For those of us who remember playing Jeopardy with the metal clickers in the family room, this software makes that board game seem as ancient as a horse and buggy. Alex Trebek is now in full-color, 3-D motion, swooping down on the screen to tell you if you've answered correctly. (And, to be sure, he's come up with every English-language variation on "yes", "no," and "correct.") The board of dollar-amount choices jumps out at you--indeed, the graphics and game design itself--making this game engaging, challenging, and terrific. There is a caveat to this software, though: players need to have a good sound system, since the answers that the other computer-sponsored players provide is only by voice, not in text. If you're taking this game on an airplane, for example, make sure your headset can support the volume you need, or you're likely to wind up frustrated, wondering who was the third emperor of Japan?
Unlike a game such as Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, Jeopardy plays it straight. So upstanding, in fact, that the other contestants have voices like the kind you hear making announcements at the airport or while you're waiting on hold on the phone. The overall tone matches that of the television show, since the contest questions are of a highly challenging caliber and Trebek is known for his straight-laced, college-professor delivery. The software seems to acquiesce just a tiny bit to the present day, providing questions on recent rock lyrics, for example.
To that end, we did wonder why there were so many questions concerning celebrities. In a matter of only a couple of rounds, we had three answers whose questions were: "Who is Madonna?" It seems a subtle way of making new players feel better about their intellectual muscle, since, let's face it, we missed the question on Genghis Khan.
Educational and of a high caliber, Jeopardy deserves a spot on the shelf of every game show enthusiast and show fan. Parents and kids can spend time together, all the while learning about the myriad subjects this show has covered since its inception in 1964. --Jennifer Buckendorff
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