Pajama Sam 3 - You Are what You Eat from Your Head to Your Feet
Humongous Entertainment	Ages 3 to 8

Rating Scale 5 = great,    1 = poor

Educational Value 4.3

Kid Appeal 5.0

Ease of Use 4.5

System Requirements

PC / Mac Price Survey

Product Support

Determined to collect the cookie box tops needed to send away for a Pajama Man action figure, Pajama Sam plows his way through box after box of chocolate chip cookies, and ends up gorged and queasy when Mom calls him for dinner. Imagination on fire, he surmises that it's the Cookie Gang that has caused his discomfort and vows to stop their evil deeds. His chase to confront them leads him to MopTop Island, where the junk food is trying to overthrow the healthy food. An emergency peace conference has been called, but only two delegates are present. Pajama Sam must find the missing delegates (representatives from four of the food groups), and help them get to the conference so that war can be averted and peace restored.

Educational Value

As with other titles in the Pajama Sam series, (see Pajama Sam in "No Need to Hide When it's Dark Outside", and Pajama Sam 2 - Thunder and Lightening aren't so Frightening) this program involves children in a lengthy quest. The story unfolds as kids move through the program, exploring, listening, learning, and solving riddles that will lead to a resolution of the story's primary dilemma.

To succeed in their quest, users need good spatial awareness and mapping skills. They travel throughout MopTop Island, retracing movements as they discover pieces of the puzzle that were previously missed. Problem solving skills are required to decipher clues and decide what action to take to proceed. In addition, users learn about conflict resolution, sequencing, compromise, empathy, healthy eating and table manners in their attempt to bring the food groups together in a spirit of cooperation and unity.

Kid Appeal

With his wide-eyed innocence and playful imagination, Pajama Sam is an extremely lovable hero. The other characters he encounters on MopTop island, although not always lovable, are interesting and unique. From muscle-bound muffins, to plumber plums, they keep kids involved and entertained, as does the action-filled storyline. Our testers found the quest to be challenging, and were especially pleased by the fact that the game is different every time (and even customizable), so it can be played again and again.

Ease of Use / Install

Pajama Sam 3 can be played from the CD. Users control the direction of the adventure through exploration, discovery and interaction, therefore success requires patience and perseverance. For this reason, the program may be inappropriate for users at the lower end of the recommended age range, and challenging even for those above the upper end.

Best for... / Bottom-Line

Another immensely enjoyable adventure in the Pajama Sam series, this program offers a nice balance of educational benefits and good old fun. Because of the sophisticated problem solving and computer skills required by the program it may cause frustration in young (3 to 6) users.

See SuperKids' comparisons with other problem solving software titles, and the Buyers Guide for current market prices of the PC and Mac versions.

PC: Windows 95/98, Pentium 90or faster cpu, 16 MB RAM, 4X or faster CD-ROM.

Mac: System 7.5.3 or higher, 80 MHz Power PC or faster cpu, 16 MB RAM, 4X or faster CD-ROM.

Reviewed on:

PowerMac 6400/200 with 32MB and 8XCD

Pentium 266 with 64MB and 12XCD

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