Funky Barn
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this game.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Funky Barn is a "time management" game in which players take control of a farm and try to manage a continuously growing collection of milk jugs, pieces of wool, eggs, and more. Players must manage their time effectively while keeping an eye on the farm's inventory. The game starts off relatively simple but quickly becomes much harder as the number of animals -- and the demands of each level -- gradually increase.
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What’s It About?
FUNKY BARN throws players directly into the ownership of their own farm. Things start out modestly with a couple barn animals and small demands for things like milk and eggs. As players gain money and expand their farm, though, they will quickly learn that it isn't always quite so easy. As more exotic animals (llamas, buffalos, and the like) begin to arrive, it becomes more difficult to keep track of the different animals and the items they produce. Funky Barn challenges players to work their way up from easy mode to medium and then eventually hard, to prove that they are a master of time management and barn acumen.
Is It Any Good?
Funky Barn offers all that can be expected from a time management game. It introduces players with a level that provides enough variety to get them hooked right away. Funky Barn then ratchets up the difficulty one notch every level, making it an addicting experience where players don't quit if they lose a level, but instead, try again. That being said, it would have been nice to see a little more variety among the different levels. Once players are empowered enough to master the organization of the different barn animals, there is nowhere else for them to advance. Having a set of secondary tasks to make the game more challenging -- and more rewarding -- would have given this game a deeper level of "replayability." Once players complete every level there is little reason to play again, and because the difficulty level reaches its apex after only a few levels, completing every level is not as rewarding an experience as it is in other time management games.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the difficulty of effective time management. When did you reach the point where things became a bit too chaotic to handle?
In real life, what can you do if there is too much on your plate?
What are the best techniques for time management? Do you always follow these?
Game Details
- Platform: Nintendo Wii U
- Subjects: Hobbies: collecting
- Skills: Self-Direction: time management, work to achieve goals, working efficiently
- Available online?: Not available online
- Publisher: 505 Games
- Release date: November 18, 2012
- Genre: Time Management
- ESRB rating: E for Comic Mischief
- Last updated: August 26, 2016
Our Editors Recommend
For kids who love simulations and time management
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