FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Blue's Art Time Activities™ and Blue's Reading Time Activities™ from Humongous Entertainment®
Combine Interactive Fun with Fundamental LearningLatest Titles in Best-Selling CD-ROM Series Starring Blue and Friends Now Available
BOTHELL, WA - August 22, 2000 - Providing the basic building blocks for art and reading mixed in with plenty of fun, Blue's Art Time Activities™ and Blue's Reading Time Activities™ are the latest titles in the best-selling Blue's Clues CD-ROM series from Humongous Entertainment®, an Infogrames, Inc. company (Nasdaq: GTIS), and Nickelodeon®, the worldwide entertainment brand that puts kids first. With these two new activity-based programs, preschoolers can learn fundamental skills in art and reading, and then build on that knowledge through creativity and exploration. Designed for kids ages 3 to 6, Blue's Art Time Activities and Blue's Reading Time Activities are available in stores nationwide for a suggested retail price of $24.99 each.
In these curriculum-based games, preschoolers master their understanding of art and reading concepts by participating in various learning activities while interacting with Blue and her friends. Areas within the games also encourage children to create and discover on their own, providing opportunities to use what they have learned. As players progress, activities become more challenging, adjusting to the child's skill level.
"Blue's Art Time Activities is a one-of-a-kind product that teaches the basics of art as well as allows kids to create on their own, making for a truly fulfilling artistic experience," said Andy Hieke, general manager and senior vice president, Humongous Entertainment. "With Blue's Reading Time Activities, preschoolers not only learn reading fundamentals, but also discover the power of words - an excellent next step for children who have mastered Blue's ABC Time Activities."
Based on the most watched preschool show on television, the popular Blue's Clues CD-ROM series, which includes Blue's ABC Time Activities™, Blue's Birthday Adventure™, Blue's 123 Time Activities™ and Blue's Treasure Hunt ™, has sold more than two million copies since its introduction in 1998. In addition, all four titles have appeared in the top five list for sales of children's educational CD-ROMs and Blue's ABC Time Activities and Blue's Birthday Adventure landed at number one and four respectively in 1998, according to PC Data.
Blue's Art Time Activities introduces children to the fundamentals of art by inviting them to participate in the Really Big Art Show being sponsored by Blue's school. Preschoolers assist Blue and her friends in completing various projects while learning fundamental art concepts such as color-mixing, design and layout. They can also unleash their imaginations and create their own pieces of art using newly acquired skills, then enter their favorite piece in the art show. Art activities include:
Chalk World - players are introduced to the idea of murals as they help Chalk Girl complete hers by placing shapes together to create pictures. Children learn how different shapes such as circles and squares can come together to make real objects like snowmen and fish. Kids are encouraged to add their own touches to each piece of the mural with colored chalk.
Craft Table - kids help Marky Marker finish the invitations to the Really Big Art Show by adding borders, pictures and special touches. Players become familiar with layout and composition by following suggestions provided by Marky. In this area, children are also encouraged to create their own masterpieces using textured paper, paintbrushes, stickers, glitter, jewels, feathers and a color-mixing tray.
Color Game - preschoolers are introduced to primary, secondary and tertiary colors in this chutes-and-ladders type game. Players take turns mixing two primary colors to match the colors on the board, then move ahead to that square. As the levels get harder, players select a primary color and a secondary color to create a tertiary color including marigold, aquamarine or chartreuse. Preschoolers can apply this knowledge of color-mixing in the craft table area.
Recycle Town - children are asked to help Al Luminum finish his diorama for the Really Big Art Show by collecting the necessary items and then creating various projects, including trees, airplanes, barnyard animals and more. Kids learn not only how to construct a diorama, but also how to follow directions. Individual project blueprints can be printed out and created at home using everyday recycled items.
Story Time - Periwinkle is creating and illustrating story books and asks players to help him finish the illustrations. Kids are able to use stamps and crayons to draw their interpretation of the story and then are rewarded by seeing their illustrations animated on the next page of the book. Stories include The Caterpillar, Tink's Train Ride and more.
Introducing the fundamentals of reading is Blue's Reading Time Activities. In this program, players are asked to help Blue create newspapers, titled the Big News Gazette, by compiling and collecting news stories around the neighborhood. Preschoolers participate in reading-based activities that relate back to sections of the newspaper, including word matching and interviewing, and learn skills such as reading comprehension, word recognition and vocabulary. Reading activities include:
Dictionary - players meet Dot, who explains that her picture dictionary is all mixed up. Kids help her by matching the words to the corresponding pictures by listening to and reading the definitions. Children gain skills in vocabulary and word matching, as there are a total of 135 words to be matched to pictures. Finished articles from this activity appear in the puzzle section of the Big News Gazette.
Neighborhood News - in this activity, kids learn the power of words by directing Blue through various mazes and obstacles to retrieve items. Sarge Ant assists players by making recommendations as to what words should be used. As children progress, the obstacles and paths become more difficult, requiring additional navigation. Finished articles from this activity are summarized in the newspaper in the Neighborhood News section.
Interviews - kids help Periwinkle, Green Kitten or Magenta Kangaroo complete their storybooks by answering a series of questions about the story. Players choose the story and then its direction by selecting the next piece of the story. As they successfully answer the questions, the storybook is illustrated with the correct pictures. Preschoolers gain experience in reading comprehension and memory skills. The finished stories appear in the People section of the newspaper.
Card Game - Blue and her friends are playing a card game, matching words and pictures. Players help Blue by selecting the cards and finding the matches. At the beginning, they are matching word and picture cards to word and picture cards; as children progress, they will match word cards to picture cards and levels will become more difficult. Preschoolers gain knowledge in word and letter recognition. Final scores from the card games will be reported in the Sports section of the Big News Gazette.
Stickers - in this room of exploration, players use stickers with words and pictures to create their own stories. As they go through the game, they will find additional stickers that can be used for more stories. In this unstructured area, children can let their imaginations run wild and create any type of story they want, even if it doesn't make sense. They can practice reading their story as well as have it read to them by Fan. Children learn word recognition and gain beginning writing skills. Finished stories appear in the Editorial section of the newspaper.
The Blue's Clues television show stars a live-action host named Steve (played by actor Steven Burns) who lives in an animated, storybook setting. In each episode, Steve invites the audience to help him solve the day's puzzles, which come in the form of blue paw print clues left by his energetic, animated girl puppy, Blue.
Innovative and interactive, Blue's Clues encourages its young viewers to play along with the show by presenting them with questions to answer and games to solve. The dialogue and animation in every episode is specially timed so that Steve pauses to "wait" for the kids to answer his questions, direct his next move or discover a clue. Each clue that is found and puzzle that is deciphered helps to build the young audience's confidence while teaching them how to think about various concepts.
Product Availability
Blue's Art Time Activities and Blue's Reading Time Activities are available on hybrid CD-ROM for Windows® and Macintosh® platforms for the suggested retail price of $24.99 each at retail outlets nationwide, by phone at (800) 499-8386 or through secure online transactions at www.humongous.com.www.humongous.com
Kids can visit www.humongous.com to learn about Blue's Clues, interact with their other favorite Humongous Entertainment characters, play mini-games, check out game demos and tips and tricks. Additional features found on the site include downloadable wallpaper, screen savers and coloring pages starring Blue and Steve, Putt-Putt, Pajama Sam, Freddi Fish and SPY Fox, as well as contests and the latest version of the Humongous Gazette.About Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon, now in its 21st year, is the number one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the U.S. and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books, magazines and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television network is seen in more than 77 million households, and has been the number one rated cable network for four consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.About Humongous Entertainment
Established in 1992 and owned by Infogrames, Inc. (Nasdaq: GTIS), Humongous Entertainment is recognized for pushing the edge in interactive storytelling and delivering high-quality, hand-animated CD-ROMs starring endearing original characters including Putt-Putt®, Freddi Fish™, Pajama Sam®, SPY Fox™ and more. Humongous Entertainment develops interactive Junior Adventure™, Junior Field Trips™, Big Thinkers! ™, Junior Arcade® and Humongous Sports™ CD-ROMs that encourage kids to explore, discover and have fun. Humongous Entertainment can be reached on the World Wide Web at www.humongous.com.About Infogrames
Infogrames Entertainment, SA (Paris Bourse: SICOVAM 5257) is a worldwide leader in the interactive entertainment software industry. Headquartered in France, the company develops and publishes award-winning computer and video games for the PlayStation® game console, PlayStation® 2 computer entertainment system, Nintendo® 64, Nintendo® Game Boy® Color, Sega® Dreamcast™, Macintosh®, and personal computer platforms. Founded in 1983 by chairman and CEO Bruno Bonnell, Infogrames has published many award-winning franchises in its 17-year history, such as Alone In The Dark™, Test Drive®, Driver™, Deer Hunter™, Oddworld™, Unreal, Independence War™, and V-Rally™. The company is also known for its best-selling and award-winning line of children's entertainment software from Humongous Entertainment starring Putt-Putt®, Freddi Fish™, Pajama Sam® and SPY Fox™, as well as its successful Macintosh publishing label, Macsoft, the number one publisher of Macintosh entertainment software. In addition, Infogrames has a number of key strategic licenses including Warner Bros. Looney Tunes™, Nickelodeon's Blue's Clues™, Le Mans 24 Hours®, AM General Hummer®, Harley-Davidson®, and Dodge® Viper.Based in New York, Infogrames, Inc. (Nasdaq: GTIS) is a majority owned subsidiary of Infogrames Entertainment and serves as the headquarters for the company's operations in North America. For more information, visit Infogrames' US Web site at www.us.infogrames.com.
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