Rhymes & Riddles (Atari 400)

Rhymes and Riddles turns popular nursery rhymes, riddles and famous sayings into letter-guessing contests for kids 5 to 9. The program gives youngsters practice reading and spelling and helps them become familiar with the computer keyboard.

The program contains three games. The first asks users to complete a famous nursery rhyme. The second game poses a riddle to be solved. The third requires kids to complete a famous saying.

Nursery Rhymes displays blank spaces for the words of the first line of each poem, for the user to fill in. Guess a letter to fill each appropriate space until it's clear what words complete the text. Then the computer plays the first line of the nursery song and displays the next row of blanks to be completed. Once all four lines of the poem are typed, the computer plays the complete song and displays a picture.

The Riddles game works similarly. The computer asks a riddle, such as "What did the road say to the bridge?" and displays blanks for the gamer to guess letters until words take shape. ("You make me cross!" is the correct answer to this puzzle.) There are over 100 riddles included in the program, all suitable for pre-teens.

The Famous Sayings game displays blanks to be completed to reveal a line of a almanac-style wisdom, such as "All things come to him who waits", or "Haste makes waste."

The program is easy to use, but younger players will need parental instruction to get the hang of guessing the words by using letter-frequency code-breaking techniques. The simple, uncomplicated graphics and the cheerful nursery music help make Rhymes and Riddles a sure pleaser for young computerists.