Game Details
Price
  • $19.99
Available on
Genre
More details
See more game reviews

The Search for Amelia Earhart (Windows)

common sense media says

Search-and-find game with interesting historical plot.

parents & educators say
Be the first to review it

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this history-based search-and-find puzzle game is all about female empowerment and how Amelia Earhart broke down gender boundaries in aviation. To this purpose, the game presents one reprehensible character who spouts chauvinistic language in several scenes. Younger children may not fully understand that this character is included as a negative stereotype. The main character is a psychic, who uses her special abilities to sense what happened to Earhart. Parents should guage how their children might react to the true-to-life ending involving Earhart's death.

Educational value: Though the game presents a fictional storyline, all the information about Amelia Earhart is factually correct. There's a decent biography of Earhart embedded within the plot.
Positive messages: The game lauds Earhart's many accomplishements and uses her as an example of all that women can achieve. However, the protagonist, Christine is portrayed as a psychic, a supernatural touch in an otherwise very realistic story. 
Positive role models: Earhart herself, as well as Christine, the hero of the game, are presented as smart, capable women worthy of emulation. One male character is presented as a chauvinist who spews demeaning comments, but he is there to give the game some historical accuracy.
Ease of play: Gameplay is simple and easy to handle. You can choose timed play or untimed, for a more casual experience.
Violence: A pie in the face is the extent of it.
Sex: One female character shows a bit of cleavage in a V-neck sweater. 
Language: One male character, meant to be portrayed in a negative light, intentionally demeans women with names like "chick" and "babe," and makes comments about how women are better off baking cakes.
Consumerism: The disc comes loaded with demos of other purchasable games by the same publisher.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Cigars are in the visuals of the game, but never seen lit and never smoked by any characters.
Our ratings and reviews are informed by child development guidelines. Learn more.

More on The Search for Amelia Earhart

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
  • Families can talk about women's history and Amelia Earhart in particular. How did Earhart change the way women were viewed in her time? Why are the vast majority of pilots still male, though? Have we come far enough in that regard?
  • Families can also discuss the inclusion of the nasty, chauvinistic landlord character in the game. Why include an offensive character in a game about women's accomplishments and importance to history? Can this character be misinterpreted?
  • The main character is portrayed as a psychic. What do you think of a character having special abilities to sense what happened in the past?

What's the story?

What's the story?
In the 1940's, a psychic named Christine, who cites Amelia Earhart as her inspiration, uses her mental powers to try to figure out what happened to the missing pilot. In THE SEARCH FOR AMELIA EARHART, Christine visits important places in Earhart's life, touching items to get impressions of the past. As the story progresses, Christine grows older and is aided in her quest by her niece. The gameplay revolves mostly around search-and-find puzzles, in which the player must locate a number of objects hidden among a cluttered and chaotic scene. Other types of puzzles are presented to players in between.

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 
The Search for Amelia Earhart is a decent search-and-find game. And Amelia Earhart's story is an inherently interesting one. The plot device used to tell it -- namely, that of a psychic sensing moments in Earhart's past -- is a bit cheesy, though, and doesn't actually amount to anything, as it is not Christine's psychic powers that end up revealing the famed aviator's true fate in the end. And that ending is more than a bit anticlimactic. While the story could definitely have been improved upon, the gameplay is generally fine. One nice feature is the way certain items you find (a key, a screwdriver, a handle, etc.) will give you access to new areas to search.

Game themes & details

Game Details
Available on: Windows
Not available online
Genre: Puzzle
Developer: THQ, Valusoft
Released on: December 22, 2009
Price: 19.99
ESRB Rating: E for Comic Mischief, Tobacco Reference
Screenshots
This review was written by Christopher Healy
 
 

Review It

 

Review The Search for Amelia Earhart

Hang on! You need to be a member to post your review.
A safe community is important to us. Please observe our guidelines.
 

There aren’t any reviews yet. Ask your friends to review this title.

More reviews ...

An independent voice for families
Age-appropriate reviews
Advice on the big issues
 

vote now

Will you play The Search for Amelia Earhart?

Game on
Press pause
Game over

Already played it? What do you think?

I recommend it
It's a pass
 

Great alternatives handpicked by our editors

More search-and-find games
For kids who love puzzle games
Browse more games
About our rating system
ON: Content is appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child, some content may not be right for some kids
OFF: Not age appropriate for kids this age
Our child development rating guidelines