The Game of Life Gets zAPPed!

Wow! Talk about a classic board game getting a 21st century make-over! The Game of Life zAPPed Edition has got to be one of the coolest games we’ve played in a very long time.

Hasbro is excited to introduce zAPPed Gaming, which combines the fun of traditional face-to-face game play with the increased functionality of digital gaming for a brand new, innovative experience. The Game of Life zAPPed, brings the family-favorite game to life with the integration of an iPad. Simply cue up The Game Of Life zAPPed app on the iPad, place the iPad on the zAPPed game board, and watch as the technology of the app and the game pieces bring the game to life.

We recently had the opportunity to review this game and we had so much fun that we played it 3 times in a row! We just couldn’t get over the way the iPad and the game board interacted with each other and kept track of the player’s various accomplishments. There were also a few added features that made us feel like our player (colored peg) was tailored to each one of us.

Set up was super easy. We just downloaded the FREE app from iTunes, fired up the app on the iPad, placed it in the center of the board, and we were ready to go! Each player chose a colored car and a pink or blue peg on the iPad screen. We then were able to type in our name as well as personalized our peg image with hair styles, hair color, clothing, and accessories.

Game play was basically the same as the original Game of Life. However, instead of spinning the wheel on the board we had to spin the virtual wheel on the iPad screen. The iPad even made the same click-click noise we’re so used to hearing while we watched the numbers go round ‘n round.

One of the really cool features of the game is that when you get to the first STOP space you’re able to choose which profession you’d like to go into. They have some really cute career images on the screen as well as a selection of job-related tokens that your character will carry throughout the rest of the game. For example, Kiana chose to be a Movie Star so her peg character carried an Oscar throughout the game.

Another cool part is when you get married. You get to choose who your spouse will be and where you’d like to go on your honeymoon. And when it comes to having babies you can select the gender of your child. My only suggestion would have been to make it a surprise since no one really chooses the sex of their baby in real life.

This game also incorporates videos from the hit television show America’s Funniest Videos. When you land on specific spots you’ll be able to watch a video clip that relates to what’s happening on the board. For example, when Kacie graduated from college we watched a video of someone doing somersaults at their graduation ceremony.

One new thing is that when you land on PayDay you can play a mini-game that will give you a monetary bonus depending on how well you do. In one of the games, they had cups that cover different amounts of money. The cups then rotated for a few minutes and in the end you had to select the cup you thought had the most money in it.

You also collect virtual tokens for various life accomplishments throughout the game that are worth money in the end.

When you get to the finish, the app will ask you to input the amount of money you’ve collected and then it will add in your tokens as well as pay you for all the children that you’ve had.

It will then show you the score board (podium style) of how well everyone did.

And as a final touch, you’ll get to see your entire virtual family sitting on a couch with photographs hanging on the wall behind them showcasing a few of your greatest moments of the game . . . your wedding day, your honeymoon, when your kids were born, etc.

I have to say that I am blown away by what technology can do. Hasbro has combined a popular electronic gadget with a classic board game and seamlessly integrated them into an amazing experience. The Game of Life has always been one of my favorite games but this was something totally new, totally fun, and totally awesome!

Purchase your The Game of Life: zAPPed Edition for iPad at Amazon.com for $23.25.

This post was written for Hasbro who provided the complimentary product in exchange for my honest review.

Wikki Stix Create-A-Card Fun Kit

For me, the best kind of creative activity is the kind that keeps the kids quiet and mess-free. Now I know that sounds pretty much impossible but we’ve found it in Wikki Stix!

Wikki Stix are made of hand-knitting yarn with food-grade, non-toxic wax. Simply stated…they stick! No glue, no paste, no mess. Just press them down with light fingertip pressure and they will adhere to almost any smooth surface. They are also easy to peel up and reposition so “mistakes” virtually disappear, which helps build self-confidence. There is no preparation, no clean-up, no mess. Press ‘em down, peel ‘em off… it’s that simple! Ages 3 and up.

We received the Wikki Stix Create-A-Card Fun Kit ($14.95) which includes:

• 16 – blank cards
• 16 – Pre-printed design sheets
• 96 – 6″ Wiki Stix in 12 different colors

Using Wikki Stix is super easy! If you’re using the pre-printed design sheets just read the bottom corner to find out how many Wikki Stix you’ll need.

Peel off the desired number of stix from the plastic backing and get started. Each picture is designed in a connect-the-dot kind of format by using numbers or letters.

The great thing is that if your child makes a mistake they can easily pull off the stix from the paper and try again. It leaves no colored marks or sticky residue.

Kiana (6) decided to try the butterfly design which called for 4 Wikki Stix in her choice of colors. Of course, she chose pink and was able to complete her picture in a matter of minutes. She did come out a little short in the end but we just moved the stix around a little until the ends met up. The design sheets are perfect for her age group.

I have no idea what’s going on with that right wing but she liked it that way.

And if your child is feeling extra creative they can use the blank cards to make a picture all their own.

Did you know you can use Wiki Stix around your home as well? We used some of the Wikki Stix to secure our cords and keep them tidy. How cool is that?

These kits would also be great to take along on road trips, plane rides, or even to keep kids entertained in restaurants.

Stop by Wikki Stix and check out the rest of their product line. You’ll be amazed at all the things you can do with theses color stix!

This post was written for Wikki Stix who provided the complimentary product in exchange for my honest review.

Cody Simpson Dolls Available Exclusively at Toys”R”Us

Cody Simpson, the Australian born singer and songwriter is rapidly becoming a pop idol, approaching 2 million Twitter followers, 2 million Facebook likes and over 100 million YouTube views. The teen star came in at number 13 on Billboard’s 21 Under 21: Music’s Hottest Minor’s for 2011. Simpson is now poised to ascend even higher with the recent release of his EP, “COAST TO COAST,” which features the Top 40 smash, “On My Mind,” as well as the classic heartbreak ballad, “Not Just You.”

Now fans can bring their favorite singer home with them with a brand new line of Cody Simpson dolls ($16.99) available exclusively at Toys“R”Us and ToysRUs.com.

Simpson said, “The Wish Factory did a tremendous job and I am amazed at how closely the doll resembles me. The clothes are modeled off actual stuff I wear, which is pretty cool. When you’re a kid and you see action figures and dolls in stores and stuff like that, you never really imagine seeing yourself there, so it’s just a dream come true to see something like this – especially at a store as iconic as Toys R Us.”

We received a Cody Simpson doll which Kacie went crazy for!

She’s a big fan of the singer and couldn’t believe that he has a doll out on the market. Kiana didn’t know who he was but she was just happy that her girl Barbies have a new male friend to hang out with.

Our Cody Simpson doll came dressed with a white graphic t-shirt and khaki pants. The box also included shoes, sunglasses, a microphone and a Cody Simpson lanyard with guitar pick charm. The cool thing is that Kacie can wear the guitar pick charm on her own chain whenever she wants to.

The doll has moveable joints so that you can bend his arms and legs which makes him a lot more fun to play with. His face really does look like the real thing and you can totally tell it’s him. However, we thought that he should have had more life-like hair like most of the other Barbie & Ken dolls have. But we didt like that he’s the same size as our Ken dolls which means that this doubles his wardrobe! I think it’s great that the girls have both male and female dolls to play with . . . more like real life.

This post was written for The Wish Factory who provided the complimentary product in exchange for my honest review.

K’NEX Building Sets

One of my girls favorite kind of toys are those where they can use their imaginations and build things. That’s why we were thrilled for the opportunity to review a couple of building sets from K’NEX.

OUR REVIEW

We received two different sets that were targeted for different age groups:

• Sesame Street Best Friends on the Farm (2 – 5 years) $5.99
• Cosmic Twist Coaster (9 years +) $50.99

Kiana & Kaila loved the Sesame Street Best Friends on the Farm Collection. This basic set contained 7 over-sized pieces that were perfect for their tiny hands.

We liked that the blocks fit together easily and stayed together even when they were playing with their creations. We could mix and match the heads, shirts, and bottoms to create different looking characters. The only thing we would have liked is an extra hat so that both characters could have something to wear on their heads at the same time.

The Cosmic Twist Coaster was a little more advanced and would be great for older kids with active imaginations. It contained 637 pieces which were packed in individual plastic bags mostly by color. I really appreciated that since it would have taken me forever to separate them all.

To keep everything somewhat organized we opened up the packages and left the pieces in their groups on a bin cover. This way we could easily move everything whenever we needed break.

Now, out of all the K’NEX sets that we’ve built before I have to say that this one was the most challenging so far. It took us almost the entire day to build it because we made some mistakes along the way. We had a little trouble following the diagram since all the pieces are so colorful. However, if you took your time and really studied the pictures you could figure it out. When we were done we felt a real sense of accomplishment!

The tower stands 3’6″ tall and is very sturdy. Their is a motor (2 AA batteries, not included) on the top of the tower that moves the car up the structure. Once the car goes over the edge it moves on it’s own through the tracks. At first I wasn’t sure if the car could stay on the tracks but then realized that the tracks are threaded through the car’s wheels. Because of this we found that we could actually design the tracks pretty much any way we wanted it to be. Of course, the tower itself had to built exactly as directed since the set allows for exactly the right amount of pieces.

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What we really liked about the Cosmic Twist Coaster is the way it made us think constructively. If the car got stuck in the same area every time then we needed to figure out how to make speed and momentum work to our advantage. In the end, our fingers were a little sore but we were thrilled when the little car was finally able to make complete laps. It was a great opportunity for some quality family time and it definitely taught the girls to be patient and read the directions carefully! A good lesson for all of us!

This post was written for K’NEX who provided the complimentary product in exchange for our honest review.

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