If you want to encourage creative wackiness in a child, take them on a tour of Pantsylvania; The Kingdom of the Fancy Pants. This CD-ROM is filled with seemingly endless variety, imagination, and plenty of wit. The creators say Pantsylvania's 50 activities will give kids "a leg up on learning." As you can see, steel yourself for plenty of puns.
The core audience is preschoolers (ages four and up) and elementary school students, but, as with Bullwinkle, some of the humor will sail right over their heads. For instance, ask a character called Mr. Smarty Pants to name his favorite book, and he responds: The Britches of Madison County. A moment later he adds, "Don't leave me in suspenders. Ask me anything."
Moving around the Kingdom couldn't be easier. The first stop is the gates of the city, where 10 kooky-looking buildings loom on the horizon. Click on any and travel to places like Symfunny Hall, the Fancy Pants Factory, or the House of Beauty. The "pants" theme loosely unites these locales: peculiar pants (for elephants and others equally hard to fit) are manufactured at the factory and shipped out at the Hub of Transportation; workers live in Pantsylburbia and relax at Pocket Park.
At each destination five characters await as tour guides, each in charge of a specific activity. Kingamajig always has a song to sing, while Clyde the bird leads a game called Seek 'n' Find, a computerized version of find-the-hidden-objects-in-a-picture, one kids will adore. For an extra challenge, race the clock.
Expect the unexpected in Pantsylvania, especially in Bunji the frog's "Poke 'n' Prod" game, in which kids can make strange yet fun things happen. In each game Bunji doles out item after item that can be moved and played with. In "Making Geology Happen," for instance, kids can cause a volcano to erupt, unleash a tornado, start a plague of locusts, make it snow or rain, and more.
In other scenarios, Bunji lets users design a house, compose music, cook, babysit, be a mad scientist, and zip and zoom with vehicles ranging from jets to bumper cars.
Bunji, Clyde, and Kingamajig are leaders of Song & Games screens, while Velma the pig and Monkie-Sue direct Fact & Fiction screens. Velma is in charge of Fancy Facts-short, sweet bits of trivia with categories such as Pancakes Around the World, Scary Things Demystified, and Animal Transformations. Velma's factoids are animated as well: after hearing about chameleons, kids can move one from place to place and watch its colors change.
Finally, Monkie Sue's Furry Tales are short scenes waiting for a director. Point to a person and he or she talks; move an object and the action starts. My favorite is Social Studies Class, in which the aforementioned Mr. Smarty Pants delivers his puns.
As if that weren't enough, there's a bona fide bad boy named Rotten Wrench lurking in Pantsylvania. He appears from time to time to cause trouble, and he's got a secret as well. Can you find it?
All of these activities may sound more complicated than they are. Not to worry-if you can use a mouse, you can immediately find your way around town. And if you're not sure what to do next, one of the tour guides will give you a hint.
If you're looking for something different, Pantsylvania is a sure fit.
