Take your traditional Super Mario Bros. game, toss Mario and Luigi in a cage, turn Princess Peach loose (armed with umbrella and emotional tantrum array), and you have Super Princess Peach.

The game begins with Ms. Peach taking on the rescue mission. Apparently, Bowser has kidnapped the famous brothers via the Vibe Specter, and has now retreated to his hideaway on Vibe Island. The princess, along with a sentient umbrella named Perry, must work her way through various levels and boss battles to rescue Nintendo's famous mascots.

You'll quickly learn Princess Peach is very resourceful. She's picked up a number of moves from chum Mario, including enemy stomping, block busting, hillside sliding and other familiar techniques. In addition, Perry the umbrella is a force to be reckoned with, eventually allowing Peach the ability to hover in the air for short periods of time, as well as traverse rivers, stun enemies with a ground pound, and even blast baddies with energy blasts. (I mention "eventually", as most of these abilities must be purchased from the game's shop area.)

But the real game play innovation in Super Princess Peach - her royalty's ability to change her emotional "vibe" at the drop of a hat. Or in this case, a thumb press of the touch screen. Linked to four heart shaped icons, the player can instantly change Peach's mood (Joy, Rage, Gloom and Calm) by pressing the appropriate heart, which provides the Princess with a special ability or two. All of these abilities are tied to your Vibe Meter, which is slowly depleted when a vibe has been activated.

It works well enough, although you'll sometimes find your thumbs fumbling during a hectic boss encounter. And yes, the entire premise of the Princess having constant mood swings is arguably condescending, but did my teenage daughter and wife seem to mind? Not a bit. In fact, my daughter - once she began playing - claimed the family's DS as her own for about a week, as she was especially enthralled with the game. Not because of the princess theme and saccharine heavy presentation, but because - at it's heart - Super Princess Peach is a fun, old-school action platformer, reminiscent of earlier Super Mario games.

But in many ways, Super Princess Peach tries to set itself apart. Besides the new moves, the entire experience emphasizes item collecting - you won't be able to complete the game without finding all of the missing Toad characters, for example. This doesn't present too much of a problem, as items are rarely hard to find. And although the game doesn't make much use of the touch screen and stylus, the game play rarely grows boring or dull, as you're constantly forced to make use of your robust move set and abilities to make your way through the various game levels. You'll also find there's much more to the game after the end credits, adding to the game's value. As is the norm with Nintendo developed games, stylus-based mini-games have been thrown in for good measure.

Unless you and the kids simply dislike Super Mario style games, give Super Princess Peach a try. You'll find an enjoyable game filled with fun challenges.

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Super Monkey Ball is similar to other puzzle and maze format games - but with much more.

The single-player mode challenges players to get back the stolen golden bananas. The simple story and goal has been especially appealing to our youngest child (8)! Your character is a monkey in a ball - sort of like a hamster ball. Your monkey races through mazes, collecting bananas along the way. The difference is that to make the monkey move you use the controller to "tilt" the playing field causing the ball to roll. Of course, the first level is relatively simple. As the game progresses the terrain becomes more complicated, with multiple obstacles and the possibility of falling off the world!

Using the Wii remote gives this game an added twist from previous versions using traditional controllers. The girls and I personally found the game easier to play and more enjoyable using the Wii remote. My son (11), who has played previous versions with a standard controller, had a bit more trouble. The remote is very sensitive, so tiny movements can dramatically affect the course of the ball. It takes a steady hand to navigate the mazes quickly. We have fun cheering each other along... but since the player is more susceptible to being thrown off to jiggles of the onlookers we are careful to keep a safe distance from them. Despite this, my son was still flew through the levels very quickly. Monkey Ball might be too easy to entertain more advanced kidGamers for very long.

The party games (there are more than fifty!) have been the big hit at our home. These are short games that can take anywhere from a few moments to play to much longer. Some of them are multi-player, and some require the nunchuck attachment. They are great for homework breaks or those few minutes before dinner... as long as you can convince everyone to stop! The games vary from simple to very challenging. There is a screen that demonstrates how to use the remote before you play each game which is very helpful.

For very young children or people just starting to use a Wii remote the "Jump Rope" game is a great starting point. To play, you simply flick the remote up to cause the monkey to jump the rope. When you miss the rope, it knocks the monkey on his back and he twitches which sends the kids into hysterics. It is reminiscent of the old "Circus Atari" game, where you sent clowns bouncing off a teeter-totter and if you missed, they fell on their heads. My sister and I spent a lot of time killing of digital clowns. (But I digress...)

"Monkey Baseball" is a home run derby-style baseball game that is also simple to learn. The timing for the bat is different from that of Wii Sports, which makes it challenging to go between games.

Want a bit more challenge, and some practice for the single-player mode? "Monkey Snowboard" sends your monkey down a wintry half-pipe. You dodge snowmen and collect bananas while whizzing to the finish line. This is by far our family-favorite, with all of us trying to beat one another's best times!

The bad news? Some of the party games are not so well-designed. No one in our home has been able to figure out "Shepherd" yet. The goal is to direct a dog that barks at sheep, herding them into a barn. Huh? It's extremely difficult to direct the dog, and the playing field is very disorienting.

Not all of the party games will appeal to everyone. But in a large household, the variety out of the box is nice.

If you are looking for a game with rich, realistic graphics and a kickin' soundtrack... look somewhere else. As expected, the monkeys are cute and cartoonish. The graphics are very colorful and vibrant. The music is perky and at times annoying to the adults - but the kids all hummed along happily.

Overall this is a solid addition to our game library. It is ranking up there with DDR as a game that challenges and captivates all three kids... and the grownups too!

I’ve always appreciated the idea of combining exercise and fitness with video games, so after Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix was released, it quickly earned a coveted spot in our game collection.

If you’re unfamiliar with the Dance Dance Revolution line of games, suffice it to say, they’re basically dance simulators for the living room. Instead of using a standard game controller, you play the game using a large dance pad on the floor. The gamer, standing on the pad, steps on arrow sensors (pointing up, down, left and right) in synch with moving arrows shown on the television screen, which are timed to co-inside with the background music.

The concept works wonderfully, and it’s not uncommon to play a DDR game until you’re physically unable to play any longer. It certainly qualifies as exercise, akin to a basic aerobics program.

Upon startup, it’s immediately clear Mario Mix is designed for younger gamers, with the game’s difficulty initially optimized for DDR novices. Dance steps are simplistic (early modes use the left and right arrows only), and while the routines do become challenging eventually, the game never does reach the insane difficulty levels found in other Dance Dance Revolution games.

In my household, this has proven to be both a good and bad thing. Good, as my son - never having enjoyed mainstream DDR games - is now quite the Mario Mixer. I’ve noticed his coordination has improved considerably, which I credit to the game’s accessibility. Bad, as his teenage sister (a Mario fan since age three) played the game only once or twice before going back to her Playstation 2 DDRs. She’s since warmed up to the game, but scoffed at the easy gameplay early only.

For whatever reason, higher difficulty levels in Mario Mix must be unlocked by playing through easier routines. Until her brother had unlocked these harder settings, my daughter didn’t consider the game much fun, as it was far too easy for her skill level. I can’t help but think, if these higher difficulty levels had been available initially, her first impression would have been far more positive. At the very least, the game would have had a broader appeal.

Unwieldy difficulty levels aside, Mario Mix is a very fun game. The Mario theme is embellished throughout, with a host of characters including Mario, Toad, Waluigi and Bowser. The music consists of remixed Mario music from other games (Dr. Mario, Paper Mario, Super Mario Bros.) along with heavily remixed nursery rhymes. The game features a unique Story Mode, composed of numerous dance challenges and mini-games. It works well, but having to scroll through screens of text during the intermissions can be annoying, especially considering you’re probably standing during the process. (Obviously, reading skills are a benefit for any child playing the game, though there isn’t any real need to understand the story text in order to play.) A Free Mode is also available, similar to other DDR games, where the player can choose the music routine they’d like to play. A mini-game selection makes for a fun distraction (envision Whack-The-Mole via dance pad), and while the game doesn’t sport a workout mode like other DDR games, it does provide calorie tracking, counting the number of calories you’ve burned while playing.

Mario Mix is packaged with a dance pad, which obviously is fundamental for a child’s enjoyment of the game. Thankfully, the pad has been manufactured well, with large, accurate sensor pads and a non-slip bottom. It may slip slightly with fast paced routines on carpeted floors, but overall, it’s of a far better quality than many third party pads. The game can be played with the standard Gamecube controller, but really, where’s the fun in that?

If you’re looking for a healthy activity for the kids – something fun, something fitness – Mario Mix fits the bill.

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There’s something deftly charming about Nintendo’s Super Mario games. Sure, they’ve always been based on a silly premise – a plumber battling his way thru a fantasy world of mushrooms and piranha plants – but they’ve also been great fun to play.

New Super Mario Bros. carries on the tradition. Released for the Nintendo DS handheld system, New SMB successfully mixes the proven game play mechanics of the original Super Mario Bros. with some fresh new moves, including a handy Wall Jump technique and powerful Ground Pound butt stomp. New power-ups have been introduced as well. You’ll sometimes find mega-sized mushrooms allowing Mario to grow to a giant height, with all the indestructibility this implies. Micro mushrooms allow Mario to shrink to a pint size, increasing his jumping ability and allowing the plump hero access to various nooks and crannies found throughout the game’s eight worlds.

Sticking with the traditional 2D platformer design, Mario usually works his way from left to right, jumping and fireballing his way to the level’s end. But unlike prior Super Mario games, the environments are constructed of polygon characters and landscapes – a design choice typically reserved for 3D games. The decision was a good one, as the animation is silky smooth and the backgrounds are more interactive than your usual Super Mario endeavor. (Remember those giant, spotted mushrooms in the original SMB? Don’t be surprised if they flex and bow under your weight this time around.)

Overall, there’s little to dislike about New Super Mario Bros, although some nitpicking is in order. Namely, new fans and casual gamers will find a decent challenge, but older players - especially those familiar with prior Super Mario games - will probably find New SMB to be over far too soon. (My 16-year old daughter and I, Mario veterans of a sort, completed the game within a few days time.) Sadly, the new power-ups aren’t used as often as I would have liked. And if you’re looking for a game that’ll exercise your DS’ stylus, you won’t find it here.

Still, all mushrooms considered, these are minor quibbles. You’ll find yourself working hard to find every hidden level, as the game really is that much fun to play. And Nintendo has thrown in a grab bag of goodies to compliment the core package. There’s a nice set of touch screen mini-games (some recycled from Super Mario 64 DS), and if you have two DS systems available, a two-player Mario vs. Luigi competition is at your disposal. Oh, and don’t forget to sit through the credits…

My own household is an eclectic mix of gamer styles – young and old, hardcore and casual. Yet all agree: New Super Mario Bros. is one of the best Mario games to come along in a very long time. It features easy to manage controls, solid game play, and a witty balance of fun challenges. Recommended.

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As much as I love Star Wars, the games have not always been up to snuff. Let's be honest - some were real stinkers. While I enjoy all the Star Wars movies, almost all the games I encountered for episodes 1-3 just didn't excite me. I may be showing my age (and bias) though towards the "Classic" trilogy. However, my godchild really liked Lego Star Wars for the Gameboy, so I thought I'd get the game for my son and see what he thought. (We played it on the XBox.) What a great great decision!

Lego Star Wars is basically a 3D platformer. It is set in the Star Wars universe of the second trilogy (episodes 1-3). While these weren't exactly the most light hearted of movies, the game takes a very light view of the movies, adding lots of humor where the movies were overly serious. Everything in the game, from the people to the ships and the environments is built with Legos. So when you blow something up, you see a lot of Lego blocks break apart. That by itself is fun as I'd never smash my own Legos in real life. (Although my son has no qualms about doing so.) Get killed by a droid? Instead of seeing a morbid dead body you see a bunch of little Lego pieces.

The game takes you through the movies, each movie being broken up into chapters. As you play, you gain access to new characters and can purchase them for use elsewhere. There is a setting outside of the movies where you can simply run around and have fun. As more characters become available, you will see them running around, having fights, etc. You can run up to any of these characters and take them over. My son and I had great fun fighting each other as Jedis, or simply goofing off.

Characters are generally divided into three groups: Droids, "Shooters", and Jedis. The droids don't typically do much - but are required for certain puzzles. Shooters are characters who just have a blaster. They are pretty good for getting through large groups of enemies and can also use a grapple to move over obstacles. Jedis are, as expected, the most fun group. Along with being able to swing a lightsaber around, they can also use the Force. The Force is used in various places to get solve puzzles, or sometimes just as a way to get extra money.

What made the game most enjoyable though is the multiplayer aspect. My son and I played the entire game together, each of us using different characters. At many points during the game we had to stop and think about how to proceed. The puzzles don't normally take long to solve, but it was fun to work on them with my son. There were a few parts of the game that were a bit hard for my six your old, but the cool thing is that he could simply drop out - let me handle it - and then jump right back in once the hard part was over. Also - my son took great joy in "accidentally" shooting me every now and then. (I still think he was out to get me...)

One final note. The third movie of the prequels had a few elements that were a bit "intense" for younger kids. These scenes are (in general) not carried over to the game, and I do not think a parent needs to worry about them here.

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I am going to continue down the road of reviewing games one might not initially perceive as a ‘kids game’, and this week I am reviewing Zoo Tycoon 2 by Microsoft Studios. Unlike other games we have reviewed here, Zoo Tycoon 2 is not a console game, and is only available for PC. This may be obvious, but the objective of the game is to build a zoo. Like other 'Tycoon' or 'Sim-' games, you have a bevy of tools at your disposal to build youir zoo. A cool feature that my kids love is the ability to take pictures of your zoo and store them in a photo album.

You also have three modes of gameplay to choose from, Campaign, Challenge or Freeform.

• Campaign Mode: In Campaign Mode you choose scenerios with specific goals and a limited amoutn of money to accomplish the goals. Some of the goals include taking over dilapidated zoos and making them profitable, rescuing animals from abuse, or creating an environment for endangered species to thrive.
• Challenge Mode: In Challenge Mode, you select from different types of zoos, a 'City Zoo' for example, and complete 'Challenges' for each zoo. In one zoo, the first challenge is to take pictures of certain animals in different environments. When you choose a zoo, you have a certain amount of money, but you can control how much, or how little, you will have during the game.
• Freeform Mode: In Freeform Mode, you choose a template of a zoo, which basically consists of a basic topography, and an entrance. From there, you have an unlimited amount of money to build you zoo however you choose.

In Campaign and Challenge modes, as you progress thrugh the game, animal and other objects, such as shelters, buildings, toys, trees, plants, etc, become available to you. In Freeform mode, not only do you have unlimited funds, but you also have all animals and objects available from the start. As you could probably guess, my kids pretty much play Freeform mode.

When you start a game in Freeform mode, all you have is an entrance. You will need build the animal enclosures, hire staff to care for the animals and maintain the zoo, build shops, restrooms and other objects to keep your guests happy. When you start to build an enclosure, you must choose a fence that will be appropriate for the animal that will live in the enclosure. A tiger or lion will need a stronger fence than a grey wolf or a zebra.

After erecting the fence, typically you would add what ever animal the enclosure was built for. The game allows you to choose from male or female animals, though typically the animals will be happy if there are both male and female animals in the same enclosure. After that, you begin to customize the enclosure, by adding trees, shrubs, rocks, shelters and other items, until the animals are happy. If a green smiley face appears above the animal's head, then you animal is happy. If a red fronign facw appears above your animal's head, they are not happy. You will also need to hire zookeepers, who are responsible for feeding the animals, keeping the enclosures clean and general care of the animals. You will also need to hire maintenance workers who are respnsible for fixing broken enclosure fences and keeping the zoo clean for your guests. You cannot just build the enclosure and forget about it. As the game progresses, your animals may give birth, which might require additional shelters, or even a bigger enclosure. The enclosures themselves suffer damage as time goes by, and could lead to escaped animals.

You also need to remember to take care of your guests by providing restaurants, shops, restrooms and benches. Like your animals, there are smiley or frown faces that appear over each guest's head to let you know if they are happy or not.

There are currently 2 full 'expansion packs, 'Endangered Species' and 'African Adventure', available, as well as a smaller, downloadable package named 'Dino Danger Pack'. Each of these add new animals and objects to the game. We currently have the 'Endangered Species', which adds the ability to build a path through your zoo with self-guiding vehicles that follow the path, similar to the vehicles shown in Jurassic Park. One of the greatest features of the game is a 'Zoopedia' which displays information about each of the animals such as what their preferred diet is, what part of the world the animal is from and a list of 'Fun Facts' about the animal.

Kids who are able to read will be more 'self-sufficient' in learning how to play the game, and what the different menu options and icons mean. However, there is enough visual feedback so even kids who cannot read can enjoy the game just as much as those who can. Both my 7-year old and my 4-year old have put together fairly complex zoos with a wide variety of happy animals, and many happry guests. On a recent trip to the National Zoo, my 7-year old was ecstatic when he noticed that the outdoor gorilla enclosure at the zoo looked a lot like one he had built for his own gorillas in Zoo Tycoon.

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The Tony Hawk skateboarding game franchise now has multiple titles available for just about every gaming platform. Recognizing that the atmosphere, intensity, and language of these games if often inappropriate for younger players, the Tony Hawk team and Disney paired up to create Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure. The combination of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater engine and known loveable Disney characters is a sure win, right? Well, maybe not.

Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure allows kids to skate around worlds, earning points and solving puzzles so as to open additional worlds and unlock additional skaters and accessories (skateboards, apparel, and so on). Worlds are based on Disney themes, Buzz and Woody skate around Andy's Room and Pizza Planet, Pumbaa and Timon skate around the jungles, Tarzan and Jane skate all over Clayton's ship, and so on. The worlds are vast, and there are lots of them. Skating and exploring the worlds will entertain kids, at least initially. To complete worlds puzzles must be solved. These are usually a series of objects to be retrieved by skating up to them.

Each skater (both kid skaters and Disney character skaters) have different skill-levels, although there seemed to be no real difference between them in actual game play. It is also possible to create your own character, with extensive control over clothing and body characteristics (this feature was a big hit).

Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure is definitely targeted at the pre-teen crowd. The screens, the animation, the characters and their catch-phrases, and the rather juvenile humor are all designed to appeal to the young (as opposed to the young at heart).

Taking this into account the game has several real problems.

For starters, game play tends to be too difficult for young players. Not being able to complete missions will really frustrate kids, and my kids really did have a hard time completing missions. The skateboard moves have cutesy names (which differ based on the character you are playing as), and the characters responses to falling flat on their faces or butts will amuse (the first dozen or so times), but learning those moves will likely be beyond the capabilities of the players that this game will most appeal to, by which time those amusing responses will have started to become downright annoying.

In other words, the players who would have the skills to master the moves so as to complete missions and advance in the game won't want to play this game because it really is juvenile. And kids who know and love the characters and worlds will find the game too troublesome and frustrating.

The other aspect of the game that is highly inappropriate (considering the target demographic) is the amount of in game advertising. And there is nothing subtle about it. One mission involves obtaining Nokia ring tones in a specified amount of time (going so far as to provide the exact phone model number), and another involves delivering food for MacDonald's to win a pair of red clown's feet. Product placement is one thing, this goes way beyond what I'd consider acceptable.

Ironically, the youngest players in our household were the ones who liked this game the most. No, they've never completed a mission, and no, they don't even care to. They just like pushing buttons on the controller to make Andy and Tarzan skate around and fall off, and laugh hysterically at the silly one-liners.

If you are looking for a serious skateboarding game, this is decidedly not it. If you are looking for simple entertainment using well known Disney characters, then this may fit the bill initially, but kids will get frustrated by it quickly, and it is sure to join the stack of games they don't play.

Note: This game is also supported on PS2 and GameCube. As per company provided product details the game should be identical on all platforms, however we've only played it on Xbox, and this review is based only on the game as played.

This is an old game, but one that has stayed "in rotation" at my house since we picked it up a good year ago. If you aren't watching cartoons with your kids, shame on you, but if you are, hopefully you are watching SpongeBob SquarePants. This is - without a doubt - one of the funniest cartoons out there - no matter what your age. Despite that - I wasn't actually sure I should pick the game up for my child. Licensed games don't typically translate so well, a lesson my children will surely learn as they get older.

However I was very surprised by the game. It is not only fun, but challenging as well. Both my son, my wife, and I all played the game, which really speaks to how entertaining and approachable it is. At a basic level, the game involves a plot by Mr. Krab's nemesis, Plankton, trying to take over Bikini Bottom with robots. Things go slightly awry when the robots decide they no longer need to follow Plankton's order. SpongeBob and his friends have to help save Bikini Bottom from being overrun by the malicious robots. As you play the game you will run into pretty much everyone from the cartoon, all voiced, as far as I can tell, by the actual voice actors.

The game is a classic platformer, very much like Super Mario 64. There are a variety of levels and optional challenges you can take while playing the main quest. Your main objective is to defeat the robots, but you reach your goal by capturing Golden Spatulas. As you gain more spatulas, new realms open up to you and allow for more freedom to explore Bikini Bottom. One of the best parts of the game are the various races you do. I don't want to ruin the surprise - but the race in Sandy's dream made me laugh out loud. (Mainly because it confirmed what I truly think of Texas.)

The game lets you take on the role of SpongeBob along with Sandy (a squirrel from Texas) and Patrick, SpongeBob's not so intelligent starfish friend. Each character has a different set of abilities. SpongeBob learns new powers as the game progresses. Compared to Kameo, the multi-character aspect of this game is much easier. You pretty much are forced to change characters where you have to. This makes the game somewhat simpler.

My son was playing the game at four. While he has not been able to beat the final boss (I can't do it either!), the game is very large and he has gotten many hours of enjoyment from it. (And as I stated above, both myself and my wife have played it quite a lot as well.) The game requires some quick reflexes. Like Super Mario 64, there are levels where very precise jumping is required. Another thing I noticed was that the 3D aspect of the game took my four year old a few days to get used to. In general camera control is acceptable, but it does take a new game player some time to get used to. I would probably recommend it for six year olds at minimum, but as I said, my son played it earlier. The game is rated E for Everyone, and I certainly agree with that rating.

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Note: This game is also supported on PS2, GameCube, Gameboy Advance, PC and XBox platforms. This reviewer played it on the XBox.

On the surface, Tiger Woods PGA Tour '06 may not seem like a game for kids. Sure, there are no guns, or violence, or even adult themes, but for some reason people don't view this as a kids game. Maybe it's because people think you need to understand how to play golf to enjoy the game. It could stem from the increasing complexity of the controls of sports games in general. I think that Tiger Woods PGA Tour '06 can be as fun for kids as any other game, even for kids who do not know a thing about golf.

There are several modes of play available, including Rivals Mode, PGA Tour Season Mode, Battle Golf and Traditional Games.

• 'Rivals' mode would be similar to a 'career' or 'campaign' mode were you play against other 'golfers' controlled by the CPU. In this version of the game you face golfers, both real and fictional, from the past and present. As you progress through the game, you unlock other golfers and new courses, some real and some created in the minds of the EA Sports engineers.
• PGA Tour Season mode allows you to play through up to 30 years of PGA Tour events.
• Battle golf pits 2 players against each other in a match play event where the winner of each hole removes a club from the bag of his/her opponent, or adds one back to their own bag.
• Traditional Games lets you play against others, or by yourself in a variety of game formats, including stroke play or match play.

There is a 'Play Now' option on the main menu which will help you get out and playing quickly. This is configurable so that you may specify how many players will be playing, which course to play and which golfer to to play as. My kids prefer navigating through the menu so that they may pick there own golfer and course. As you may have guessed, more often than not, they want to play as Tiger. This is a great idea for kids playing for the first time because Tiger is, by far, the best golfer in the game. If you have four players, they can each choose Tiger, each with different clothes to make it easier to know who is who out on the course.

For most kids under 10, I would recommend playing stroke play under Traditional Games. For those unfamiliar with the term, 'stroke play' is when you add up your strokes for each hole for your total score. This is also the scoring method used during most professional golf events.

The game play could not be simpler. By default, the swing is controlled by the left thumb stick. You simply pull the thumb stick back to start the swing (the backswing), and you push it forward to complete the swing (the follow-through). That's it. It's that easy. There are ways you can get more complicated with the swing, like 'powering up' the swing by pressing the white button during the backswing and pressing the black button when the ball is in the air to put spin on the ball which controls how it will react when it lands. However, to enjoy the game, kids don't need to use any of these controls.

You have the choice of playing 11 licensed courses, as well as quite a few courses that were created just for the game. The 'real' courses tend to be easier to play than the 'fantasy' courses, and for first timers, I would recommend playing St. Andrews. Its has a wide open layout, very little water, and not one tree on the course. This makes it easier to recover from poor shots, which, in turn, gives you a better chance to shoot a good score. If kids can play well from the start, they will stay interested in the game. At least that's how it was with my kids.

My only complaint about the game is putting. There is a grid that appears on the green that is supposed to help you see whether the shot is uphill or downhill, or if it will break left or right. For me the grid and arrows that appear are confusing, and I often misinterpret this information and 'misread' the green. My kids, however, don't even notice the grid, nor do they re-adjust there aim to take into account that they may be putting uphill, or downhill. Yet, they both enjoy the game quite a bit.

One feature of the game which has kept my kids occupied longer than I thought possible is the 'Game Face'. You can create your own profile, which allows you to track your scores and accomplishments throughout all modes of play. While creating your profile, you have the ability to design your own golfer. You can choose more details about your golfer than you could probably imagine. From clothing styles and colors, to club selection, to height and weight, to facial features, you can control every physical feature of your golfer. My kids have spent time trying to see who can make their golfer look the funniest, and can be heard laughing about it all the way upstairs. Fortunately, you can bypass most of this or only choose to alter a few features, such as hair style and color.

To give you an idea of how kid friendly the game can be, my youngest son, who is 4, scored 3 strokes under par the second time he ever played the game, and my oldest son, who is 7, almost beat me last week. With the kids playing as Tiger, and I as my profile character, the game is almost even because Tiger is a better golfer than my character, and the kids often out drive me off the tee. While knowledge of the game, and how it is played is not essential, an interest in golf is definitely a plus. My kids' interest in golf has actually increased since they start playing the video game on a regular basis.

Note: This game is also supported on PS2, GameCube and XBox 360. As per company provided product details the game should be identical on all platforms, however we've only played it on Xbox, and this review is based only on the game as played.
Screenshots shown are from Xbox 360 version.