Hunkules, Wonder Boy, or just plain Herc? Whatever you call him, this interactive hero is no zero! Bless my soul, Disney's on a roll! Your kids (ages 4 and up) can go from zero to hero in no time flat and help Hercules, the son of Zeus, save Mt. Olympus with Disney's Animated StoryBook: Hercules. Of course, six Hercules T-shirts ("I'm NOT wearing Toy Story, mom") and one movie screening later, five-year-old Timmy was raring to test this software. The CD-ROM, based on Disney's 35th full-length animation, gets constant play with my testers. Without a doubt, if your kids enjoyed the movie, they'll love this interactive software. The CD-ROM's animation, similar to the movie (yet with different angles and viewpoints), is sensational. The more angular graphics, although different the usual Disney style, are impressive. Original dialogue makes this interactive software more than just another movie spin-off. Disney's Animated StoryBook: Hercules is not just a read-along adventure. Sure, it has easy to read, rhyming text, plenty of colorful graphics, a picture dictionary which defines words with poetry, and an intro to Greek mythology. Unlike most of Disney's Animated StoryBooks, it is jam-packed with challenging, multi-level games which provides kids of all ages with hours of fun. Whether kids play Hades' Checkers to pit Hades and his Titans against Zeus and the gods or if your kids are up for a good two-player game of checkers, they'll find lots of non-stop gaming fun. Other activities include Mount Olympus Maze (guiding Herc through this maze helps kids sharpen their decision-making skills), Monster Maker (a way cool, creative activity where kids mix and match monster pieces to build their own monster) and Hydra Knock Out. Although I wasn't thrilled with Hydra Knock Out, a game where kids help Herc hurl rocks at Hydra, the multi-headed monster, ALL of the games were a smash with the kids who tested this program (whose ages ranged from 5 through 12 years old).
