Preface: I grew up on these JumpStart games and have now built a Windows 98 machine so my kids can play them. As these are educational games, my review is based on how much I learned and how much I enjoyed them as a kid, as well as how my kids are doing with them now.
You play alongside Botley the robot in a game that feels like a series of television. The premise is that your inventor's daughter Polly did poorly on a test in her history class. Her bright idea is to use Daddy's time machine to send 25 of your fellow robots back in time to alter history so it matches the stupid answers she gave on the quiz.
I kind of love how asinine that plan is.
Each playthrough of the game involves various edutainment mini-games in different set pieces as you rescue each of your 25 time-displaced brethren and undo Polly's temporal meddling. This is legitimately a perfect game for a 7 or 8 year old on Summer Vacation. A standout amongst edutainment titles.
You play alongside Botley the robot in a game that feels like a series of television. The premise is that your inventor's daughter Polly did poorly on a test in her history class. Her bright idea is to use Daddy's time machine to send 25 of your fellow robots back in time to alter history so it matches the stupid answers she gave on the quiz.
I kind of love how asinine that plan is.
Each playthrough of the game involves various edutainment mini-games in different set pieces as you rescue each of your 25 time-displaced brethren and undo Polly's temporal meddling. This is legitimately a perfect game for a 7 or 8 year old on Summer Vacation. A standout amongst edutainment titles.
This game is the Dark Souls of 3rd grade.
Charming but definitely reliant on nostalgia. Still fun though, and iconic edutainment for sure.
Review #2 - 2021
One of the most memorable edutainment experiences I ever had. I can't really explain why. Something about the pre-rendered environments, the ambient music, and witty characters, make for a wonderful time. Unlike previous Jump Start entries, this one has you embarking on an adventure, hence the title. This isn't just "Jump Start 3rd Grade", this is "Jump Start ADVENTURES 3rd Grade", which has you ordering around Botley, a robot who's trying to stop the Professor's daughter, Polly, from rearranging history in order to pass her history test. It's a goofy premise, that has you exploring the Professor's magnificent castle, filled to the brim with areas all inspired by different subjects, ranging from math, science, art, and more. Each area has its own set of minigames to educate and test your knowledge of said subjects. You are rewarded items for playing those games, that will help you on your quest to save history as we know it, which is quite a clever way to make learning fun. It helped me a lot as a kid, and I hope there are programs out there just like this for the children of today. Knowledge Adventure's "Jump Start" franchise really was a masterclass on how to do edutainment right.
One of the most memorable edutainment experiences I ever had. I can't really explain why. Something about the pre-rendered environments, the ambient music, and witty characters, make for a wonderful time. Unlike previous Jump Start entries, this one has you embarking on an adventure, hence the title. This isn't just "Jump Start 3rd Grade", this is "Jump Start ADVENTURES 3rd Grade", which has you ordering around Botley, a robot who's trying to stop the Professor's daughter, Polly, from rearranging history in order to pass her history test. It's a goofy premise, that has you exploring the Professor's magnificent castle, filled to the brim with areas all inspired by different subjects, ranging from math, science, art, and more. Each area has its own set of minigames to educate and test your knowledge of said subjects. You are rewarded items for playing those games, that will help you on your quest to save history as we know it, which is quite a clever way to make learning fun. It helped me a lot as a kid, and I hope there are programs out there just like this for the children of today. Knowledge Adventure's "Jump Start" franchise really was a masterclass on how to do edutainment right.
This game was way more fun than it had any right to be. Having a goal to put that bitchy bratty blonde girl in her place helped.