The Case of the Golden Idol
LQ: 9.85
Recommended Age: 12+
Skills Used: Focus, Working Memory, Mathematics, Reading
Forest Home is a puzzle game with cute forest characters and an occasional goblin boss. Each level has a grid with a varying number of squares. The player draws paths between the forest characters and their matching homes. The puzzle comes from having to find the right combination of paths so that all the animals can make it home. The number of moves it takes the player to complete a level determines how many stars they earn. Stars unlock prize chests. Every so often there is a boss level where the player faces a goblin and has to beat three special levels to beat the goblin.
Forest Home has a few in-app ads, in-app purchases, and can connect to a Facebook account. The ESRB rated it E for Everyone. LW4K stands by this rating, but recommends this game as thinking skills practice for those six and up.
Forest Home helps kids practice and improve the following skills:
Adapting and adjusting to changing conditions and expectations.
Once the player has beaten several levels, the solution to each level gets harder to see. The right path for a particular forest animal may not be the first one the player sees. This means that Forest Home gives the player the perfect opportunity to practice being flexible. They have to try new things, sometimes going on a longer path instead of the most direct path, or starting with the animals on the edges. Whatever the case is, the key to finding the solution is being flexible enough to try new things. If they don't, the player will be unable to complete the level and advance to the next one.
Arranging and coordinating materials in order to complete a task.
Forest Home also gives the player the chance to practice organizational thinking skills. In order to complete a level, the player has to be able to organize the paths--or places--that the animals will be traveling. If they can't organize the paths, making sure they fit together and cover all of the squares on the grid, the player will be unable to complete a level. It can also prevent a player from getting all three stars. Fewer stars earned means it takes longer to unlock the prize chests.
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