Fin Fin on Teo, the Magic Planet
Reviewed by Cynthia A. Sorrels
Published by Fujitsu Interactive

Age Group: Age 4 to 8 Type: More Fun Price: $ 59.95 US

PC version requires:
P75 16 MB RAM, 8 MB RAM, 2x CD-ROM, Joystick Port, Windows 95, 640x480x256, Mouse, keyboard, sensor (included)

Mac version requires:
Version not available.

Description:

Fin Fin is a half-dolphin, half bird creature who lives on Teo, the Magic Planet. He wants to be your friend but is quite wary at first. It takes time and patience to becojme his friend. Fin Fin comes with the CD-ROM and a sensor that plugs into the joystick port, as well as a whistle to use to call him. Be aware, this is not like Creatures, Dogz, or Catz. Fin Fin is a true A-Life product, an extremely ambitious project from the people at Fujitsu Interactive, the first Artificial Intelligence program targeted towards kids. I understand there will also be a Fin Fin Storybook before long, chronicles of his adventures on Teo.

The GDR staff has been attempting to review this title for some time. Unfortunately, I don't have a joystick port installed on my laptop and our 486, which has a joystick port, isn't up to the system requirements. Fin Fin's first journey was to Jason Levine, where he and his 4 year old son looked at Fin Fin but didn't get very far with it. After a couple of weeks, we made the decision to send it on to Ed Fielding, the GDR Sensory Perceptions Editor (hardware reviews.) Ed couldn't get any response at all from Fin Fin and we concluded that the "Smart Sensor" may have been damaged in transit.

I wonder if either of them tried turning "Communication On" from the keyboard...

Anyhow, the kind folks at Fujitsu Interactive sent a replacement package to me, so we were back to square one! I finally took it over to CyberExchange where the owners graciously allowed me to borrow a system and run Fin Fin. (Jane, thanks! Enjoyed talking to you !)

The set-up and installation were no problem. I remembered to turn "on" the communication option, grabbed the whistle and here came Fin Fin. Mostly he sat, watching. I was careful to move slowly - the sensor translates movement as well as sound. Then, if you turn on the Bio-Scan, it shows what Fin Fin is feeling - in this case, fear. As I chatted with Fin Fin, several times he came close and looked around, chattered at me, then flew off. His fear levels dropped markedly over the next hour as I offered him fruit and talked to him.

This title is not the sort that grants instant gratification. Younger children may have a hard time understanding why Fin Fin isn't instantly their friend, especially if they own the stuffed version of the little guy. However, once Fin Fin is your friend, it's for life, and he will know when you're in the room - eventually, he may even greet you when you enter the room.

Opinions:

As was mentioned earlier, this is an extremely ambitious project, beautifully presented and supported by the Fujitsu Interactive organization at its website with coloring pages and an opportunity for kids to find and help identify the various creatures that pop up on the planet.

The only problem I see here is that it should have, perhaps, been targeted towards older kids or even teens. Children 4 to 8 will probably not be willing/able to give the time that building a relationship with Fin Fin requires. But if you're willing to spend an hour a day to make friends, Fin Fin is happy to oblige.

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