BIG ACTION CONSTRUCTION

BIG ACTION CONSTRUCTION

Fisher-Price Big Action: Construction will delight kids by letting them operate a big crane, take care of the dump truck, blast rocks with dynamite, build structures, use a wrecking ball to demolish houses, or make a Hoagie sandwich at a virtual construction site. Certificates and collector cards are printed from the foreman's trailer, where the options screen is accessed.

Each activity awards the player a seemingly unlimited number of collector cards upon successful completion, though some have the same background with different words. A group of eight cards can be printed, simply by clicking and dragging them onto a form. The six areas in the game contain certificates, which are completed by cutting out and pasting four cards collected from each activity. Certificate completion has no effect on the open-ended nature of the game.

Separate activities are associated with each area. In the big crane area, for example, items are picked up and dumped in the hopper to clear the area. A list at the bottom of the screen shows what items must be cleared to win a card, but dumping incorrect items isn't penalized. The crane's bucket is controlled with the mouse by selecting the forward and back buttons for movement and a blue lever to pick up items and dump them into the hopper.

Kids help Smitty maintain and fix the dump truck by pumping up the tires when they go flat, filling the tank with gas, and cleaning the windshield. Each activity, once completed, earns a card. Unfortunately, playing the limited activities in the dump truck area becomes repetitive too quickly after several plays.

The blasting area focuses on using bundled sticks of dynamite to explode canyon walls and uncover items. Funny animated clips show boulders destroying houses, being served like tennis balls by the Statue of Liberty, and even hitting the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Uncovering the correct item earns the player a card, but a slight drawback is that many of the items seem to always be in the same place in the quarry with each new game.

When it's time for lunch, players meet their fellow workers or construct a monster Hoagie at the lunch truck by scrolling through a list of ingredients including food items like hot dogs, cheese and burgers, as well as inedible items such as bricks, rivets, saws and hammers. The sandwich is built by clicking on each desired item, and when made successfully, earns another collectible card.

The building construction site includes options to build from a plan or imagination, though only planned buildings earn cards. There are nine different buildings, including a space station, Victorian house, castle, and igloo. It's the most involved activity in the game, as the player must first clear the site, dig a hole for the foundation, and then pour concrete. After the steelworkers build the frame, the player places rivets, and sections of the building are put together by matching them with the correct shapes in the framework. Finishing touches, such as doors, windows and other items, are then placed on the building and a copy of the picture can be printed. This activity is fun and involved, and offers good replay with options to change colors and accessories with each new play.

Most activities are well designed and have enough variation to ensure some replay, though the dump truck activity is an exception. The number of cards and certificates is unlimited, thus parents should allow for as much space on their refrigerator and walls as possible to display prizes won and printed. Controls are simple and easy to learn, mostly point-and-click or point-and-drag. Each of the characters in the game treats the player like a member of the work crew, instilling a real sense of accomplishment.

Teaches: problem solving, construction

Age Range: 4- 7

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