Net Jet Online Video Games System

We were at Wal-Mart yesterday and I was in a buying mood and it was also allowance day in our home . Near the electronics/toy section 2 unusually pretty girls were promoting video game thingy I couldn’t really figure out at first. It was called Net Jet Online Gaming System
You basically plugin a remote into usb on computer or laptop ( does not work with MAC) and game pops up. You do need t be connected to Internet. The girls told me dial-up was fine but box says Broadband ( I was hoping to use at homeschool group we go to were there is only VERY slow dial-up) .They had two computers set up so kids could test them.

It was pretty easy and I did like that no pop ups or downloading. The drawback is that remote comes with 1 “main” game and then you can choose 3 games once hooked up. There is no way to buy games other than to get another Main game then the 3 games again. Pretty irritating. Of course my daughter picked the first 3 games that caught her eye and hated them.
The remote cam with Bubble Blaster and bother she (10) and her brother (4) are enjoying it.

I bought them the remote with game and she wants to back and get another game key Monday. The remote with 3+1 games was 27.98. To buy another game key was 14.98.
I am not sure of play value but I don’t think Nintendo and X-box have anything to worry about

Net Jet Looks like This:

Extra Game Keys:

Posted by Lisa - Unschooling Mom as Fun Activities for Kids, Online Games and Game Downloads, Video Games at 12:49 PM EDT

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FINALLY! An online, FREE version of a family favorite of ours- Blokus.
The official Blokus website has come out with a flash version of their Blokus board game.
The site also has info on strategy, rules, etc .
If you have not tried the game - well worth the time and money. It is a game even my non-game enjoying partner ( and yes, I married him anyway) likes to play. It is good for about ages 6+.

Sign up for a 14-day free trial of GamePass here and get two free games ($40 Value.)

Posted by Lisa - Unschooling Mom as Board Games and Board Game Reviews and Recommendations, Online Games and Game Downloads, Outstanding Sites and Resources at 1:40 PM EDT

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‘Speare is a fast-paced, highly addictive space shooter game that teaches literacy skills in a beautifully designed graphic environment. You can download trial version here

Although I have a real problem with the way the game is being marketed ( positioning itself a a TRUE learning game, trick your kids into “learning” something, video games in general have no value or no opportunity for learning, blah, blah, blah) I like the concept of the game itsself.

From the website:
‘Speare fuses fast-paced online arcade game action with the curricular goals of literacy promotion using Shakespeare’s tragedy Romeo and Juliet.

In the style of classic arcade games, ‘Speare launches the player into outer space on a mission to reclaim stolen knowledge (story traces) based on Shakespeare’s plays. By collecting words, phrases, and facts through game play, ‘Speare challenges its players to use information to become successful knowledge gatherers. Only through knowledge gathering can a player successfully complete the game.

One of the unique gaming features of ‘Speare is that it reads Romeo and Juliet as a play about the failure of a community of people to communicate with each other to resolve their conflicts non-violently. The game builds on this lesson and reinforces the value of creative communication and literacy instead of violence and destruction.
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Posted by Lisa - Unschooling Mom as General Homeschool and Unschooling, Online Games and Game Downloads at 7:57 PM EDT

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Yes- I am addicted to this game- it has reached embarrassing levels. I have a cramp in my index finger from spelling so wildly -defeating monsters, mythological creatures and the undead. My kids LOVE playing along with me- and the game is one we all enjoy. You do need to be able to spell/read to play, thou. My son helps me play by pressing the “attack” key and watching monsters be destroyed by really good words spelled from the tile board.

My girlfriend said she thought of me while watching a recent “Simpsons”
episode- where Marge gets hooked a a PC video game… .

When I got REALLY stuck I used one of the tips below. One of the kids in my homeschool groups also likes to play and he has struggled a bit and used as well- so I thought I would post and share.
Has any one else enjoyed playing this game? Share you “Bookworm Adventures” story with us !

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BOOKWORM ADVENTURES
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Game Created by: PopCap Games ( http://www.popcap.com )

*** THIS FAQ CONTAINS STORYLINE SPOILERS! THIS IS YOUR ONLY WARNING! ***

===============================================================================
SECTION 0. TABLE OF CONTENTS
===============================================================================

Note: To instantly jump to any section of the FAQ, highlight the term you see
inside the parentheses ( ) to the right, copy it (Ctrl+C), do a page find
(Ctrl+F), paste the term (Ctrl+V) in the box, and click to search for it.

1. Copyright Site Listing (sec1copy)
2. Introduction (sec2intro)
3. Game Information (sec3game)
- a. About The Game (sec3about)
- b. Gameplay (sec3play)
- c. Tile Types (sec3tile)
- d. Potions & Treasures (sec3potion)
- e. Status Ailments & Enemy Lore (sec3status)
- f. Lex’s Levels (sec3levels)
4. Adventure (sec4advent)
- a. Book 1: Oedipus Lex (sec4book1)
- b. Book 2: Arabian Knight (sec4book2)

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Posted by Lisa - Unschooling Mom as General Homeschool and Unschooling, Great Games : Unschool, Online Games and Game Downloads at 10:40 PM EDT

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Get Bookworm Deluxe FREE with GamePass
I am addicted to this game. Both my kids sit and watch me play, root me on to the next level and ask what a word means. I have also been known to stay up late and play on own or “compete” with another homeschool mom I know.
Oh- and if kids want to play they can take a turn too

I am ADDICTED to Bookworm Deluxe, from Popcap Games , also the makers of my online game addiction 2003, Insaniqurium , and addiction 2004 Zuma . You can play free online with non-deluxe version and then for a few hours in trial version or buy they PC version with some expanded play. I believe you can download and buy online.

If you or your kids enjoy Boggle or Scrabble they will love this game. Bookworm is sort of like Boggle , with a few twists. There are “burning” tiles which can set fire to your whole library if you don’t use the words quickly in a word, bonus pints for getting certain words and of course ever more points and higher ranking. My highest so far is something called ” Glossary-phoger” and 280,000 points. My best words have been BOWER for 3500 points and longest HEARING. Word I am MOST proud of is ” QUEUES”

Please feel free to brag and share strategy here!

Posted by Lisa - Unschooling Mom as General Homeschool and Unschooling, Online Games and Game Downloads at 5:51 PM EDT

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