How The Camel Got It's Hump

A review by Michael Gartenberg

Copyright RIPC © 1993
Resource International Publishing Company
Route 1, Box 168
Milford, TX 76670
CompuServe 70053,1502


System Requirements: Philips CD-I Player and color TV with RCA audio/TV jacks.

The Philip's CD-I system has always been strong with solid family oriented titles, such as the acclaimed Sesame Street series.  With "How the Camel Got It's Hump" Phillips has scored again.  Combining a classic tale by Rudyard Kipling (of Jungle Book fame) with top notch music by Bobby McFarrin and a stirring narration by Jack Nicholson, Phillips has created a multi-media story telling experience that will delight children of all ages.

The disc opens with a clever animated wizard who presents the available choices: Read the story, Play the interactive games based on the story or Exit.  Each icon is clearly labeled and has an audio prompt that is triggered when the cursor passes over the icon.

The story of the Camel who refused to work and who would only say "Humph" is wonderfully narrated by Nicholson.  The graphics are beautiful and capture the feeling of the story well.  The music sets the tone and is accentuated by the fact that it is full CD audio quality that we are listening to.

There are several interactive games based on the story.  They are mostly visual and are perfectly suited to the pre-reading set.  The games include pattern recognition, character familiarity from the story (the games introduction advises children to listen to the story prior to playing the game) and a concentration style matching.  Each game section has full audio and graphics created in same general style as the story.

An especially nice feature are the parental notes section that offers story background, reading level selection a toggle for the on-screen text.  There are also some nice ideas for non-CD related activities relating to the story.

My only quibble with the disc is there is no way to go to a story in progress with a bookmark in place.  One may use arrows to skip to different points within the text, but a bookmark feature tied to the CD-I's memory would have been appreciated.

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Published by Philips Interactive Media of America (PIMA), 11111 Santa Monica Boulevard Suite 700 Los Angeles, CA 90025 USA  Tel: (310) 444-6600   Fax (310) 479-5937

Retail price: $19.98