Carmen Sandiego's Think Quick Challenge

As a new agent of ACME, you try to trap the knowbots and destroy them by correctly answering a series of questions on topics ranging from art history to math. The quizzes come in a variety of formats, and most are timed, making it essential to answer as quickly as possible. You may team up or compete with other players as you try to destroy the knowbots. Doing so allows you to collect clues that lead to Carmen's minions and, ultimately, to the arch-villain herself!

As with most quiz-format games, some aspects of play in ThinkQuick soon become repetitive. The game's verbal instructions, though they are intended as comprehension skill builders, are sometimes on the vague side. Despite these minor flaws, ThinkQuick is flexible and combines a nice range of games and puzzles. In addition to permitting multiple players, it also offers online play. Player avatars come in both genders and have adjustable skin tones.

Carmen Sandiego's ThinkQuick Challenge is a well-rounded educational game, challenging players' problem solving, reading comprehension, and general knowledge (among other abilities) while offering plenty of entertainment besides. These pluses, along with the game's engaging sense of humor, make it a admirable successor to the earlier Carmen games. So sign in with ACME, and let the chase begin! --Alyx Dellamonica

Amazon.com Product Description
Carmen Sandiego is stealing the world's knowledge! Outwit her and her cohorts in a series of fast-paced challenges that test your knowledge in a variety of subjects. Play on your own or with up to three other ambitious ACME agents. Travel to exotic locations, where the only way to recover the world's knowledge is to ThinkQuick.

Chase Devineaqux, new head of ACME, is recconizing your super smarts and sending you on a mission to recover the stolen knowlege. To do so, you must catch the knowlege robots, prove your knowlege, gain a hideout code, solve a VILE puzzle to enter the hideout, and bust the thief.

A bit easy once you get the hang of it, but it can be challenging at some points. The catching of the Know Bots (either by tagging them or zapping them) can be more of a arcade type thing, but once the knowlege part kicks in, you have to be smart to succeed.

What suprised me most, though, was that they changed really changed the way the game is compared to the Where in the World and USA games. For one, in the Where in the World and Where in the USA is Carmen Sandiego games, you never really see ACME, and in this game, when you do see it, it doesn't seem that real. Second, what happened to The Chief? Why isn't she heading ACME any more? Third, there are only six thieves working for Carmen now. Before there were thousands. Fourth, there's no getting lost and then trying despertly to get back on the trail of the thief. The old way is half of the fun. (The changes are what caused me to give it three stars instead of five.)

In short, a wonderful game, but if you're a loyal agent of ACME, this is somewhat depressing.


Muti-player!   February 1, 2000
5 out of 6 found this review helpful

I thought the game for one person was pretty boring easy to solve for me. But when you get together with a max of 4 people it's awesome! Racing to hit the buzzer and get the most points, even trying to get the least amount of wrong questions, made the game pretty exciting. I recomend this game highly as a muti-player game.