March 2012
The Archives
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03.22.12Goin’ Locomaster with Lucas’ Crazy Machine on iPhone and iPadYou can't argue with an app that features animals called the Sillyphant and the Jokyfly. That would be Locomaster – Lucas' Crazy Machine, a lovely-looking iOS app that appeared on the App Store this week. The idea: main character Lucas has a machine that turns him into the animals above, as well as a Crazy Crocodile, Wise Turtle, Nosy Mouse, Ladybugy or Pretty Spider. Each character is linked to its own mini-game, with marvellously characterful graphics throughout. Developed by games firm Nerlaska Studio working with illustrator Mar Ballesteros, Locomaster is aimed at 2-6 year-olds, and costs £1.99 on the App Store. It's ...
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03.22.12Get colouring with the Chipmunks new iPhone appThe revival of Alvin and the Chipmunks as a well-loved children's brand baffles me, but then I never saw the Smurfs' comeback coming. Anyway, Alvin and his toothy chums are back with a film called Chipwrecked, complete with a spin-off iPhone app. It's called Chipwrecked: Coloring with the Chipmunks, and the title gives the main activity away: digital colouring. The idea being that your child chooses characters from the film, sticks them onto different backgrounds, and then colours the images in. The results can be saved to the iPhone's Camera Roll, and printed from within the app if you have a printer ...
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03.22.12Hello Kitty apps it up with Ugly Duckling magical iPad bookI'm always a bit wary of Hello Kitty apps that appear without warning on the App Store – there are a lot of cheap, nasty unofficial ones that haven't been approved by the popular pussycat brand. Thankfully, Hello Kitty's Magical Book – The Ugly Duckling looks the real deal. Yes, it's a retelling of the classic Ugly Duckling story, except with Kitty and her mates Badtz-Maru and My Melody joining in. The narrative is complemented by animation, mini-games and puzzles, as well as the obligatory voice narration. The app comes with English, Chinese and Spanish modes, and is available for iPad with ...
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03.21.12Get five Dr Seuss books in one iPhone and iPad appWe're big fans of Dr. Seuss books, and we're also fans of Oceanhouse Media's sizeable range of Dr Seuss apps, which remain faithful to the original books while adding some educational interactivity. Now the developer has released its second bundle of book-apps: Dr. Seuss Beginner Book Collection #2, which offers five books in a single app that runs across iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. The books are corkers too: Green Eggs and Ham, Dr. Seuss's ABC, The Cat in the Hat Comes Back, There's a Wocket in My Pocket, and Hop on Pop. Yes, it costs more than a single book-app: you'll pay ...
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03.19.12My First Sudokus HD switches numbers for animals on iPadTeaching your kids to play Sudoku? That's a bit pushy. What's more, it will inevitably end in tears when they start completing Hard puzzles faster than you can before they're into their teens. Even so, My First Sudokus HD is a fun idea: it's Sudoku for children on an iPad, except with the numbers replaced by animal icons, three levels of difficulty, and 4x4 grids to fill in. Pig, Panda, Snake and Tortoise, for example. The developers reckon it'll have a positive impact on your children, managing to "improve their logical mind and their ability to reason". We wonder if they may ...
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03.19.12Peppa Pig gets an augmented reality iPhone appIf your children can't get enough of Peppa Pig apps, get set to download another one. Thankfully, it's free. But Peppa’s Magic Camera from Paultons Park is also technically innovative. It's been released to promote Peppa Pig World, which is a section of Paultons Park theme park here in the UK, and it uses augmented reality technology to (it hopes) delight your kids. "Download Peppa’s magic camera and hold it in front of the special Paultons Park Home of Peppa Pig World advertisement posters to experience Peppa Pig in magical augmented reality 3D for the very first time," explains its App Store ...
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03.16.12Fun new book-apps: My Little Geek, My Dad’s Bald Head and LeonardMarch 2012 has been a very good month for interesting new kid-apps: we're only halfway through and we've already written about 26. Today is particularly busy on the App Store, so here's a three-in-one post on some fun-looking book-apps we didn't want to miss. First, My Little Geek. It's a neat-looking alphabet app focused on all things geek, from Android to Zombie. "Imagine the joy of hearing your two year old chatting away about his holographic ninja or time traveling joystick," explains its App Store listing. Marvellously, 'L' is for L337. Your kids can tilt the device to interact with the characters, ...
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03.16.12Chuggington app wants to help US children be more road-safeThe idea of animated trains fronting a campaign about road safety may seem like a bit of a stretch, but that's what Wilson, Koko and Brewster from popular TV show Chuggington are doing. The app is called Chuggington: Be Safe! and it's been developed by Ludorum for iPhone and iPad, working with the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). That does mean that the app is US-only though: it's not available in the UK App Store. What can you expect if you're an American parent, then? The three trainees deliver information on pedestrian, bus, bike and car-seat safety, aimed at children ...
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03.16.12Little Fox Music Box is a wonderful music app for kidsNighty Night! HD came out nearly a year ago, but it's still one of our favourite children's apps for iPad, introducing a stable-full of animals getting ready to sleep. But developer Shape Minds and Moving Images' new app looks even better. It's called Little Fox Music Box, and it's described as "a sing-along app with more than 100 interactive elements". The idea being that it teaches your children three songs – London Bridge, Evening Song and Old McDonald Had a Farm – while letting them knock up their own tunes too. The graphics are beautiful – apparently they're the work of Oscar-nominated animator Heidi ...
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03.16.12Barefoot World Atlas is Retina-ready for the new iPadUK/US developer Touch Press has been making innovative book-apps for adults since the earliest days of Apple's iPad – its The Elements came out when that device launched. Now the company has put its creativity to work for kids. Its new iPad app is called Barefoot World Atlas, and it's marvellous. It's described as "an interactive 3D globe for iPad that invites children to explore the regions and countries of the world". A spinnable, zoomable Atlas with plenty of surprises for your geographically-curious kids. Oh, and it's already been optimised for Apple's new iPad, which goes on sale tomorrow. That means if you ...
recent posts
- It’s our one thousandth post on Apps Playground!
- Disney’s Where’s My Water? gets a new (female) alligator star
- Bloomsbury launches Pirate and Princess Activity iPad apps
- CBeebies star Justin Fletcher launches Goldilocks app for kids
- Tunetrace iOS app turns real drawings into music
- Dr Seuss’ The Butter Battle Book comes to iOS and Android
- Sago Mini Sound Box app wants to be a ’21st century rattle’
