Pacific Interactive has announced that America's favorite scientist will make his multimedia debut in Bill Nye the Science Guy: Stop the Rock!, a science adventure CD-ROM for kids nine and up.
Published by Pacific and distributed through Disney Interactive, Bill Nye the Science Guy: Stop the Rock! will be available for both PCs and Macs in late summer.
Inspired by the popular children's television show, "Disney Presents Bill Nye the Science Guy", the CD-ROM is an interactive learning adventure in which kids must work alongside Bill Nye to learn concepts related to earth science (e.g., geology, paleontology, oceanography and more) and save the world from a rapidly approaching meteor. The title's design allows it to bring together the dynamics of an exciting story line, the time pressures of an adventure game, and the educational depth of real-life science lessons.
"The interest in science among kids is at an all time high and 'Disney Presents Bill Nye the Science Guy', the television show, is a major catalyst in this phenomenon," said Jonathan Stroum, Pacific Interactive CEO. "We are excited to be publishing Bill's first offering in this medium while delivering something of real value to kids."
Part action adventure game, part science review
"We worked for many months with the show's writers and working scientists to come up with 'real' science concepts that were exciting and interesting to kids," said Scott Fillingham, Pacific's Creative Director. "Our goal was to build an exciting, fun-filled world where kids could discover for themselves how cool real science can be. Earth science, with its attendant medley of volcanoes, tidal waves, dinosaur bones, thunderstorms, and other natural disasters, became the natural choice.
Throughout the game, players work with Bill Nye and his cohorts at the ever-resourceful Nye Labs, to master science knowledge and solve puzzles to beat the clock. The only way to save the world from certain cosmic doom is to use science to solve seven confounding riddles. Wacky, Nye-inspired scientific devices are the keys to success: the Nyecomm 3000, the Nyesmograph and the Sonic Net are but a few examples. In all, Bill Nye the Science Guy: Stop the Rock! is comprised of 14 riddles and 17 science devices, and provides more than 20 hours of engaging, enriching fun. The science material, which covers nearly 20 learning objectives, is drawn from the National Science Standards manual.
Thumbs up from teachers, kids, parents
"Bill Nye the Science Guy: Stop the Rock! is an example of the best kind of interactive media for teaching kids," said Kimberley Osberg, Ph.D. candidate in Educational Technology and Principal of Firsthand LLC. "It is remarkably deep and, most importantly, engages kids from start to finish, imparting not only very solid scientific knowledge, but critical thinking and deductive reasoning skills as well. Kids really absorb the material, because it's presented in the inimitable Bill Nye way: fun and fast paced, yet sincerely respectful of the process of scientific discovery."
Distributed through Disney Interactive
Disney Interactive will distribute Bill Nye the Science Guy: Stop the Rock! for Pacific Interactive. Disney Interactive's access to many retail channels, together with the continued popularity of the "Disney Presents Bill Nye the Science Guy" television show, will undoubtedly contribute to a solid market presence for the CD-ROM.
Star Power of Bill Nye the Science Guy
Like Pacific Interactive, Bill Nye has roots in Seattle. He is scientist/comedian/teacher/author all rolled into one. Bill Nye is a man with a mission, and that's to turn kids on to the "way cool" wonders of science!
He's proven this in his wildly popular "Disney Presents Bill Nye the Science Guy" half-hour television series (watched by 5 million kids every week). Bill's fascination with how things work led him to Cornell University and a degree in mechanical engineering, and then on to his post at Seattle-based Boeing Co. It was in Seattle that Bill began to combine his love of science with his flare for comedy, appearing as a regular on a local Seattle comedy show called "Almost Live!" (also seen on Comedy Central.)
Seattle's favorite stand-up scientist has won a truck load of awards including an Emmy nomination for this year's Outstanding Children's Series. In addition, he's received numerous Parent's Choice awards for quality children's television and the NEA award for Advancement of Learning through Broadcasting, to name a mere few.
Price and Availability
Bill Nye the Science Guy: Stop the Rock! will be available in late August for both PCs and Macs (hybrid disc) at an approximate street price of $40. Recommended minimum hardware for the PC version includes a 486-33 megahertz computer running Windows 3.1 or Windows 95 system software, 8MB of RAM, a MPC compatible double speed CD-ROM drive, 256-color SVGA monitor and a Windows compatible sound card. Recommended minimum hardware for the Macintosh version includes a 68040-20 megahertz computer running system 7.1 or higher, 8 MB of RAM, a double speed CD-ROM drive, and a 640X480 color display.