Pajama Sam 2 Thunder and Lightning Aren't So Frightening
Ages: 3 - 8

Darn, I wish that the character was Pajama Samantha. This Sam is a really spunky character and you'll have a great time joining in the adventure - even if he is a boy. The game will keep you so busy that you won't have time to be afraid of thunder and lightning. It is solidly packed with places to explore, and puzzles to solve. The World Wide Weather factory that Pajama Sam sets out to explore is an endless world of Rube Goldberg wacky constructions - puffing, chugging and stamping out weather. There is a snowflake making machine, hail tunnels, sunlight collectors and Victorian wind machines. You have to remember things you've seen during your journeys through buildings and machines so you can make the logical connections between items that you have picked up and the problem solving opportunities. There is a lot of going back and forth between all the buildings to find the missing pieces and place them in the appropriate weather machine. The producers maintain that the game develops spatial-relation skills. They do not lie.

It's a deep game and you will get your money's worth. It also plays differently every time it's played (at least the three times I've checked it out). Enough of it is similar on subsequent replays so that children can make use of some of what they have previously learned, but there are new situations and some items do not appear where they were previously.

While it is rated for ages 3 up to 8, I would frankly be frightened of the three year old who could get though this game. I was disappointed that the game with this title didn't take the opportunity to actually teach about weather, and Sam conquers his fears about thunder and lighting at the very onset of the game when he puts on his cape and becomes Pajama Sam. Thunder and Lightning are portrayed as a non-threatening couple who must rely on Pajama Sam to set things aright after a misstep by Sam sets the world's weather systems haywire. Voices are great and the music doesn't grate. It's a good game with the metaphor of weather used to make an amusing environment.

Reviewed by Maryanne