Dora the
Explorer Saves the Mermaid is the latest Dora game on the DS for young
children. Unlike the companion game Go Diego Go Safari Rescue, this new Dora
is a wholly average game at best. Many parents will probably lean toward
buying the Dora over the Diego game, especially if they have girls. My advice
is to eschew Dora and get Diego, which is a superior game.
The basic
story of Dora Saves the Mermaid is that a mean octopus is dumping garbage all
over the ocean. Dora and you must help clean it up. By playing various
mini-games, Dora will be able to travel to where the mermaids live and help
save them from the Octopus.
The
mini-games are very simple, as this is a game aimed squarely at the
preschool/kindergarten crowd. Many of the games are obstacle course types,
where Dora has to move up or down to avoid obstacles in her path. Sometimes
she jumps over them. The other mini-games are simple color matching and number
sequencing games. A few of the games are “tap the stylus very fast” types of
games. The best mini-games are the Spot the Silly Animal, where players have
to choose the Cowfish, Catfish or Dogfish, which look like cows, dogs and
cats, and the Find the Magic Crown, where players look under the sand to find
hidden treasure. All of these games can be played separately, which is a good
feature in a kids’ game.
The main
problem with Dora Saves the Mermaid is that the games aren’t incorporated into
the story well enough (the whole mermaid theme isn’t used hardly at all in the
games), and the games aren’t very fun to play. They should all be more
interactive and mesh into the story better. As they are, they are mainly just
stand-alone mini-games. The matching colors and number sequence games could
have been better designed to be more engaging. Simple doesn’t have to mean
boring.
While the
mini-games in Diego Safari Rescue aren’t dramatically different, they are more
fun. The obstacle games aren’t very good in either game, but the animal-themed
games in Diego are better, and they are tied into the story much better with
the whole photo shoot theme.
An average
Dora game, and one that parents may want to pass in
favor of Go Diego Go Safari Rescue.
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Gameplay: 6.0
This
is an average game that isn’t a whole lot of fun. Even preschoolers will get
bored fast.
Graphics: 7.0
The
graphics are decent. Dora and her friends look just as they should, and the
environments are bright and cheerful.
Sound: 6.0
The
music is average.
Difficulty: Easy
This
game is very easy.
Concept: 6.0
There
isn’t anything new, and the execution is average.
Overall: 6.5
Dora the Explorer Saves the Mermaids is an average game. It’s not a bad game,
but neither is it very good. The mini-games are not engaging for the most part
except for a few, and the whole structure is choppy. Go Diego Go is designed
in a similar manner by the same design company, but for whatever reason, is
much more fun. A good feature is the ability to play the mini-games separately
from the adventure, but the games aren’t fun enough to warrant playing very
often. Parents should probably pick Go Diego Go over Dora for their young
children.
