It's A Dance Party With Just Dance 3!

What did we ever do before the invention of dancing games? When I think back to holiday family gatherings from years past, I remember the same old board games brought out year after year. If the game was too advanced, the younger kids couldn't join in, and the adults didn't want to play anything aimed at the little ones.

But now that there are games like Just Dance 3, any gathering can quickly turn into a dance party for all ages. The first dance game I ever tried was the original Just Dance for Wii (and recented ABBA You Can Dance), and despite my eternal lack of coordination, I was hooked. The enthusiasm spread quickly, too: at Thanksgiving this year, my mom and my aunt joined me for a dance-off in my living room. Never until now would I have imagined them joining in for a dancing game!

Just Dance 3 has all of the fun of the original Just Dance, with even more music and a greater variety of modes to keep the game interesting. Lots of current hits can be found in this game, but for people (like my mom) who don't keep up with the Top 40 and have never heard of LMFAO, there are plenty of older hits to choose from as well like Boogie Wonderland.  (Some songs have to be unlocked via game play, and others can also be downloaded to your console.)

Let me be clear: you don't have to be good at dancing to play this game. You only need to be able to hold the Wii remote in your right hand and try your best to follow the moves of the dancer on the screen. That's it.

You won't match every move, you'll laugh at yourself trying to do some of the poses, and at the end of a song you'll find yourself saying, "Oh no, we're doing that one again, and I'm going to ace it this time!"

We tested the game with all ages, from my older relatives to my four year old. There's the standard quick play mode to get you right into the action, and there's also Just Sweat mode for some serious cardio while burning up the dance floor. If you're not picky about songs, you can set it to Shuffle mode. Dance Mash-up is a new way to play that lets you have up to four players each with their own, separate dance moves to do. You have to carefully follow your selected dancer on the screen, but when done well it's a really awesome choreographed dance number.

Our friends and family have loved playing this game. The number of songs included with the game means it's hard to ever get bored, and the Dance Mash-up provides a fun new way to dance as a group. Beyond the fun - we're also getting our exercise while we play!

And while I've said I'm uncoordinated, there are those few (short) moments when it all comes together and we suddenly look like we know what we're doing:

(I said SHORT moments, people.)

I highly recommend this game. Dance alone for fun and exercise, or hand your friends and family Wii remotes and make your holiday party a dance party. As for us, I know we'll be burning off those Christmas dinner calories with a little Just Dance 3 this weekend!

Just Dance 3 is available for Wii, XBox 360 and Playstation 3.

Full disclosure: Thank you to Ubisoft for sponsoring this blog post. Please click here to learn more about Ubisoft. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions (and sore muscles from too much dancing) are my own.

Be The Dancing Queen With ABBA You Can Dance

Let's get one thing out of the way up front: I'm not the most coordinated person you'll meet. Far from it. I can usually trip over my own feet on a smooth flat surface. So when it comes to dancing, I'm generally the one hiding in the back to avoid looking like a fool or taking out a group of dancers with one wrong move.

The rise of dancing video games, however, has given me the chance to practice my dance skills a little more in the comfort (and privacy) of my own home. But when the time comes to play a game as a group, I suddenly get shy and encourage everyone else to go before me.

I've found one dance game, however, that simply needs a party. Why? One word: ABBA.

If you know nothing of ABBA, then you are likely under thirty years old or avoid musical theatre. ABBA was one of the great disco groups of the 1970's and their music has persisted well beyond that decade. Even in college in the mid-90's, we could count on the song Dancing Queen being played at every sorority dance. Eventually a Broadway musical was made using only songs from ABBA, and Mamma Mia! quickly became a hit that still tours the US today. (It's actually in Columbus right now!)

When I received my copy of ABBA You Can Dance for Wii, I expected it to be like many of the other dance games available. And in many ways, it is. You can select the song you want to dance to (all ABBA, of course), choose up to four players to dance, and then try your best to match the dance moves on the screen for a high score.

But this is ABBA. These songs are party songs - disco songs that you can't help but move to and sing along with. When you've got songs like that, dancing by yourself is a crime - you need a group.

To properly try out this game, we went to my brother-in-law's house for a proper dance party with friends. I also received a small gift to help set the mood:

Disco time!

The result? We had a blast! We won't be winning any dance competitions anytime soon, but we laughed and sang and danced ourselves silly. 

Even Mira joined in for some dance time.

Some of the songs feature a single set of dance moves, while others have you select a character to follow and your dance moves won't always match those of your fellow dancers, giving you the feel of a choreographed performance. This is especially fun in Mini-Musical mode, where you can live out your Broadway dreams by dancing in a sock-hop style musical. Adding a USB microphone lets you sing along if dancing isn't your style.

While we weren't dancing queens, with practice we did have a few moments of being in sync. Very short moments, of course.

ABBA You Can Dance is a great Wii game for all ages, and perfect for any party. Whether you're a loyal ABBA fan or have never heard them, the songs are fun, the dancing is challenging without being too difficult, and there's plenty of entertainment to keep the party going for hours.


Thank you to Ubisoft for sponsoring this blog post. Please click here to learn more about Ubisoft. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions are my own. And I have to brag that I was AWESOME at Super Trouper.

Kingston urDrive: The USB Drive Is Fun Again

Thank you to Kingston for sponsoring this review. Please click here to learn more about Kingston. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions are my own.

Some people call them thumb drives. Or flash drives. Or USB drives. Whatever you call them, they've become a routine way to carry and transfer data in our digital age. Some are designed as cute characters, some come on keychains, and some are built to withstand a beating, but generally all of them have the same purpose: store data to use between devices.

But storing data is generally the limit for most USB drives. They're passive devices, holding the information we need so we can move it to another device, where it can be used by that computer's software. They're really interchangeable to me. I've received so many USB drives from various blog conferences and promotions that I don't even care if I lose one, as long as it didn't have any sensitive data on it. They've become throwaway devices at this point.

However, I recently had the chance to try out the new Kingston 8GB DataTraveler 109 with urDrive software, and I can honestly say the lowly USB drive suddenly has a lot more potential.

The urDrive software makes it possible to carry much of your digital life with you on your USB drive, but also to use that data no matter where you go. Stored on board is an mp3 player, a video player, and a photo viewer for all of your media files. (No need to worry if the computer you're using has the right software or not!)

It also has its own web browser that can save all of your favorite sites and preferences to the cloud, available to you from any computer with your urDrive USB drive. This is incredibly useful for working at public computers where you don't want to leave any of your personal information behind, or for when using a work computer (during lunch, of course) where you can't save any of your favorite sites or preferences.

For kids, the urDrive software also includes Fooz Kids, a kid-safe web browsing application with a parental dashboard to set limits and monitor your child's use of the internet. And for both kids and parents alike, you can access the latest flash games from EA Games and PopCap Games on your USB drive.

Finally, if you're worried about the safety of the computer you're using with your USB drive, you can run a quick scan using the included Norton PC Checkup software.

Additional apps can be downloaded from the urDrive store, allowing you to customize your USB drive to fit your needs.

I often work between several computers, and the Kingston urDrive is a resourceful tool to keep around. I like storing my music on it and having a ready-made playlist wherever I happen to be working. The easy access to PopCap Games is great when I need a short break. And keeping my favorite websites bookmarked on the Maxthon 3 web browser is much easier than trying to save my bookmarks on each computer.

Also? It's smaller than any other USB drive I've ever owned. I mean itty-bitty small - about the length between two knuckles and about as thin as two or three dimes.

Here's a quick video that explains a little more about the Kingston urDrive:




Giveaway!

Want to try the urDrive out for yourself? I'm giving away a 5-pack of Kingston USB drives for one lucky winner - enough for you and your family or friends to try out!

To enter: leave me a comment below telling me how many USB drives you currently own. If you're like me and aren't sure, give your best guess. (I've got an entire jar filled with promotional USB drives, plus one in my purse, two in my laptop bag, and probably one or two hiding in a suitcase.)

One entry per person, US residents only. Be sure to provide a valid email address so I can contact you if you're selected as the winner.

Entries will be accepted until Friday, November 18 at 11:59pm ET. After that date, one will be selected by random drawing and contacted via email. Winner has two days to respond to the email or an alternate winner will be selected.

Good luck!

LeapFrog: Making Learning Fun With Tag & The New LeapPad!

I recently had the chance to try out some new products from LeapFrog in anticipation of the holiday season. I hosted a gathering of friends so we could all try out the LeapFrog Tag reading system and the brand new, ultra-cool LeapPad. As you can imagine, these were big hits with all of the kids.

My family is no stranger to LeapFrog. Each of my daughters has a Leapster with several games, and we already had a Tag reader. I love the educational games they get to play, and it's a great feeling to see my kids learning while having fun at the same time. For the party, I received a Tag reading pen for the guests to use, but I brought out the pen we already owned as well to give everyone more of a chance to use them.

The Tag reading system is designed for pre-readers through beginning readers. The pen works with special Tag books to either read each page to the child, or help the child with individual words or sounding out a word. You only need to touch the pen to the word and it immediately speaks the word for you. (After using a USB cable to connect the pen to your computer and download the book's information to the pen.)

But there's actually so much more the Tag pen can do beyond reading the words. Touch the pictures and the characters talk or sound effects are given. And most books contain games near the end that work with the pen to reinforce reading skills.

Mira can read just like her big sister now - and she's starting to recognize words thanks to Tag!

The Tag pen can also be used to learn geography. The LeapFrog Interactive World Map teaches about the different countries of the world as well as directions and distance through exploration with the pen and games available to play with the map.

My seven year old wasn't very interested in this product because she's already an advanced reader, but my four year old is obsessed with Tag. She loves to read the books "all by herself" with the help of the Tag pen, and it's helping her learn to recognize sight words. One of her friends also loved the Tag system so much that we sent his parents home with our extra pen and a couple of the books to get them started.

The big hit of the party had to be the LeapPad learning tablet, however. Several of us commented on how often our kids want to play with our smartphones or iPads, but we worry about them being broken or cluttering up our screen with nothing but apps for the kids. (Personally, I have barely been able to use my iPad because my kids love it.) The LeapPad, however, is the solution to win back our smartphones and tablets!

Mira even relaxes with her LeapPad like I do when using my iPad

The LeapPad is a tablet computer designed for kids 4-9 years old. It's smaller than an iPad but larger than a smartphone. The touch screen responds to both a finger touch and the included stylus. Like the grown up versions, you can download different apps for the LeapPad, including games, ebooks, and videos. (Apps are downloaded by connecting it to your computer with the included USB cable. And also like the grown up version, apps aren't free.)

It features a camera on the backside that can take still photos or video, and an editing program to create silly faces or add digital scenery to your photos. It has a cartridge slot at the top to allow you to use Leapster Explorer cartridge games as well.

I like the versatility of the LeapPad. It's simple enough for a non-reader like my four year old to navigate and use with little to no help from me, yet there are plenty of challenging games and activities for my seven year old. My younger daughter already considers herself a photographer now thanks to the camera app, and is now starting to dabble in shooting video.

All of the kids at our house had no trouble working the LeapPad. The youngest of the group - three years old - quickly found the drawing app and in no time was creating a masterpiece using the different drawing tools provided on the screen. The older kids played games and loved the interactive Cars ebook.

Reading ability is optional with the LeapPad - every kid loved it!

As for the parents, we all agreed the thick plastic case looked sturdy enough to handle rough play from our kids - far better than a iPad would fare! And the $99 retail price is a fair price for an electronic device that can do so much.

The one downside we noticed is that the LeapPad is battery powered. With heavy use, it needed new batteries by the end of the day, which can really add up. A rechargable battery pack would have been a better choice - we can only hope that it might be an option in the future. But since the party, my daughters have only been using the LeapPad for an hour or less each day, resulting in a longer timespan between battery changes. (Note: an AC adapter is available, which is great but limits the portability of the device when plugged in.)

Overall, I'm really impressed with the new LeapPad learning tablet and I predict it'll be one of the hottest toys for the holidays. I also like how many books and interactive products are available for the Tag reader now - my younger daughter has already pointed out several new Tag books she'd like Santa to bring her.

Take my advice - shop early for these educational toys! My daughters can't get enough of their LeapPad and Tag books, and I like that they're learning new reading and math concepts while they play. 

Full disclosure: I was provided with the above LeapFrog educational electronics and accessories to facilitate this review and demonstrate to guests at a play party. My party guests were also provided with coupons for discounts on LeapFrog products. All opinions stated here are my own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of LeapFrog. 

Rockin' With Guitar Hero on the Nintendo DS

I know that Guitar Hero has been one of the hottest selling games for some time now. Yet despite our love for video games, we still don't have a large game guitar sitting in our house. One reason is that the guitar takes up a lot of space. The other reason is it's expensive when you add in game, guitar, extra guitar for a friend, etc.

So when Mom Central asked me if I'd like to try out the new Guitar Hero: On Tour for the Nintendo DS, I said sure, why not? It seemed to solve both of my objections to the game: the guitar accessory comes with the game, it is only a small addition to the DS instead of a large guitar, and it costs less. Perfect!

Because we are a family of gamers and have two Nintendo DS systems, we received both Guitar Hero: Decades and Guitar Hero: Modern Hits. (We also have a Nintendo DSi, which is currently not compatible with the Guitar Hero games.)

When I opened the box, my husband - who has been lobbying for Guitar Hero for some time - immediately grabbed one of the games and began learning how to play. Included in the box was the adjustable grip, some stickers and a guitar pic stylus - far cooler than using your regular stylus, right? There were also different "skins" available for the grip, too.

The basics of Guitar Hero on the DS are quite simple. As notes scroll across your screen, you hold down the proper color-coded fret button on the nifty little Guitar Hero grip (which plugs in to the GBA slot of your DS - if you have an older model DS, you'll need to use the provided adapter), and then "strum" on the touch screen with the pick-stylus.

That part sounds simple, and it is. But it quickly becomes more complicated and challenging. Some notes are "hold" notes, where you need to keep the fret button held down after strumming. Sometimes, you need to hit a chord - where more than one fret is held down at the same time. And the transition from one note to another can come at you fast and furious and require a lot of hand-eye coordination to swap frets fast enough.

Then we get into the advanced part of the game. You can earn "star power" for hitting all of the notes in some sequences, and when you have enough star power, you can use that power for multipliers on your score. You also get multipliers for hitting enough notes in a row without missing one. Once you have the basics of the game down, you can go "On Tour", where you work through the playlist of your game, earning money that can be used to upgrade your avatar's appearance and instrument.

There are also options for multi-player play, either cooperative - where one person plays lead guitar and the other plays bass or rhythm - or competitive: from the straight up "Who is playing better?" mode, to "Guitar Duel" where there are complications that get in your way, including outside distractions, and power-ups you can earn to either enhance your own gameplay, or to attack your opponent.

If you and a friend have different Guitar Hero games (like we have Modern Hits and Decades), you can share your song catalog while playing together, giving you twice as many songs to choose from. The host DS is the one who has most of the control, but both DS systems have access to the expanded catalog.

The game is listed for ages 10 and up, and based on my own play, I know my preschooler would not be able to play. However, that doesn't keep her from being a perfect backseat-guitar-player, watching everything we do and shouting Get the red one, mommy! Now push the blue one! She may be playing sooner than I thought.

I'll be honest: I kinda suck at the game. I never claimed to have rhythm. But I'm not giving up, either. Not everyone can be an expert on the first try, so I'm continuing to practice. My husband's only complaint is that it doesn't feel like a real guitar. But that's the reason I like it - it doesn't take up a lot of space, and the guitar pick stylus stores in the grip so it doesn't get lost.

What I really like is that this game is easy to pick up and put down, which is a must for busy parents who sometimes only have 15 minutes to relax with a game before moving on to the next demand from a small person. And I love many of the songs and artists: Red Hot Chili Peppers, Fall Out Boy, Coldplay, Weezer, etc.

I don't know if I'll ever be an expert Guitar Hero player, but I'm having a lot of fun with Guitar Hero: Decades and Guitar Hero: Modern Hits. And if I get better, there might be a chance I'll give in and let my family get the Wii version of the game, complete with full-size guitar. But only if I get to jump around while I play it.

Disclosure: I was provided free review copies of Guitar Hero: Decades and Guitar Hero: Modern Hits by Mom Central and Nintendo. No compensation was recieved and no positive reviews were required. Thank you, Mom Central and Nintendo!

Monkeying Around With Curious George

Cordy watches Curious George on PBS Kids every day. It's on right when she gets home from school, and she's grown to love George's antics.

So when I received the Curious George Hide and Seek Zoo board game, I was hoping she'd be interested. It was out of the box for only a minute before she was pushing the red button on the walkie talkie that came with game.

The game is designed for ages 4-8, and combines a traditional board game with matching skills and a little bit of physical fun, too. Each turn, a player pushes the red button on the walkie talkie to get their instructions from the man in the yellow hat. If he tells them to go to a certain part of the zoo, they draw a card from that area and place it on the board in the spot that matches. Then the player spins a spinner and if there is a match, the player collects the matched card.

But the man in the yellow hat doesn't always give that instruction. Sometimes he says the bus of children are getting closer, and you then move the bus one space towards the zoo entrance.

The real fun, however, lies in a push of the red button and the man's voice saying "Oh, no, George, the animals have escaped!" At that point, all players except the one who pushed the button put on animal masks, run away and hide. The walkie talkie tells the active player when it's time to go look for them, and finds as many as possible before time runs out.

The player with the most task cards and hide and seek cards by the time the bus reaches the zoo is the winner.

Cordy loved playing this game. She loved putting on a mask and hiding from us. Mira loved it too, but she was too young to play along properly and sometimes got in the way. While the game is rated for 4-8, I think some 4 year old might need a little more prompting about the rules throughout the game. (And also walkie talkie supervision - she is notorious for pushing the red button more than once.)

This game is great for working on matching skills, and of course the hide and seek element adds a lot of silly fun to the experience as well. Just be sure to set your boundries for hide and seek at the beginning of the game or you'll be searching out in the garage for the missing panda bear...

Win One!

I've got an extra copy of the Curious George Hide and Seek Zoo board game to give to one lucky reader. To enter, leave a comment below before Friday, April 10 at 11:59 pm EDT. One winner will be selected by random drawing after that date. I can only ship to US addresses. Be sure to leave me a way to contact you in the comments.

Good luck!

Contest is now closed. Congrats to Carolyn!

Meet Your Fitness Goals With Game Stop

Probably half of us made some New Year's resolution to get fit earlier this month. I was one of them, and to assist me in my goals, I have gathered an arsenal of tools. I have water bottles, weights, workout DVDs, my Wii Fit and the Nintendo DS game My Weight Loss Coach.

A few years ago I never would have considered video games to help me get fit. But advances in game development have changed that, and I have to admit I'm glad they did it.

If you're considering using a video game or two to help you get fit, either mentally or physically, you should check out Game Stop's new Sharpen the Mind, Shape The Body promotion. Playing popular videogames like Wii Fit, My Fitness Coach or Dance, and Dance Revolution make exercise fun, while games like Brain Age or Crosswords DS give your brain a workout. GameStop stores offer these titles and more and have associates on hand to help you and your family find the titles that are right for you.

As a special incentive, all shoppers who spend $35 or more on designated products will receive a free 12-month trial subscription to their choice of Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Redbook, Good Housekeeping or Esquire.

I recently purchased My Weight Loss Coach from Game Stop and so far I've been impressed with the game. It lets me record my daily food and exercise, and offers challenges and encouragement.

So if you're looking for a new fitness game, for body or mind, stop by a local Game Stop and demo a game soon! (PS - They also buy back used games! Grab all of those unused games from your kids - or husband - and trade them in for something you want!)

Wii Love Animal Crossing: City Folk!

I have been in love with my Wii ever since we bought it earlier in the year. While most of the games have been active, with Wii Sports or Wii Music or Wii Fit, I've been wanting something a little less swing and sway and a little more relax and putter about.

Years ago that would have meant pulling out my Final Fantasy X game for Playstation and beating some beasties into the ground with my RPG party. But you really can't play that around a 4 year old without having to answer some troubling questions. So I needed a game that I could play around my kids, and something that I could drop in and out of as needed without having to remember my skills.

Nintendo's answer to my problem - Animal Crossing: City Folk.

I can best describe this as a RPG for women. Don't get me wrong - guys can have just as much fun, but this is a relaxing, social game that nearly anyone can play. And for those (mostly female) friends of mine who don't play a lot of games because they don't have the time to finish the game, or don't understand the 284 combination button moves needed to control many characters, let me explain why this game is for you. It's very intuitive to play - only one button is ever needed. And it's not your traditional game, because there is no single objective, no final challenge, no "The End" on the screen with credits. Come and go as you like, play for a short time or all day long.

In Animal Crossing: City Folk, you are just starting out on your own, moving to a small town near the city to begin a new life. You pick out the empty property you want and soon find yourself with a mortgage and the need to earn some money. The local shopkeeper hires you to run errands for your first day, which also helps you learn the basics of the game. You can also earn money by collecting and selling fruit, fish, or turnips.

The real fun lies in the details. You can quickly form friendships with the other townsfolk, decorate your house to your own tastes, and plant flowers and trees around the town to decorate as you see fit. On Saturday night you can watch a band play at the museum's coffee shop. A short bus ride will take you to the big city, where you can shop at the fancy stores, have your hair done, and take in a show. The game is also sensitive to date and time. When it's dark at your house, it's dark in the game. Now that it's December, it's snowing in my town.

But perhaps the coolest feature is that your friends can come visit your town, and you can visit theirs. Using your internet connection, you can play together with friends, with your characters interacting together in the game. Typing out conversation to each other could take forever, though, so Nintendo rolled out the Wii Speak, a wireless set-top hands-free microphone. Once you have the Wii Speak, you can have real-time voice chat with friends who are playing with you. (Assuming they have the Wii Speak also, of course.) This feature makes this game a truly social event - you can visit your friends across the country without leaving your couch.

I've been playing Animal Crossing: City Folk for over a month now, and I think I can safely say I love this game. Occasionally I'll find myself wandering around the town aimlessly, but this game is a great stress-reliever when I want to unwind after a long day and escape to a simpler world. Cordy's still not terribly interested in playing video games yet, but once she is I'm sure this will be on the approved list. The non-violent nature of this game makes it perfect for young children.

The only thing that would make Animal Crossing: City Folk more enjoyable is knowing more people who also have it so we could play together. Hear that, people? I want to visit other towns and go shopping with you! So if you buy this game, let me know, OK?

(And trust me - buy the Wii Speak also!)

Dad's Corner: LEGO Batman Review

Since I've got a lot of gifts to review at the moment, Aaron has happily play tested another video game for the family.
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So, I'm back to review another video game for dads, moms and their kids. This time out, I got to put my hands on a copy of LEGO Batman for the PS2, which I was greatly looking forward to. Why? Well, because I love superheroes. I love LEGOs. I love video games. And I loved the first LEGO video game put out by Traveler's Tales - LEGO Star Wars (both volumes, actually). On the other hand, I was not so much a fan of LEGO Indiana Jones, so the question going in was "Will LEGO Batman deliver?"

Well, deliver it did, and I frankly cannot get enough of this game. LEGO Batman is fun, quirky, engaging, has tons of replay value and manages that wonderful line of being both easy enough to let inexperienced gamers play, but having challenge enough for experienced gamers to enjoy the game.

The game is outright goofy. You're playing as LEGO versions of Batman, Robin, their allies and their enemies, for crying out loud. The cut-scenes, establishing the story are done all in mime, and have numerous silly elements (Robin is a particular source of comedy here). And the game itself isn't too terribly complicated. There are four buttons used: One to fight, one to jump, one to activate your character's special power or interact with the environment, and one to switch from Character A to Character B. That's it.

You also can't die. I mean, you can be defeated, exploding into a little pile of LEGO bits. But you don't die. You just lose a little bit of your money - found in the form of round LEGO studs. That's it. So, no matter how bad you are at playing video games, you can get through the game eventually.

Another wonderful thing about the game is that you always have a partner. (Batman and Robin, go figure.) And the partner does lots of wonderful things to help you. But you don't have to rely on the AI - oh no, a second player can hop in to the game. Even better - that second player can drop in and drop out as needed. So, if dad is playing the game and your kid gets home from school, he can join in. But when it's time for dad to go help with dinner, dad can drop out and the kid can keep playing. It's a lovely feature that was introduced in LEGO Star Wars, and I'm glad to see that it remains.

All of this establishes why the game is fun and easy, but what about the replay value? Well, I'm glad you asked. The game is broken into three storylines, one focusing on Batman and Robin chasing down the Riddler and his allies, another chasing down the Penguin and his allies, and the third going after the Joker and his men. In the main storylines, you play as Batman and Robin, and get to use various gadgets and special tech suits to chase down the baddies. Once you finish any of the three storylines, however, you get to flip the story. In each scenario, Batman and Robin arrive as the villains are already in the middle of the crime - but how did the villains get there? Well, once you've completed a storyline, you get to play as the villains and find out the other half of the story. Tremendous fun, and since you're dealing with LEGO figures, the amount of guilt you might feel for doing heinous acts to the helpless citizens of Gotham City is fairly minimal.

But as much fun as the villain arcs are, the real beauty of the game comes from "Free Play Mode." As you play through the story, you'll notice that there are areas you can't get in to, or items you can't reach, all because you have the wrong abilities at the time. In Free Play Mode, you get to come back through the game with any characters you have already unlocked - hero and villain alike. Rather than being restricted to Batman and Robin and whatever Tech Suits you find in that level, you get to bring in a team that includes Batman, Robin, all their tech suits and a whole host of villains. I enjoy playing through the game's stories, but Free Play Mode - and trying to unlock every hidden thing in the game, is where I really find my fun.

Overall, I love this game. I felt like LEGO Indiana Jones didn't work, but I'm enjoying LEGO Batman even more than I liked LEGO Star Wars. And while thirty-something dads can love the game, it'd be a great game for most kids as well - especially kids who are fans of Batman.

So, to sum up:

The Good: LEGO Batman is fun, easy to learn, and extremely forgiving to new players. The Free Play mode and villain storylines add a lot of replay to the game. Two-player cooperative play is extremely easy to use, making it a great game for families.

The Bad: Some players might find the game too easy. Also, going back through the levels to find hidden items might not provide a different enough experience to make replaying the entire game rewarding for all players. Also, while the violence and destruction are against LEGO characters, buildings and landscapes, the game is largely about beating up your opponents and destroying the landscape.

The Ugly: Even in Free Play mode, figuring out how to locate some items might drive some players insane. Also, the goofiness of the game might not fit for people expecting the feel of Batman from this summer's The Dark Knight.

Let's Get Ready To Boogie!

Ever since I got my Wii, I've been searching out fun games to try for it. Until now, I really only played my Wii Sports and Wii Fit, deciding this game system was really all about me getting into shape. But when Parent Bloggers asked me if I wanted to try out Boogie Superstar, I about fell over myself to reply as fast as possible and beg to be one of the reviewers.

Boogie Superstar is a dance and karaoke game, with a design similar to an American Idol competition. The only device you need to play, besides the Wii controller, is a microphone, which is supplied with the game. I was a little diappointed to see that the microphone wasn't wireless, like every other Wii add-on, but at least it does have a very long cord so you can move around while singing.

After watching the intro, you choose a character and then have the option to fine-tune the character to make it look just the way you want. You can change the hairstyle, haircolor, clothing, shoes, etc. Many of the clothing items are locked at first - you have to play the game and earn points to buy them.

When I got the game, I was far more excited about the karaoke part of it, and for the first few tries I selected only singing competitions. At first I was a little surprised to see so many of the songs were locked - again, you have to play the game and earn points to unlock them. As I scrolled through the list, I saw several songs I wanted to sing that were currently locked.

However, while I worried I wouldn't know any of the songs, I did find four that I knew relatively well on the starting list. (Bleeding Love, Hot & Cold, Pocketful of Sunshine, and Makes Me Wonder.) Seeing Hot & Cold on the list was a big surprise - that song has only been on the charts for a month or so! With only a small bit of instruction, I was soon singing loudly to some of my favorite tunes. Was I on-key? Not always, thanks to a cold, but the game is very generous with it's range of what is on-key. My first competition (a series of three dance, song, or combo sets) earned me a win over my computer competitors - not a surprise, since I think I'm a decent singer.

I finally decided I had to try out the dance portion, in order to give it a full review, and so I went into the practice room to practice my dance moves before attempting a competition. I learned that I suck as a dancer. Clearly this game was meant for younger people in better shape. Unlike other Wii games where you don't have to move at lightening speed, you have to keep up a dance club groove at a zippy pace. The first time I tried a competition with dance sets only, I was beat by one of the computer characters.

But playing against friends, though, yielded a different result - play against people your own age, and suddenly age is no longer a factor in the game. And if you're really concerned, make it an adult game night and set out a bottle of wine.

And for the record - Boogie Superstar is a great upper-body workout. After playing several rounds, my arms and upper back were sore the next day.

Despite my lack of dance ability, this is a fun game. It especially works well as a party game, both for kids and for adults. While I tested it out solo at first, I felt kinda lame singing and dancing by myself. I know there are some concerns with songs having bad words in them (Makes Me Wonder has the word damn) or inappropriate lyrics for kids (Britney Spears & Toxic, perhaps?), but at the same time, these are the same songs that your kids are listening to on the radio all the time. The age range for this game is 10+, so unless your children aren't allowed to listen to the radio, I think the songs are acceptable.

If you've got a family who likes to act silly together, Boogie Superstar would make a great game for keeping the family entertained at holiday gatherings. Now if only they'd make a Boogie 80's version of the game. I could totally rock at singing Whip It.

Two Nintendo DS Games For The Kids (or Husbands Who Act Like Kids)

Please welcome my husband, Aaron, to Mommy's Must Haves. I've got a lot of great holiday gift ideas coming up in the next month, and he's helping to play-test and review some of the things that I don't have time for. In this case, he took these games from me before I had the chance to play them, so in return I let him write the reviews. Enjoy!

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Ok, confession time, I may be a thirty-something dad, but I still like video games. If I’ve got a free moment on the computer, I’ll pull up City of Heroes or, if I don’t have time, Solitaire. And I rarely leave the house without either my Palm Pilot (loaded with Solitaire, Sudoku and Text Twist) or my Gameboy DS in my pocket. So, I was more then thrilled to get my hands on two fun new games for the DS - Kirby Super-Star Ultra and Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia. And I have to say, both games are wonderful for audiences both young and old.

Kirby Super-Star Ultra
I’ve always been amused and intrigued by Kirby, the little pink fluffball, but I’ve never actually played any games starring him before – other than learning to love him in Super Smash Bros, Nintendo’s fighting game. So, it was with some anticipation that I put this cartridge in my DS. “Am I going to be at a disadvantage playing this game, since I don’t know his history?” The answer, I am pleased to say, was “Not at all.”

Kirby Super-Star Ultra is a relatively easy game to learn, with simple but fun controls. The DS’s touch-screen is barely used in most modes, with most of Kirby’s controls being managed via the standard control pad and A-B-X-Y buttons. Where the controls are used, they’re simple enough that you don’t even really need to use the stylus, and can just activate them with a quick flick of the finger. The game includes several adventures for Kirby to go on, each slightly different as they add both difficulty and complexity in terms of Kirby’s controls and abilities. It also includes a mode where you can play through all of Kirby’s adventures as the mysterious Meta-Knight (whose powers are different enough from Kirby to add a very interesting twist to the game), and then there are multiple mini-games that you can play.

One of the best things about Kirby Super-Star Ultra is that it is relatively easy to play through – even the final adventure shouldn’t be a challenge for most gamers, meaning that younger kids will hopefully be able to play through the game without being significantly frustrated. At the same time, there are a fair number of “hidden areas” and extras in the game, and tracking those down with give more experienced gamers plenty to do.

Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia
I’ve been a Pokemon fan going way back. We had the Red, Blue and Yellow Pokemon cartridges for the original GameBoy, ran a Pokemon League for the Pokemon Trading Card Game back in the late 1990s and have played through most of the Pokemon games that have made their way through the various Nintendo handheld consoles since then. However, a notable exception to the games we’d played include the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon and Pokemon Ranger games, so I was incredibly excited to get Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia.

That excitement quickly faded as I started playing. While I liked the idea that I would use the stylus to capture Pokemon, I was unthrilled to realize that most of what I was familiar with from Pokemon was now gone. There were no items to collect and use in battle. Nearly every encounter with a Pokemon was about capturing the creature, instead of doing battle to gain experience for my Pokemon. And the Pokemon I captured would stick around long enough to do one task, and then they shuffled off. This was not the Pokemon game I was familiar with.

And then, I started playing deeper into the game, and I realized something: it wasn’t trying to be. Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia is a different beast entirely, with different goals and different play styles. But disliking it on that basis was like disliking hot butterscotch topping on a sundae because it wasn’t hot fudge. Different, but still yummy. The ability to use Pokemon to do “Field Clears” was oddly elegant, and the “Poke Assists” that the Pokemon could use in battle to help you catch their fellows add a lot to the game. The changes make Pokemon Ranger a more challenging game and make you more involved. It was true of the earlier Pokemon games that the human player was kind of secondary to the creatures in the other Pokemon games – in Pokemon Ranger, your avatar matters. You aren’t defined by the Pokemon you’ve captured, you’re defined by the quests you’ve completed, the power ups you’ve earned, and your ability to use the Capture Styler.

So, is Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia for everyone? No. It is definitely a more challenging game than the earlier games in the Pokemon franchise. Knowledge of Pokemon types and what is strong and weak against what will not be enough to get you through this game. You’ll need to have the manual dexterity to use the stylus – and well. Younger players might find this game frustrating as a result, but for slightly older kids who have been fans of the Pokemon series in the past, Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia might be just the game for them to find under the Christmas tree this year.

We Start Our Gamers Young Here

Cordy loves watching TV, but for the most part it is a passive activity. She's never been one to talk back to the TV, even if the characters on Blue's Clues were prompting her for an answer. TV is for watching, and nothing else.

My husband, however, loves to play video games. At first Cordy protested, but when he bought Lego Indiana Jones, she became interested. She loved to watch him play "Cowboys in the Jungle" (her name for it), but the game is far too complex for her to play along with. And there's no way we'll let her near our Wii - too many stories of preschoolers throwing Wiimotes through TVs.

At BlogHer this year, I had the chance to see the new V-Motion Active Learning System from VTech, and I fell in love with it. When PBN then told me they were looking for reviewers, I practically climbed into their laps and begged. I've been wanting to try a game system for Cordy, but wasn't sure if she would ever like it. I didn't want to spend $40+ for something that may be completely ignored by my fickle child.

The V-Motion is the newest game system from VTech. It's designed for children 3-7 years old, with games that are simple, fun, and designed to teach children while they play. The controller is far more simple than a Playstation controller: one big button and a joystick control most of the action, with four smaller colored buttons that are used less often. What's unique about this system is the gyroscope in the wireless controller that lets you direct the action simply by moving the controller side to side or back and forth or up and down. It's like a Wii for the preschool set.

While I was totally sold on the idea, I wondered if the actual play would live up to the hype. I set it up quickly by plugging it into the TV, and popped in the Action Mania Smartridge that came with the system. The game is a series of different games, like driving a car, sledding down a hill, playing tennis, and backyard games such as sorting different colored balls. (It reminds me a lot of Wii Sports.) Your child has the choice of using the joystick and button combo to play the game, or using the motion sensor to play.

At first Cordy didn't understand how to use the controller. She kept pushing the joystick to one side, or turning the controller sideways and not moving it. I stepped in and tried to show her, which just made her mad. At the end of our first attempt, I was the one racing the car while Cordy stomped away, asking to watch Super Why again.

But later she was asking to try the game again, and she did a little better with it. I wondered if maybe she wasn't that interested in the game itself (she's more likely to play something if it features a character she recognizes), so I bought her an early birthday gift of the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse game for the V-Motion. We ended up doing the entire adventure game together, and this time we made it all the way to the end without anyone stomping off in frustration. (Actually, there is nothing quite as funny as watching your kid dance around and twist her entire body to turn the controller right and left. Hil-arious!) I had to help her with some parts of it, but she really had a lot of fun, and cried when I told her it was time to stop.

She loves her game system now, and asks to play it every day. I still have to be right with her, helping her through each challenge, but she is only three years old, which is the bottom of the age range for this system. I think as she gets older she'll be able to play the games without my help. And actually, I think it's been good for both of us to work together as she learns the fine motor skills needed to use the controller. Playing games with the V-Motion is not too different from some of the therapy exercises she does with her OT.

I only have two complaints with the V-Motion. First, the AC power cord is not included, and has to be purchased separately for an additional $10 if you don't want to run through your entire supply of batteries to keep it powered up. And second, while I like that each game gives you a choice of using the joystick or the motion sensor, I wish it didn't ask right before each new mini-game or puzzle. It was hard for Cordy to know how to select the right one, and often she'd be trying to turn the controller side to side when the joystick mode had been selected. Choosing your option once when the game begins and sticking with it would be enough, I think.

As for features that I like: I think the controller is awesome. It's wireless and the motion sensor is very sensitive and accurate. The system also supports game cartridges (Smartridges) from all the regular V-Smile games, giving you more options to choose from. (Note that only games designed for the V-Motion can use the motion sensor function.) The games are fun, age appropriate, and teach colors, shapes, numbers, letters and more. Also included is the V.Link device. I haven't used it yet, but it's essentially a flash drive you plug into the game system that tracks your child's progress on games. You can then plug it into your computer to play games online at VTech and your child can compare scores against others who have been online.

Overall, I'm giving the V-Motion Active Learning System by VTech a big thumbs up. We've been toying with the idea of getting an early learning game system for over a year now, and I think this is the perfect system for Cordy. We've bought one game so far, and I know it won't be the last, either. There are a wide range of characters in the games, including Disney characters, Thomas the Tank Engine, and Dora. Each game incorporates learning with game play, so that I don't feel like game time is mindless fun time. And anything that can give Noggin a run for entertaining and educating my daughter at the same time is welcome in my home.

Find more reviews of the V-Motion at the Parent Bloggers Network blog.