The first thing that will strike you after installing TuneLand from 7th Level is the total absence of any death-dealing instruments or fearsome opponents to use them against. The next thing you'll notice is that there's always something going on in this interactive songbook. Taking close aim at one of the major criticisms of CD-ROM-based titles - that there is too much dead air - 7th Level engineers have developed effective techniques to ensure that something is always happening while you're waiting for the laser to cue to the next song.
And there is a lot going on: everything in TuneLand is active, and clicking anywhere yields some sort of response - and not always the same one. The title includes over 12,000 frames of very attractive animation rendered using digital inking and painting tools developed by MetroCel Animation for such tube cult staples as Beavis & Butt-head and The Ren & Stimpy Show. Also featured are more than 40 favorite childhood songs sure to delight any young child and to drive parents batty after the hundredth playing - today.
It pays to have awesome speakers to listen to the TuneLand ditties, as they are full-blown CD-quality audio. Bet you never thought you'd hear the likes of former Pink Floydsters Scott Page (who also grabbed a producer credit) and David Gilmour exercising their chops on tunes like "The Old Gray Mare," "Eentsy Weentsy Spider," and "Three Blind Mice." Your guide to TuneLand's "DeskTop PlayGround" is comedian Howie Mandel as the voice of Lil' Howie.
The major disappointment in my travels in TuneLand was the quality of some of the incidental audio. These digitized bits jarred my ear after the exceptional production values of the principal songs, and made some of the dialog unintelligible. I also found disconcerting the presence of characters that seemed to be taken straight from the cels of Fantasia and other Disney classics.
My favorite touch? The TuneLand package includes a very cool sing-along activity book with the heretofore forgotten lyrics of many of my favorite childhood songs plus cutouts of TuneLand characters that I - uh - kids can color in and play with. If you're looking to spend some quality time with a child snuggled up in front of a computer, TuneLand deserves a CD-ROM caddy of its very own.
Looking for something more adult? Stay tuned for 7th Level's next project: The CD-ROM Thingie, starring Monty Python.
TuneLand for Windows: US$49.95. 7th Level Inc.: +1 (818) 547 1955.
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