Thomas & Friends Railway Adventures Playset

The four main games are wonderful, involved exercises. They all involve Thomas being helpful: finding "Important Supplies"; locating the "Missing Mail Truck," then helping to sort its mail; rescuing stranded passengers in "All Aboard," then making sure they are properly ticketed and delivering them safely to their destinations; and rebuilding an avalanche-damaged track in "It's a Landslide!"

These games are somewhat complex: in the landslide game, kids must switch tracks, couple Thomas with the Troublesome Trucks, haul rocks up mountains, signal Harold the Helicopter to unload the rocks, then deliver the empty trucks to James for hauling away. Thomas's water supply must be watched and replenished during this strenuous work. And after the rocks are in place, there's still work to do! Only after kids go to another screen to collect flatbeds and track pieces from Cranky the Crane, then deliver those parts to the mountaintop, is the job done. Phew!

Also, if players abandon a game without completing it, they can't access any of the four mini games (which are mazes and races), and Sir Topham Hatt will chide in his chipper manner: "There's still a lot of work to be done!" This is not a CD-ROM for the lazy, and fortunately, the folks who made it didn't use any shortcuts either. Older systems without a lot of storage space may have trouble digesting this graphics-heavy program, but for us the program chugged along like Thomas himself, and the action on the screen corresponded smoothly with whatever control was being used on the playset. "Builds a work ethic" isn't one of the features mentioned on the box, but this diligent program and playset could put youngsters on the right track. (Ages 3 and older) --Anne Erickson

Amazon.com Product Description
Kids can now play engineer and operate the controls on Thomas the Tank Engine. They can blow the whistle, work the throttle, and switch tracks. By using the controls on the playset, kids can help deliver passengers for Bertie, repair landslide damage with Harold, and find and sort the mail. They'll love traveling with Thomas through four fun adventures, each filled with activities, games, and cool print features for off-computer play.

There is nothing I can say negative about this toy. It introduces computer skills while allowing him to play with his favorate pal. I have been able to seg-way into other computer pre-school games with a more learning emphasis, by use of this fun toy. I like to play it myself.

The graphics are great. The instructions simple but the tasks are not. Your child will need help if he has no computer skills or isn't a good listner. But once he has done the task once, he be able to do it by himself again soon and with the log on screen, his adventure will be just a bit different each time.

Every time a child masters a tasks he is able to print out a certificate with his name on it.

Just great. Love it. The only problem I've had with my son is getting him off the game at bed time. There are tears and he says, "I miss Thomas."