December 2008 New Specialty Toys — General Games

Journey to Ancient Egypt's sacred Nile valley! Great kings compete to forge mighty kingdoms in a struggle to control the land of "Kemet." Along the banks of the great river they expand their influence and explore new territory. And they hope to earn the favor of the great falconheaded god Horus. Are you the one to unite the valley into one great kingdom? With clever use of card and tile play, you guide the course of the sacred river, and the lands that surround it! You determine where the desert will give way to the green marshes, red hills, and rich black farmlands of this ancient land. Using your influence, you gain control of valuable regions. You may even build a holy necropolis to thwart the expansion plans of your foes. If true and noble, you might even earn the blessings of the Horus temple!

Descend deep into the interior of the earth, as you lead the three adventurers from Jules Verne’s classic novel: Professor Lidenbrock, his nephew Axel and their guide Hans. Begin your amazing journey with entry through the crater of the dormant Icelandic volcano Snaefells. Explore a dense forest of giant mushrooms, traverse a turbulent underground ocean, before you are hurled out of an Italian volcano to return to the earth's surface.  On your journey, collect fossils both small and large, collect gold and overcome obstacles through the prudent acquisition and use of select equipment. Explore the many parts of the subterranean cavern, using equipment and luck are critical to overcoming the obstacles within your path. The player who can escape with the best collection of artifacts is the winner. Will you direct our heroes on a journey of danger, discovery and fortune?

Each colorful set features a 52-card playing card deck and an illustrated booklet of biographical essays. The historic portraits and engaging stories feature lesser-known, 19th-century Native Americans as well as some of the most important American Indian leaders. These sets are entertaining as well as educational. Set One includes Red Cloud, Sitting Bull and Cochise. Set Two includes Geronimo, Tecumseh and Ten Bears. Launch date: October 1, 2008.

Isolate begins with the tactical positioning of game pieces on the board. Then it's a race to be the first player to "slide, separate, and remove" all your pieces. Simple to learn, yet challenging enough for experienced competitors. Isolate is a great game for two to four players of all ages.

This 20- to 30-minute game offers 432 different oddball scenarios (for example: You’re dining with the president of Finland and roasted reindeer and fish pie are on the menu). Players predict which person in the group is most likely (Party Animal) and least likely (Party Pooper) to go along with a given scenario.

This game allows children to practice creating singular from plural words and vice-versa. It goes over eight rules for making words plural, strengthening both oral and written language skills.

Features hundreds of color photographs of art and artifacts found at the Smithsonian museums. Study the items on your assignment card, then guess which one doesn’t fit. Use the decoder/magnifier to see if you’re right as you try to be the first expert to reach finish. For 2 to 4 players, ages 8 and up.

Race to gather the food your panda needs. When you land on a bamboo space, activate the mother panda to come down the tree. She may help you win. Learn interesting panda facts as you play the game. For 2 to 4 players, ages 5 and up.

Zillio has 12 colorful staircases based upon multiplication tables. The visual and tactile relationships between steps enable kids to discover and master difficult math concepts as they learn and play with 10 essential math skills. Mega Zillio is the larger version of the Mini Zillio. It handles numbers up to 60, and measures 27" x 27" x 12". It does everything the Mini does but can have up to 6 players at a time and the same games included require more challenging play and problem solving to come out on top.

Zillio has 12 colorful staircases based upon multiplication tables. The visual and tactile relationships between steps enable kids to discover and master difficult math concepts as they learn and play with 10 essential math skills.  Mini Zillio handles numbers up to 36, and measures 18" x 18" x 8", compared to Mega Zillio's 27" x 27" x 12.5". For up to 4 players at a time.
Awards: 2010 Tillywig Brain Child