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Knowledge Adventure Enters Console Market With Majesco
Posted by Mike Fahey at 12:40 AM on September 5, 2008
Things are really looking up for parents who want to buy their children video games for Christmas but don't necessarily want to buy them games they'll enjoy, as venerable PC edutainment software creator Knowledge Adventure partners with Majesco in order to bring their properties to the console and handheld market. "This partnership is part of our strategic vision to transition the company from educational software to a multi-faceted kid's entertainment company," said Knowledge Adventure president & CEO David Lord. "Expanding our product footprint into this new category will enable us to create a market for future products--including our leading JumpStart® brand--on console and handheld platforms and capitalise on the increasing popularity of these platforms." The first product of this union will be Math Blaster in the Prime Adventure for the DS, introducing the 21-year-old franchise to a whole new audience. Do you smell that? That's the smell of children's tears on Christmas morning. It's intoxicating!
Knowledge Adventure® Enters Console/Handheld Game Market; Signs Deal with Majesco
Award-Winning Math Blaster® Games Available on Nintendo DS in time for Holiday
TORRANCE, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Knowledge Adventure®, the leader in adventure-based 3D virtual worlds for 3-to-10 year olds, today announced it will be launching its award-winning Math Blaster® brand product on the Nintendo DS platform. Knowledge Adventure has entered into a partnership with Majesco Entertainment Company to launch the Math Blaster DS product. This marks Knowledge Adventure's first entry into the Nintendo DS and extends the proven Math Blaster brand into an age-appropriate handheld platform. Math Blaster in the Prime Adventure will be available at major retailers this holiday season.
"This partnership is part of our strategic vision to transition the company from educational software to a multi-faceted kid's entertainment company," said Knowledge Adventure president & CEO David Lord. "Expanding our product footprint into this new category will enable us to create a market for future products--including our leading JumpStart® brand--on console and handheld platforms and capitalise on the increasing popularity of these platforms."
The Majesco partnership is the next strategic step in establishing Knowledge Adventure as a market leader. The launch of Knowledge Adventure's popular Math Blaster games on the Nintendo DS platform creates a significant opportunity for Knowledge Adventure to capitalise on a growing market and increase market share for all of its leading brands within their product categories.
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
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Communist_Gamer
Posted 1:09 AM 5/9/08
@Dannon:
What's Madeline McCann's Dad doing on Kotaku?
Communist_Gamer
Dannon
Posted 1:03 AM 5/9/08
I love the smell of children's tears in the morning
Dannon
Pezdispenser
Posted 1:00 AM 5/9/08
As I recall, I was the only person in my entire class to actually beat Oregon Trail (everyone else just bought 5 tons of bullets and shot buffaloes all day). I was also pretty good at Zoombinis, but never made it past the mine cart level.
But I digress...
Pezdispenser
BulletzBill
Posted 12:58 AM 5/9/08
'In Search of Spot' was great.
BulletzBill
Kaizuden
Posted 12:57 AM 5/9/08
Ahh... to be back in the Elementary school computer room, where getting past the security with Crtl+Alt+Del was something that only you as a "smart kid" could do. I remember my young computer days filled with ROM's in there, but I've played a little bit of Math Blaster and whatnot. But Oregon Trail, that's where it's at.
Kaizuden
dawimp523
Posted 12:52 AM 5/9/08
I played that game when I was a kid. It's completely different now than it was back then. Now, new generations will be forced to enjoy this "funducational" game!
dawimp523
Lazlo
Posted 12:50 AM 5/9/08
@Nekusagi:
Oh my gosh thank you for bringing back half of my early childhood!! Why is it that ten years ago every new computer came packed with that game?!
Lazlo
Nekusagi
Posted 12:48 AM 5/9/08
Math Blaster! I remember that game!
Strangely, I found some of the stages in that game oddly fun. Nothing beats shooting properly numbered trash out of space...
But dammit, I want my Oregon Trail DS. Now there's an educational game port I'd buy.
Nekusagi
Eville1 says SKUse me a sec.
Posted 12:46 AM 5/9/08
Oh man I so remember math blaster! And Mavis Beacon!
Eville1 says SKUse me a sec.
okenny :) ...building bridges (to hide under)
Posted 12:44 AM 5/9/08
I wonder if they realized time and games have moved on with the introduction of the internet and not many things are as timeless as fashion was/is/will be. OH well, here's to Gears-style "Pop-n-Add" gameplay O_o
okenny :) ...building bridges (to hide under)
Cwolf267
Posted 1:32 AM 5/9/08
I HATED this game. My dad would make me play an hour of Math Blaster for every hour I played a "real game".
Cwolf267
Communist_Gamer
Posted 1:21 AM 5/9/08
@Dannon: Its nice to be nice (to childnappers). I need tips!
Communist_Gamer
Dannon
Posted 1:18 AM 5/9/08
@Communist_Gamer: You are possibly my new best friend!
Dannon
OtakuMan24
Posted 1:39 AM 5/9/08
Knowledge Adventure? I thought they were The Learning Company and Broderbund? What ever happened to those.
And dear sweet merciful Lord, I remember these games from my childhood, back when the only sound came from the PC SPEAKER!
The sad thing is that there were some actual fun games that came out. Anyone remember "Number Crunchers"? Anyone?
Matt Wilson does! (See Bonus-Stage)
But to have the PC games come out on handheld and CONSOLE!?
Oh man, the children will be crying. But at least it's better than that tripped out "Learn Spanish while on the back of a truck, speaking to a talking bull" game. Yeah... that was weird. At least with a brand that's 21 years old (I feel so old now), the edutainment games can actually get some quality titles on the handheld, instead of...
...whatever the hell that Spanish learning game was.
~Otaku-Man
OtakuMan24
Ajax
Posted 2:02 AM 5/9/08
Hey! I had loads of fun with MathBlaster and other edutainment games when I was young. I think it's a good idea, and that some children will just be happy to get presents, let alone MathBlasters. Give the poor educational software a break.
Ajax
zkotaku
Posted 2:25 AM 5/9/08
i remember math blaster and Mario teaching and typing at school.
zkotaku
KINGZ
Posted 3:17 AM 5/9/08
yea yea, my stock went up 5% from the news. I dont care what anyone says, they have made me so much money in the last 2 years. I trade and by their stock about 4 to 8 times a year. and have always made at least 35% on my investments eact time.
KINGZ
Nate128
Posted 3:07 AM 5/9/08
@OtakuMan24: You're thinking of Number Munchers, not Crunchers. Boy was that game kickass.
Math Blaster rocked, too. I remember maneuvering the little guy around with the mouse.
Of course, Oregon Trail was the all-time greatest. I always tried to finish my assignments early so I could be the one to get on the one computer we had in the room and play it. They had a follow-up called Yukon Trail later on but I think it wasn't that great.
Also, Kid Pix was way cool.
Nate128
shouryuuken
Posted 3:01 AM 5/9/08
why did i see meth blaster when i first glanced at this?
shouryuuken
GodKiller0
Posted 3:29 AM 5/9/08
Lol I loved those games...20 years ago lol
GodKiller0
Aej
Posted 4:18 AM 5/9/08
Now we need Oregon Trail Wii. Seriously, I think you officially had a bad school experience if you didn't play this on your computers in grade school.
Aej
Surfaced
Posted 5:00 AM 5/9/08
oh god... math blaster. Brings back memories of like, second grade. Reader Rabbit too. Shit....
Surfaced
Netnavi
Posted 7:47 AM 5/9/08
So many great educational games back then. I think it could be fun for kids IF they know that they aren't forced to play it because they HAVE to learn something. Oregon trail, Carmen Sandiego (needs a comeback) and I don't remember much else that were as good. Mostly because we were learning how to use that shitty little "turtle" on the schools Apple 2e. The good MAC in the back of the room had color and if you got enough credit you could play on that one. With a mouse and everything! It had this game where you were a scubadiver and you archived some fish and sunken treasure or whatnot. Cool game back then.
Yeah so, educational games can be fun.
Netnavi
Milzo
Posted 9:14 AM 5/9/08
I love how you seem to shoot down the idea in the article, Fahey. But from experience alot of people I know actually did enjoy those games in the past, not only because they were subconsciously learning, but because some of those games were genuinely fun.
These days there's a market for this kind of thing, they don't even have to be full games for crying out loud, we have xbox live marketplace, we have the psn store. We have a whole truckload of crappy games that get filed under the 'casual' category as an excuse...
... What I'm saying is if 'casual' games can make a killing through downloads, then these 'funducational' games have every right to, as well.
That said some of those early jump start games did incorporate some very fun mini games, which I'm sure they could improve 10 fold in this day and age.
That's my 2 cents.
~Milz
Milzo
jraisane
Posted 2:45 AM 5/9/08
@OtakuMan24: Hells Yeah! Number Munchers was awesome. But now that I'm a grown up math major I'd like to see them make a version with calculus and mathematical logic, where you have to munch the steps of Godel's Incompleteness Theorem.
jraisane