Press Start: March 11th, 2015

Well, given as it is Spring Break for me, my schedule's a bit thrown off. However, I did have something I had previously written up, so I do apologize for this. It still works for what I need it for, so it works well enough.

Game: Mixed-Up Mother Goose
Released: 1987

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A game that was originally released in 1987, this game was made by Sierra Entertainment and had Roberta Williams' name tied to it as the creative director, I believe. Anyway, the game took sixteen different nursery rhymes and took out pivotal pieces from each, scattering them across Nursery Rhyme Land. You play the game as a little boy, or girl, and must help Mother Goose and the other citizens of Nursery Rhyme Land by fetching their required items.

It was re-released on a CD some years later, with a graphical update as well as better sound. Along with this, the nursery rhyme characters came with voices for each. To add to that, when the nursery rhymes were completed, there would be a song for each, telling the nursery rhyme in a way that most children would generally remember, rather than merely speaking the lines out. I had once acquired the CD version of this game with a CD package called King's Quest Collection, and I have fond memories of some of the nursery rhyme songs.

Nursery rhymes such as "Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary" or "Little Miss Muffet" should stand out to many, but there were a few that I hadn't heard of before playing the game. Keep in mind, this wasn't that long ago, but at the same time, I was considerably young. I'd say... I was around 10 or so, and I had never heard of the nursery rhyme about Banbury Cross, or however it's spelled. Furthermore, I hadn't heard of Little Tommy Tucker either. But, generally, for most of them, I had heard of them and knew them somewhat well.

Let's see if I can name all of the nursery rhymes and the items that you were required to fetch.
"Little Tommy Tucker" required a breadknife.
"Humpty Dumpty" needed a ladder.
"Little Miss Muffet" was lost and needed your help to find her tuffet.
"Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary" had lost her watering can.
"Little Bo Peep" had lost a pair of sheep.
"There Was A Crooked Man" needed the crooked sixpence.
"Jack and Jill" needed a pail before they could tumble down the hill.
"Jack Be Nimble" desperately needed a candlestick to jump over. Preferably lit.
"There Was An Old Woman Who Lived In A Shoe" had so many children starving, we needed to fetch some broth.
"Banbury Cross" needed a cockhorse to be ridden to it.
"Hickory, Dickory, Dock" without a mouse to climb the clock! So, we had to get that too.
"Hey, Diddle, Diddle", the cat had lost his fiddle.
"Oh Where, Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone" required... quite obviously, the little dog.
"Mary Had A Little Lamb" was pulling a Bo Peep and had lost her lamb.
"Little Jack Horner" didn't have his Christmas Pie to eat.
"Old King Cole" was a merry old soul when you fetched him his pipe, bowl, and his fiddlers three.

Overall, the game was a blast back then, and it's a shame that they haven't re-released it now. Encouraging kids to learn educational values through gaming is best done early. At least, that's how I feel about the whole ordeal. I know my cousin would definitely enjoy learning more than her alphabet, and games are a definite way to entertain those with short attention spans early on.
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This was initially written about 6 years ago, so of course my cousin wouldn't need such a thing now. At the same time, I think it would still be pleasurable to her. I got her hooked on another game similar to this, Mixed-Up Fairy Tales. I really do still have a place in my heart for this game.