Richard Scarry's Busytown
Encyclopedia
Richard Scarry's Busytown is a Sega Genesis and MS-DOS
video game that was released for a younger generation of gamers. This game was based on the television show The Busy World of Richard Scarry
that was produced by CINAR
and Paramount Television
.
. Most of the game is spent exploring Busytown
looking for things to interact with using either the gamepad or a special mouse that could be purchased separately from the game and the console system. Young gamers will do everything from building things
to delivering something to repair a ship
. Games are relatively short and can be finished in about an hour. Familiar faces from Richard Scarry's works of literature include Huckle Cat and Lowly Worm
.
There is also a game where the player controls the wind
and can cause controlled havoc at the city park. All games offer basic vocabulary
practice as simple puzzles help improve basic problem solving
and English language
skills. The voice quality of this game is realistic when compared to the cartoons of that era. All of the characters act and talk like their counterparts in the books and the cartoon series. If the player puts too much lemonade or soda in the glass and spills some out of the glass, then one of the characters asks the player "Are you blind
?" in a gentle voice. Delivering stuff allows the town to slowly come to life.
through second grade
audience and was released for MS-DOS
in addition to the Macintosh
. Children that play this game learn to assemble machinery, bake bread
, and complete other processes that are necessary to live life. This game makes kids think where food
comes from, how bread is baked, and so on. Different outcomes can be observed through the several different learning methods. Young players can also learn vocabulary
, word recognition, and sequencing.
This video game was remade in 1999 by Simon & Schuster Software. It was released for the Microsoft Windows
and Macintosh operating systems, and featured improved graphics and animation resembling the 1993 Busy World of Richard Scarry animated series. The gameplay is still the same, and the original songs from the 1993 release are included. However, the Bananas Gorilla portion of the game was removed.
MS-DOS
MS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers. It was the most commonly used member of the DOS family of operating systems, and was the main operating system for IBM PC compatible personal computers during the 1980s to the mid 1990s, until it was gradually superseded by operating...
video game that was released for a younger generation of gamers. This game was based on the television show The Busy World of Richard Scarry
The Busy World of Richard Scarry
The Busy World of Richard Scarry is a Canadian/French animated children's television series, produced by CINAR Animation and France Animation in association with Paramount Television, which aired from 1994 to 1997, first on Showtime, later on Nickelodeon, and ran for 65 episodes...
that was produced by CINAR
Çinar
Çınar is a district of Diyarbakır Province of Turkey and also the name of downtown of Denizli city of Denizli Province of Turkey....
and Paramount Television
Paramount Television
Paramount Television was an American television production/distribution company that was active from January 1, 1968 to August 27, 2006.Its successor is CBS Television Studios, formerly CBS Paramount Television...
.
Gameplay
The game consists of an interactive story book that was written by Richard ScarryRichard Scarry
Richard McClure Scarry was a popular American children's author and illustrator who published over 300 books with total sales of over 100 million units worldwide....
. Most of the game is spent exploring Busytown
Busytown
Busytown is a fictional town inhabited by an assortment of anthropomorphic animals, as depicted in various books by the children's author Richard Scarry. Main characters of these books include the following: Huckle Cat, Lowly Worm, Mr. Frumble, police Sergeant Murphy, Mr...
looking for things to interact with using either the gamepad or a special mouse that could be purchased separately from the game and the console system. Young gamers will do everything from building things
Construction
In the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of human multitasking...
to delivering something to repair a ship
Ship
Since the end of the age of sail a ship has been any large buoyant marine vessel. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size and cargo or passenger capacity. Ships are used on lakes, seas, and rivers for a variety of activities, such as the transport of people or goods, fishing,...
. Games are relatively short and can be finished in about an hour. Familiar faces from Richard Scarry's works of literature include Huckle Cat and Lowly Worm
Lowly Worm
Lowly Worm is a fictional character created by Richard Scarry; he frequently appears in children's books by Scarry, and is a main character in the animated series The Busy World of Richard Scarry and Busytown Mysteries. In The Busy World of Richard Scarry he is voiced by Keith Knight.Lowly is an...
.
There is also a game where the player controls the wind
Wind
Wind is the flow of gases on a large scale. On Earth, wind consists of the bulk movement of air. In outer space, solar wind is the movement of gases or charged particles from the sun through space, while planetary wind is the outgassing of light chemical elements from a planet's atmosphere into space...
and can cause controlled havoc at the city park. All games offer basic vocabulary
Vocabulary
A person's vocabulary is the set of words within a language that are familiar to that person. A vocabulary usually develops with age, and serves as a useful and fundamental tool for communication and acquiring knowledge...
practice as simple puzzles help improve basic problem solving
Problem solving
Problem solving is a mental process and is part of the larger problem process that includes problem finding and problem shaping. Consideredthe most complex of all intellectual functions, problem solving has been defined as higher-order cognitive process that requires the modulation and control of...
and English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
skills. The voice quality of this game is realistic when compared to the cartoons of that era. All of the characters act and talk like their counterparts in the books and the cartoon series. If the player puts too much lemonade or soda in the glass and spills some out of the glass, then one of the characters asks the player "Are you blind
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
?" in a gentle voice. Delivering stuff allows the town to slowly come to life.
Sequel and remake
There was a sequel for this game titled Richard Scarry's How Things Work In Busytown which received a 1994 North America-exclusive release from Pearson Software and Simpon & Schuster. Like the original game, it is intended for a pre-kindergartenPre-Kindergarten
Pre-kindergarten refers to the first formal academic classroom-based learning environment that a child customarily attends in the United States. It begins between the ages of 3-5 depending on the length of the program...
through second grade
Second grade
In the United States, second grade is a year of primary education. Second grade is the second school year after kindergarten. Students are traditionally 7–8 years old, depending on when their birthday occurs....
audience and was released for MS-DOS
MS-DOS
MS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers. It was the most commonly used member of the DOS family of operating systems, and was the main operating system for IBM PC compatible personal computers during the 1980s to the mid 1990s, until it was gradually superseded by operating...
in addition to the Macintosh
Macintosh
The Macintosh , or Mac, is a series of several lines of personal computers designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. The first Macintosh was introduced by Apple's then-chairman Steve Jobs on January 24, 1984; it was the first commercially successful personal computer to feature a mouse and a...
. Children that play this game learn to assemble machinery, bake bread
Bread
Bread is a staple food prepared by cooking a dough of flour and water and often additional ingredients. Doughs are usually baked, but in some cuisines breads are steamed , fried , or baked on an unoiled frying pan . It may be leavened or unleavened...
, and complete other processes that are necessary to live life. This game makes kids think where food
Food
Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
comes from, how bread is baked, and so on. Different outcomes can be observed through the several different learning methods. Young players can also learn vocabulary
Vocabulary
A person's vocabulary is the set of words within a language that are familiar to that person. A vocabulary usually develops with age, and serves as a useful and fundamental tool for communication and acquiring knowledge...
, word recognition, and sequencing.
This video game was remade in 1999 by Simon & Schuster Software. It was released for the Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
and Macintosh operating systems, and featured improved graphics and animation resembling the 1993 Busy World of Richard Scarry animated series. The gameplay is still the same, and the original songs from the 1993 release are included. However, the Bananas Gorilla portion of the game was removed.