Noddy, as seen on PBS Kids Television, has a release on the Game Boy Advance that is perfect for really young gamers. Three and four year olds who have never picked up a video game before should have an easy time with this title, as it is not that difficult to complete. Older gamers might not find much interest in a title like this, but parents looking for a game for younger kids will not have a hard choice to make with Noddy: A day in Toyland. The instructions are fairly well explained, found in three different languages, in the manual. The storyline of the game closely follows the show and the books and favorite characters from both appear in this title.
As far as game play goes, the controls are simple. It doesn?t take much time to learn and the only frustrating thing is the stages in which the player controls the car. It can only be moved up and down and side to side while the screen auto-scrolls and speed can?t be affected. Avoiding rocks and using the horn to get animals out of the way are the two main objectives of Noddy?s driving, while he is taking friends places or trying to reach a destination to search for lost items.
Many of the levels are scavenger hunts for friends if they aren?t driving levels. This is quite the simple game and younger gamers probably wouldn?t be able to master more than two kinds of tasks. Narrative scenes keep attention fairly well and the stories from level to level are cute and funny. More humor ensues when Noddy needs to keep bothersome things away from him. He can throw muffins at some of them and they?ll be distracted and eat, no longer a threat to the player.
The goblins Sly and Gobbo are another situation entirely. Noddy will need to find bags of money to throw at them to get them to go away or else they?ll tire him out and he?ll need to rest. Health is measured by bells (maximum of five) and if the player runs out, Noddy has to rest and the adventure will start again from a checkpoint.
Adventures do not take very long to complete, and if the player wishes for a more challenging experience, there are options for that. Kids do learn well through repetition, but they will probably be the only ones to find any replay value in Noddy: A Day in Toyland because the game is easy to complete.
With the emergence of better handheld systems like the Nintendo DS and PSP, a GBA title, which is still compatible with the DS, is inexpensive to purchase. Also, the graphics aren?t nearly as good as those of a DS, but the little kids aren?t as concerned with that as much as older ones. Fans of the TV series and books will be entertained for a good while with this game.
Parents don?t have much to worry about with the content in Noddy. The only possible concern is that the goblins Sly and Gobbo use trickster magic to challenge Noddy in his adventures. Parents should talk with their kids and make sure they understand that it?s just fantasy and that those things can?t happen in real life. Otherwise, Noddy: A Day in Toyland is a perfect game for small children and makes a great first game experience.
Noddy is a cute children?s game that is not very difficult with a basic side-scrolling format. It?s based off of the popular TV show and children?s book series, and fans of those will most likely be fans of the game. It?s incredibly clean and teaches kids important values like friendship and respect for others. While not a very long game, younger gamers will enjoy playing through the scavenger hunts and hopefully not get frustrated with the driving levels.
» By Dave Herbert, Plain Games. Published 12/12/2006 7:37:52 PM.
