The Adventures of Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny
Sold Out		(Win95/98/3.1) (Retail) (BEATRIXPR)

Mindscape

Children

Ages: 3 to 7

Ratings:

5 stars from CD-ROM Today - Critic's Choice

An Enchanting World of Stories and Games

Beatrix Potter's classic characters spring to life when your child enters this interactive storyland featuring Peter Rabbit and his friends. A circular, 360-degree landscape allows your child to navigate from one scene to the next in two animated stories and six activity areas. Much more than an interactive book, The Adventures of Peter Rabbit & Benjamin Bunny is an exciting world of stories and games your child will want to enjoy again and again.

Two enriching stories, 8 skill-building activities, 13 illustrated nursery rhymes, and 200 clickable hot spots develop and reward your child's natural curiosity - the key to learning.

Print out your child's favorite Peter Rabbit images from fun activities and word definitions from the glossary.

Virtual ExploraScape design enables children to explore 6 engaging activity landscapes, allowing them to feel as if they really are in Peter Rabbit's world.

Beatrix Potter's classic characters come alive through hand-drawn animations, playful sound effects, and charming music.

Requirements:

Windows - 486DX 66 MHz, 8 MB RAM (5.5 MB available), Windows 95 or Windows 3.1, double speed CD-ROM drive, 256 (8-bit) colors, 10MB available on hard drive, Windows compatible sound card, Microsoft compatible mouse.

Macintosh - 68040 25 MHz+, 8MB RAM, System 7.1 or higher, double speed CD-ROM drive, 13 inch color monitor, 256 (8 bit) colors, 10 MB available on hard drive, mouse.

Reviews:

San Jose Mercury News, September 15, 1996

"Ease-of-use issues and some weak activities, however, mar what otherwise is a pleasant program...In story mode, children can also click around on each page and access the panoramas as well. But navigation through the program is quirky...The graphics are lovely, though, and fun to explore. Narration and music are also first rate..."

"As the story is read, text is highlighted and children can click on red words to see their entries in a printable, narrated glossary. When in the 'explore' mode, children search for hot spots, games, and mursery rhymes hidden in the pictures. It's hard to find the games, however, and we wished for a more direct access to these activities."

CD-ROM Today, May 1995

"Even on CD-ROM, The Adventures of Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny radiates beautiful innocence and distinct British elegance. The rabbits' world is one of manners and morals and polite conversation, and those characteristics permeate this disc.

"It's evident that Mindscape dedicated a great deal of effort to this project's artistic development. The characters are rendered in a fashion that is faithful both to Potter's art and spirit, and the animation in incredibly smooth.

"All of Potter's original stories are here, plus a set of activities, sound effects, and music. There is plenty of content, plenty to look at, and even the smallest details are worth particular attention. And Peter's nemesis, Mr. McGregor, comes to life particularly well.

"Adventures adds up to much more than the sum of its parts. This is the best of a bygone era painstakingly made modern, and in the effort, it points the way to a more genteel way of life. This is the type of program you hope your child likes as much as you do."

Piece of Trivia

Peter Rabbit has been a favorite children's book since 1902, when he took his first bite out of Mr. McGregor's garden in The Tales of Peter Rabbit. But when Mindscape decided to do a multimedia version of Peter's story, adapting a nearly century-old literary treasure to CD-ROM while retaining its essence posed a challenge.

Mindscape wanted to present Peter's world in a panoramic 360-degree view - what it calls "Explorascape" - that would let children feel a part of that world. But Potter's famous watercolor illustrations were close-ups of its inhabitants and partial views of the landscape.

To get a look at the environment that inspired the drawings, the software development team flew to England and walked the grounds of Potter's estate. "We needed to preserve the integrity of 100 years of Peter Rabbit," says Rosemary Yates, Mindscape's senior producer for the series. "If you work from the book and look up from the back gate through the barnyard, you see the view we were trying to re-create."

Four watercolor artists were enlisted to produce the electronic Explorascape. The result of their efforts is the panoramic view of Peter's world in two discs relesed so far - interative environments that surely would make Potter proud.