Logical Journey of the Zoombinis
Logical Journey of the Zoombinis (also known as Zoombinis Logical Journey and Zoombinis) is an educational puzzle video game developed and published by Broderbund for the original and The Learning Company for the rerelease. It is the first game in the Zoombinis video game series.
Also recorded as Zoombinis
Logical Journey of the Zoombinis
- Date
- 1996
- Publisher
- Broderbund
- Genre
- puzzle video game
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Logical Journey of the Zoombinis (also known as Zoombinis Logical Journey and Zoombinis) is an educational puzzle video game developed and published by Broderbund for the original and The Learning Company for the rerelease. It is the first game in the Zoombinis video game series.
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wikidata · Q2364982 · wikipedia · Logical Journey of the Zoombinis
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Title — Logical Journey of the Zoombinis • Developer — Broderbund (v1) The Learning Company (v2.0) • Publisher — Broderbund (v1) The Learning Company (v2.0) • Platforms — Windows, Mac OS, OS X • Designer — * Chris Hancock • Scot Osterweil • Writer — * Karen Boylan • Dennis Leahy • Chris Hancock • Scot Osterweil • Jonelle Adkisson • Programmer — Michael C. Rivard • Composer — Jonelle Adkisson • Released — 26 February 1996 • Genre — Educational, puzzle • Modes — Single-player • Series — Zoombinis
Gameplay
Gameplay
• Illustration — The Zoombini select screen at the start of each adventure The Zoombinis are a species of small blue creatures depicted with varying facial features, initially living in prosperous peace on a small island called Zoombini Isle. Later they are tricked and enslaved by their neighbors, the Bloats. The game depicts the Zoombinis' search for a new home, featuring a variety of logical puzzles which the player must solve to get the Zoombinis to their new home. Most of the puzzles involve the physical features of the Zoombinis as part of the solution. For example, in the puzzle 'Allergic Cliffs', the player is given a choice of 2 bridges, each of which will allow Zoombinis to pass only if they have certain combinations of features. In total, there are 625 unique combinations, of which the game allows to make up to two Zoombinis (twins) with each combination, making 1,250 possible Zoombinis in total. Of these, 625 must be saved in order to finish the game. The Zoombinis travel in groups of a maximum of 16 across a series of puzzles. There are 12 puzzles in total, split into four sections of 3 puzzles each, and the Zoombinis must complete a path of 9 puzzles to establish their new home at 'Zoombiniton' ('Zoombiniville' in US version). The first and last 'legs' are compulsory and must be completed by all Zoombinis; for the second leg, the player is given a choice to take either the north or the south path. Between each 'leg' is a campsite where the Zoombinis can be stored for later retrieval. The first time the player successfully brings an entire party of 16 Zoombinis through a leg, a building will be constructed at Zoombiniton/Zoombiniville to celebrate this achievement. If three parties of 16 are brought through a leg, the difficulty of that leg increases for future trips (unless it is already the maximum difficulty, named "Very, Very Hard" and color-coded red). The four difficulty levels are 'Not So Easy', 'Oh So Hard', 'Very Hard', and 'Very Very Hard', and each difficulty level is color-coded (green, yellow, orange, and red, or green, purple, yellow, and red, respectively). Once a leg has increased in difficulty, there is no way to reverse the change.
Development
Development
The game was created in 1995, and released in 1996. The European version has different names of some areas of the game.
Expansions and franchise
Expansions and franchise
The US version of the game was expanded and republished as Zoombinis Logical Journey v2.0 by The Learning Company in September 2001. A remake for modern devices, titled Zoombinis, was officially released on 6 August 2015 for iPadOS, Android, Windows and MacOS, and for Fire OS on 28 October of the same year by TERC, FableVision, and Learning Games Network.
Places
Named by the record
Places
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- United States
Reception
The Washington Posts Rob Pegoraro wrote that the game's pattern and deductive logic puzzles teach "how to think" rather than a specific skill. Karney said the game was fun and praised its audio cues for children with little reading skills. In 1997, the game won "Best Home Education for Pre-Teens" at the 12th Codie awards. The editors of PC Gamer US named Zoombinis 1996's "Best Educational Game", and wrote that it "has the same appeal and value for your brain as a favorite sport does for your body". It was also a finalist for the Computer Game Developers Conference's 1996 "Best Educational Game" Spotlight Award, but lost the prize to Freddi Fish 2. It received 4 out of 5 stars from Macworld, and 4 out of 5 from MacUser, whose editors declared it one of 1996's top 50 CD-ROMs.
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Logical Journey of the Zoombinis”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q2364982: Logical Journey of the Zoombinis
General reference · Wikidata
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Rodgers, Ellie. Zoombinis turn math into fun. Idaho Statesman. 32. 15 February 1996.
- 2.Computer Shopper. Logical Journey of the Zoombinis. (Broderbund) (The Learning Arcade) (Software Review) (Brief Article) (Evaluation).
- 3.Zoombinis. IGDB.
- 4.Pegoraro, Rob. The Learning Game. The Washington Post. April 7, 1996.
- 5.Tape-Disc Business. 1997 Codies awarded for best software. April 1, 1997.
- 6.PC Gamer Reveals Its 1997 Award Winners. Business Wire. February 6, 1997.
- 7.Staff. And the Nominees Are. Next Generation. April 15, 1997.
- 8.Game Developers Conference. Spotlight Awards Winners Announced for Best Computer Games of 1996. April 28, 1997.
- 9.Logical Journey of the Zoombinis. Macworld. July 1996.
- 10.((The Editors of MacUser)). MacUser s 1996 Top 50 CD-ROMs. Kid's Stuff. December 1996.
References
Citations
References
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reference work
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General reference
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 18 August 2026.
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