that accommodate your child’s learning curve. At a Glance Ages: 4 to 8 Requires: Four AA batteries

The console has a comfortable, curved shape, although it may be a tad large and heavy for smaller hands. It features a full-color touch screen and sound that’s a far cry better than the beeps of old-school handheld consoles. (Parents will appreciate the volume control and a jack for headphones!) Control and manipulate the console with the included stylus and with the videogame-style D pad and other buttons.

We found the initial set-up to be relatively easy: install the four required AA batteries, and navigate through the self-explanatory screens to create user profiles for up to 3 children (which come in handy for accessing online features). After this quick set-up, a menu screen will appear, where you can choose to play the pre-loaded games, go online, or insert a game cartridge.

Fun and Learning
Leapster 2 games are designed to grow with your child ages 4 through 8. The console is pre-loaded with two games: The “Dragons to the Rescue! Learning Game,” is a “video game” type activity with four different levels, the first helping kids identify letters and numbers, the most advanced giving them spelling and multiplication practice, all while navigating a dragon past monstrous storm clouds and scrambling to collect magic crystals. The “Creativity Castle Art Studio” is a rather low-tech art program. Players can select a background scene to “color” using the stylus and “decorate” with fun animated stamps. While it does foster creativity, this program is somewhat clumsy — your Paint program on your PC does a much better job. But “Dragons” was fun enough to keep even an adult tester enjoyably diverted.

Unfortunately, an SD card is required for taking advantage of much of what the Leapster 2 has to offer — which is a drawback, because it must be purchased separately. Without the SD card, which offers more memory, you cannot save artwork, download new games, or take advantage of the online “Learning Path,” which will be available August 2008. (This online program allows you to register and upload your children’s Leapster 2 profiles to show you their learning activities and their progress.)

In the meantime, without the SD card, you can still purchase game cartridges. And you still can plug your console — with the included USB cable — into your PC for your children to view and print “rewards” for completing different game levels (for Dragons to the Rescue, they’re certificates of achievement) or to print pictures to color with actual crayons (to encourage some “old-fashioned” creativity!) You must first install the Leapster 2 software on your computer, which comes on the included CD-ROM.

What’s in the Box
Leapster 2 Game System, USB cable, CD-ROM

PC Requirements

All Leapster games work with all Leapster systems.
PC Requirements

Windows XP or Windows Vista operating system
Pentium III 500 MHz processor
Monitor resolution of at least 1024 X 768
Available USB port
256 MB of RAM (512 MB recommended)
300 MB free disk space
Internet connection
Microsoft Internet Explorer version 6 or higher
CD reader

Mac Requirements

Mac OS X 10.4+
PPC G4 or any Intel-based Apple computer
Monitor resolution of at least 1024 X 768
Available USB port
256 MB of RAM (512 MB recommended)
300 MB free disk space
Internet connection
Safari application
CD reader

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars My kids like it
It is a nice gift for my son, who just turned to four. He likes it very much.

2 Stars Great stand alone game machine, but crappy otherwise
My son has fun with the cartridges sold at the retail store, but the sync on PC and SD card matching is very unstable. The software and website for your account is not so intuitive either. I basically gave up on any feature that requires the SD card or Sync to PC.

I would recommend Leapfrog to include a SD card that works, since it seems that all the SD cards I own make it hang/crash. (And I’m using ones that are less than 256MB as instructed…..)

5 Stars Daughter LOVES this….
Mya daughter is 5, and she loves this! My son is also 2 and he enjoys stealing this from “sissy” so he can color. I think it’s educational. It provides me with a little quiet time in the evening… Looking fwd to buying more games.

5 Stars Great New Leapster!
My son had two of the old leapsters and they kept shutting down so I bought this one hoping that that would do the trick. It did and is much better. He loves it! He is 4.

3 Stars Video Game Lite
The Leapster2 is a nice alternative to those who do not want to purchase a real video game system. It’s look and feel is close enough to a Nintendo DS so that pre-K and early elementary school users will feel like they are interacting with a big kid toy. A child who has access to a DS, Game Cube, or Wii will likely be bored.

The games are fairly simplistic. Skills include identifying numbers, identifying letters, and finding the next step in a sequence. While games have a number of levels, children are neither rewarded nor penalized for their answers. The educational questions are embedded in other activities; therefore, children may ignore the questions and still have a satisfying gaming experience. This negates the value of the parental website which purports to measure the child’s success. Without watching the child’s interaction, it is impossible to know whether s/he is trying to answer correctly or engaging in alternative play. The parent’s web site is most valuable for its feedback on the amount of hours played over the number of sessions per week. This is not an alternative to tutoring for a struggling academic.

Games cost between $25 and $30 a piece, which is not an insignificant investment. The instruction manual encourages parents to purchase an SD card to store games downloaded from the web site. However, according to LeapFrog’s customer service representative, there are only two games available for download (both free) and no plans to add more. Given this scenario, the SD card is an unnecessary investment.

LeapFrog has created an acceptable, entry-level gaming system for the youngest audiences. Future versions would be improved by the ability to play music, download additional games, save and share art projects, and a more sophisticated educational approach. Before purchasing the system, parents should consider their goals and the amount of money that they will deem an acceptable investment to achieve them.

Buy/More Info

Kid Toys Games 000000, 999999, Amazon, Different Game, Durability, Educational Games, Endless Fun, Fingertips, Font Style, Game Cartridges, Game System, Handheld Game, Helvetica Neue, Leapfrog Leapster, Learning Curve, Nutshell, Online Games, Sd Card, Serif Font, Skill Levels