Common Sense Media Review
By Chris Morris
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Comprehensive collection of familiar mini-games.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 8+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Play
Videos and Photos
TouchMaster: Connect
What's It About?
There's really no cohesive plot in TOUCHMASTER: CONNECT. Rather, the game collects 20 mini-games which can be sorted into puzzles, strategy, action, and card games. There are variations of match-3 games, a couple of versions of solitaire, a trivia game played on a tic-tac-toe game board, a pong game, and one in which you try to grow a snowman by rolling over snowballs or snowmen that are equal or smaller than you while avoiding ones that are bigger. Most of the games are timed. You can earn achievements by winning the games using specific strategies. All of the games are available at the start -- you don't have to unlock them.
Is It Any Good?
There's nothing particularly original in TouchMaster: Connect. All of the games are offshoots of familiar other titles, such as the "Match 3 or more" gameplay of Bejeweled or the "knock the blocks" style of Breakout or "tic tac toe trivia" of Hollywood Squares. That said, they don't need to be original. This game brings them all together in one cartridge. If one isn't suited to your tastes, there are plenty of other options. There is, literally, something for everyone. The game is generous with its rewards and achievements, which encourages you to keep playing. And the new social aspects -- especially the leader boards -- will be a big hit with the series' avid fan base. This is the fourth game in the Touchmaster series.
Online interaction: Players can post their scores and achievements on Facebook and Twitter directly from their DS via Nintendo's Wi-Fi connection. There's also a worldwide leaderboard.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about keeping competition friendly and not becoming too competitve.
They can also discuss the importance of sharing time together when playing a game.
Also, several of the mini-games require math skills. Parents can talk to children about how education and studying can be fun and not a chore.
Game Details
- Platforms : Nintendo DS , Nintendo DSi
- Pricing structure :
- Available online? : Available online
- Publisher : Warner Bros. Games
- Release date : December 7, 2010
- Genre : Mini-games
- ESRB rating :
- Last updated : November 11, 2020
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