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Lucas Learning, $39. Requirements: PowerPC 603e/160MHz or higher, 32MB RAM, System 7.5.5+, 4x CD, 32 MB HD.. For more information, visit Lucas Learning at http://www.droidworks.com.
Review by Anne J. Lombardi
The best learning tools are the ones that can teach kids without letting them on to the fact that they’re learning. Droidworks, Lucas Learning’s first release, is one such learning aid that successfully engages both children and adults in the Star Wars myth while teaching the basics of physical science.
The premise of Droidworks is simple. The player is a member of the Rebel Alliance (in the days of the original three Star Wars movies), and is on a mission to foil the Empire. Disguised as a Jawa on the planet Tattooine, users must design and build droids that can successfully complete a given mission. On the way to attaining the rank of Master Droid Builder, players must ultimately find the Empire’s hidden Assassin Droid Factory, and reprogram the Assassin Droids before they destroy the Rebellion.
However, not just any droid will do. Players must be able to construct a droid that meets certain mission requirements and overcome certain obstacles. To do this, they must have knowledge of different concepts in the physical sciences concerning machines, light, energy, forces, and materials.
In the droid workshop, the focus is on pure fun instead of science. After viewing a brief and easy to understand tutorial on droid-building, players can start constructing droids to complete their mission. Droid-builders can choose from many eighty-seven unique parts to construct millions of different droids. Unique viewing features allow the droid to be seen from any possible angle and zoom. For added laughs, players can paint the droid for a personal touch or even turn on some disco tunes to watch their droid in Saturday Night Fever, Star Wars style. The droid building is great fun in itself, allowing users to be creative and marvel at the different contraptions their brains can cook up.
Players get their first chance at seeing how form meets function in the Sandcrawler Training Facility. Here, droid builders can see how their creation operates before it meets the dangers on its mission. The droid Holocam-E ("Cammy"), who just happens to be a southern belle, accompanies players throughout the Training Facility and the missions to point out different scientific obstacles. With some testing under their belts, users can learn to analyze their creations and modify them into a better product, which is a practical and useful skill in the game but even more valuable in the real world. The Training Facility also gives the added benefit of allowing players to learn how to control the droid so that nothing is left to guesswork once it is deployed on its mission.
Once on the mission, the challenge begins. Players are given an objective and other basic information, but the rest is left up to their own analytical skills. Each mission highlights a different concept, such as simple machines or magnetism. While maneuvering around other obstacles that demand pure gaming skill, players learn how to manipulate these concepts to their own advantage. With this virtual laboratory-style approach, players leave the mission with an innate knowledge of the subject they just utilized.
The Information and Data Expert, or InDex, is the game’s invaluable teaching resource. At any point in the game, players can look to this built-in encyclopedia to learn the scientific concepts that they will face. Along with a brief explanation of the subject, video is also included to provide a better grasp of the concept. Users can even connect to the Internet to find additional information on the topic. InDex’s value lies in its clearness and plain language. Concepts are explained in terms that even younger users or the least scientifically inclined can understand.
Droidworks does contain a couple of areas that are less than perfect. The graphics are top notch for a software-driven game (this could very well be the engine used in Dark Forces: Jedi Knight), but in today’s world of Voodoo II and Rage 128 hardware 3D acceleration, the game’s 3D environment can seem blotchy and rigid. While the animation was smooth and pristine on our 266 MHz G3, we still wished that the game would take advantage of some 3D hardware.
In addition, the missions can get somewhat repetitive. After completing the mission once, players must continue to complete the same mission while meeting different specifications before they can move on to the next mission. However, these drawbacks do not draw too much away from the amount players will enjoy the game.
All things considered, Droidworks is an excellent choice for families, especially for those with future physicists and engineers. In being able to teach useful science while still being fun enough to interest kids and older users alike, Droidworks ranks with the best of education software. |